About one in five people in Henry County, Kentucky, has a disability
In Henry County, 19.6% of people reported a disability. That is higher than in 77% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 74% of U.S. counties.
What drives Henry County's score
In Henry County, collections and bankruptcy weighs most: the score for collections and bankruptcy is 73.8. Bankruptcy filings ran at 275.5 per 100,000 people (2025), higher than in 88% of U.S. counties. Housing costs come next, at 67.8.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Henry 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.
Henry County does better than most counties on two measures: people without health insurance (6.0%, 2020 to 2024) and median household income ($67,994, 2024).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 73.9 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector25.7% · August 202559th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people275.5 · 202588th percentile
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- 67.8 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 rent21.2% · 2020 to 202468th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income22.5% · fiscal year 202767th percentile
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- 64.1 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind6.9% · August 202571st percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind5.6% · August 202556th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score44.3% · second quarter of 202664th percentile
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- 60.2 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year4.3% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202659th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working22.5% · 2020 to 202460th percentile
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- 56.5 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line15.1% · 202465th percentile
- Children below the poverty line19.1% · 202460th percentile
- People with a disability19.6% · 2020 to 202478th percentile
- People without health insurance6.0% · 2020 to 202431st percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$67,994 · 202446th 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 Henry 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 Henry County, 18.4% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Henry County
Kentucky
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Henry County, benefit checks' share of income has tripled since 1969, reaching 28.2% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in twice as much as benefit checks
In Henry County, Kentucky, benefit checks' share of income tripled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 28.2%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Henry County getting SNAP food aid had its largest drop, from 17.6% in 2018 to 13.9% in 2019.
The share of households in Henry County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2011 and has since fallen to 11.7%
Low on the chart: 10.1% in 2023. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Henry County, Kentucky.
How Henry County has changed
Henry County's population rose by about half to 16,198, the highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 1974 to 1979, reaching 12,568. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Henry County, Kentucky.
The number of jobs located in Henry County had its largest rise in the last span, from 2,539 in 2020 to 3,044 in 2025.
The number of jobs located in Henry County was at its highest on the chart in 2005 and is down 9% since
High on the chart: 3,356 in 2005. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Henry County, Kentucky.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 3.6% | 2025 4.4% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 16.0% | 2024 15.1% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $21,365 | 2024 $67,994 |
The table uses 4.4% for 2025; the score uses 4.3% for the latest year (Oct 2025 to Sep 2026), both from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.
Figures are as each agency published them, not adjusted for prices.
Dated events in Henry County's history
1798
Founded in 1798 from portions of Shelby County. Wikipedia
1974
A tornado in April 1974 did $2.5 million in property damage and killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2004
A tornado in May 2004 did $2.5 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2020
The county's largest recorded population was the 2020 Census count of 15,678, which is also its most recent census. Census Bureau
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Since 1974
23 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Henry County, 15 of them for flooding. FEMA
Henry County beside its neighbors
Of the six counties that border Henry County, one scores higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Henry County ranks 5th of the seven; Owen County is highest, at 33.3%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Carroll County, KY | 75 | 17.3% | 30.0% |
| Henry County, KY | 74 | 15.1% | 28.2% |
| Franklin County, KY | 59 | 12.3% | 28.9% |
| Owen County, KY | 58 | 13.9% | 33.3% |
| Trimble County, KY | 53 | 12.5% | 28.5% |
| Shelby County, KY | 22 | 9.9% | 17.6% |
| Oldham County, KY | 4 | 6.0% | 11.3% |
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 Henry County the poorest county in Kentucky?
No, Henry County's poverty rate was 15.1% in 2024, 80th highest of 120 in Kentucky (U.S. Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates). By that measure the poorest county in the state is McCreary County, at 36.4%. On our distress index, which counts more than poverty, Henry County ranks 66th of 120 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Henry 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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Legal Aid Society
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.
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 Henry County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.