In Winnebago County, Iowa, rent on a two-bedroom takes about one in six dollars of the typical household's income
In Winnebago County, 15.6% of the typical household's income would go to rent on a two-bedroom. That is lower than in 95% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 91% of U.S. counties.
What drives Winnebago County's score
In Winnebago County, late payments on loans are the highest-scoring part, at 38.1. Collections and bankruptcy is the lowest part, at 13.2. Bankruptcy filings ran at 37.8 per 100,000 people (2025), lower than in 94% of U.S. counties.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Winnebago County: jobs, late payments on loans, income and the safety net, collections and bankruptcy, and housing costs. Each part is scored from 0 to 100, and a higher score means worse off than other counties.
Winnebago County isn't among the worst-off quarter of U.S. counties on any measure.
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 38.1 of 100
Late payments
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind4.3% · August 202529th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind5.6% · August 202556th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score34.7% · second quarter of 202628th percentile
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- 27.7 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line10.4% · 202425th percentile
- Children below the poverty line13.4% · 202429th percentile
- People with a disability12.6% · 2020 to 202419th percentile
- People without health insurance5.6% · 2020 to 202426th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$71,443 · 202437th percentile
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- 19.2 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year3.5% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202630th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working12.6% · 2020 to 20247th percentile
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- 17.5 of 100
Housing costs
Renters, 2020–24 Census survey; HUD's fair market rents, fiscal year 2027
- Renters paying half their income or more in rent14.8% · 2020 to 202430th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income15.6% · fiscal year 20275th or lower percentile
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- 13.2 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector15.6% · August 202521st percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people37.8 · 20255th percentile
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Sources: Urban Institute, Debt in America; Equifax via the St. Louis Fed; Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts, Table F-5A; U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey; U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development Fair Market Rents and Census income; U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Local Area Unemployment Statistics; Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates. County Distress Index by American Default Research, from data through Sep 2026.
Where the money in Winnebago County comes from
Benefit checks are Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid paid on people's behalf, veterans' benefits, and food and income support, so a high share usually means an older population, low pay, or both. In Winnebago County, 22.1% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Winnebago County
Iowa
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
Benefit checks' share of income in Winnebago County rose most in two steps: 18.1% in 2004 to 23.3% in 2009; 20.8% in 2014 to 26.0% in 2019.
In Winnebago County, benefit checks' share of income has tripled since 1969, reaching 26.3% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in twice as much as benefit checks
In Winnebago County, Iowa, benefit checks' share of income tripled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 26.3%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Winnebago County getting SNAP food aid had its largest drop, from 7.0% in 2009 to 5.3% in 2010.
The share of households in Winnebago County getting SNAP food aid fell to its lowest on the chart in 2010, then climbed past the 2009 level
Low on the chart: 5.3% in 2010. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Winnebago County, Iowa.
How Winnebago County has changed
Winnebago County's population had its largest drop, from 13,522 in 1979 to 12,633 in 1984.
Winnebago County's population fell by about a fifth to 10,383, the lowest on the chart
High on the chart: 13,729 in 1974. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Winnebago County, Iowa.
The number of jobs located in Winnebago County had its largest drop, from 8,304 in 1995 to 5,544 in 2000.
The number of jobs located in Winnebago County was at its highest on the chart in 1995 and has since fallen by about half
High on the chart: 8,304 in 1995. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Winnebago County, Iowa.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 8.0% | 2025 3.5% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 7.4% | 2024 10.4% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $25,940 | 2024 $71,443 |
Figures are as each agency published them, not adjusted for prices.
Dated events in Winnebago County's history
1862
Winnebago removed after Dakota War of 1862. Wikipedia
1938
Winnebago Rural Electric Cooperative established 1938 first lines energized January 3 1940. Wikipedia
1940
The county's largest recorded population was the 1940 Census count of 13,972. The 2020 Census counted 10,679, 76% of the peak. Census Bureau
1980
A tornado in September 1980 did $2.5 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
1984
A tornado in June 1984 did $2.5 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
1984
A tornado in June 1984 did $2.5 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
1997
Hail in June 1997 did $1.5 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1965
16 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Winnebago County, 10 of them for flooding. FEMA
Winnebago County beside its neighbors
Of the five counties that border Winnebago County, in Iowa and Minnesota, two score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Winnebago County ranks 3rd of the six; Faribault County is highest, at 31.4%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Faribault County, MN | 33 | 10.8% | 31.4% |
| Freeborn County, MN | 32 | 11.3% | 28.3% |
| Winnebago County, IA | 8 | 10.4% | 26.3% |
| Hancock County, IA | 5 | 9.4% | 20.1% |
| Worth County, IA | 3 | 10.0% | 23.3% |
| Kossuth County, IA | 3 | 8.9% | 23.2% |
Distress score: American Default Research, County Distress Index, data through Sep 2026; each county scored against all 3,144. Poverty rate: Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates, 2024. Benefit checks: Bureau of Economic Analysis, 2024. Neighbors share a border, from Census county maps.
Is Winnebago County the poorest county in Iowa?
No, Winnebago County's poverty rate was 10.4% in 2024, 58th highest of 99 in Iowa (U.S. Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates). By that measure the poorest county in the state is Decatur County, at 18.1%. On our distress index, which counts more than poverty, Winnebago County ranks 65th of 99 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Winnebago County
Housing counselors approved by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development work at nonprofit agencies. The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau describes free foreclosure-avoidance counseling, including help with mortgage-company conversations and available options Source CFPB.
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Iowa Legal Aid
Legal aid
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HUD-approved housing counselors
Our help directory lists 1,010 agencies approved for foreclosure counseling, by state.
The score, its 14 measures and their sources, in one file. Free to use with credit to American Default Research.
Download the CSV for Winnebago County · Every U.S. county (CSV)
Sources and method
- American Default Research · County Distress Index Data through Sep 2026, built from Urban Institute, Debt in America; Equifax via the St. Louis Fed; U.S. Courts, Table F-5A; Census Bureau, American Community Survey; HUD Fair Market Rents and Census income; Bureau of Labor Statistics, Local Area Unemployment Statistics; Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates. The County Distress Index is American Default Research's own calculation; the Urban Institute does not produce or endorse it. Our methodology
- Urban Institute · Debt in America Breno Braga, Signe-Mary McKernan, Samantha Atherton, and Kassandra Martinchek, "Debt in America," last updated November 20, 2025, https://datacatalog.urban.org/dataset/debt-america-2025. Licensed under ODC-By 1.0.
- Rent on a two-bedroom and household income The rent share compares HUD fair market rent for fiscal year 2027 with Census Bureau median household income for 2024. The page calls this the typical household's income.
- U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Economic Accounts (CAINC4) · income shares Where the money in Winnebago County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.