In Harvey County, Kansas, rent on a two-bedroom takes about one in six dollars of the typical household's income
In Harvey County, 16.2% of the typical household's income would go to rent on a two-bedroom. That is lower than in 91% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 80% of U.S. counties.
What drives Harvey County's score
In Harvey County, collections and bankruptcy is the highest-scoring part, at 43.2. Late payments on loans are the lowest part, at 20.7. People with a car or retail loan behind: 2.4%, August 2025, lower than in 92% of U.S. counties.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Harvey 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.
Harvey 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.
- 43.2 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector17.8% · August 202530th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people140.3 · 202556th percentile
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- 35.1 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year3.9% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202644th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working16.8% · 2020 to 202425th percentile
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- 34.8 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 rent20.0% · 2020 to 202461st percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income16.2% · fiscal year 20278th percentile
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- 25.9 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line8.5% · 202411th percentile
- Children below the poverty line9.8% · 202412th percentile
- People with a disability13.1% · 2020 to 202423rd percentile
- People without health insurance8.7% · 2020 to 202457th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$77,273 · 202424th percentile
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- 20.7 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind3.5% · August 202518th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind2.4% · August 20257th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score36.9% · second quarter of 202636th 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 Harvey 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 Harvey County, 21.4% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Harvey County
Kansas
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Harvey County, benefit checks' share of income has more than doubled since 1969, reaching 25.2% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in more than twice as much as benefit checks
In Harvey County, Kansas, benefit checks' share of income more than doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 25.2%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Harvey County getting SNAP food aid had its largest drop, from 7.8% in 2017 to 5.7% in 2018.
The share of households in Harvey County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2015 and has since fallen to 5.7%
Low on the chart: 5.1% in 2022. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Harvey County, Kansas.
How Harvey County has changed
Harvey County's population had its largest rise, from 28,401 in 1974 to 30,420 in 1979.
Harvey County's population rose by about a quarter from 1969 to 2024, reaching 33,642
High on the chart: 34,547 in 2009. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Harvey County, Kansas.
The jobs count covers work located in the county; the population count covers residents.
The number of jobs located in Harvey County rose by about a quarter from 1990 to 2025, reaching 14,096, with most of the change between 1990 and 1995
High on the chart: 14,151 in 2015. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Harvey County, Kansas.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 3.1% | 2025 3.9% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 8.5% | 2024 8.5% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $28,210 | 2024 $77,273 |
Figures are as each agency published them, not adjusted for prices.
Dated events in Harvey County's history
1874
Major grasshopper plague in 1874. Wikipedia
1970
A tornado in March 1970 did $2.5 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
1990
A tornado in March 1990 did $25 million in property damage and killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
1990
A tornado in March 1990 did $25 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2007
A flood in May 2007 did $1 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2010
The county's largest recorded population was the 2010 Census count of 34,684. The 2020 Census counted 34,024, 98% of the peak. Census Bureau
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Since 1965
24 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Harvey County, 16 of them for flooding. FEMA
Harvey County beside its neighbors
Of the five counties that border Harvey County, two score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Harvey County ranks 3rd of the six; Marion County is highest, at 28.1%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Reno County, KS | 51 | 11.9% | 26.1% |
| Sedgwick County, KS | 48 | 12.5% | 18.3% |
| Butler County, KS | 19 | 8.3% | 19.3% |
| Harvey County, KS | 19 | 8.5% | 25.2% |
| Marion County, KS | 13 | 9.3% | 28.1% |
| McPherson County, KS | 6 | 8.3% | 20.9% |
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 Harvey County the poorest county in Kansas?
No, Harvey County's poverty rate was 8.5% in 2024, 94th highest of 105 in Kansas (U.S. Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates). By that measure the poorest county in the state is Riley County, at 18.1%. On our distress index, which counts more than poverty, Harvey County ranks 69th of 105 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Harvey 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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Kansas Legal Services
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 Harvey 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 Harvey County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.