Martin County, Kentucky

County Distress Index: Elevated · 64.0 | 10,928 people · 27th most distressed in Kentucky
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Martin County, KY registers elevated household financial distress with a score of 64.0 — 558th nationally out of 3144 counties. The primary driver is Income & Poverty, where poverty rates are high and household incomes lag well behind state and national medians. Within Kentucky, it ranks 27th of 120 counties. Among its 6 neighboring counties, 5 show more distress.

The Numbers Behind the Score

The CDI measures five domains of financial distress. Martin County's primary driver is Income & Poverty at 95.0 — worse than roughly 95% of U.S. counties.

Income & Poverty Primary driver 95.0
Poverty Rate 95
Income vs. State Median 95
Child Poverty Rate 95
Employment & Wages 66.0
Unemployment Rate 95
Wage-to-Rent Ratio 8
Business Formation Rate 95
Debt & Delinquency 64.2
Debt in Collections 85
Medical Debt 57
Student Loan Delinquency 7
Auto Loan Delinquency 66
Credit Card Delinquency 83
Bankruptcy Filing Rate 87
Community Vulnerability 50.0
Uninsured Rate 5
Disability Rate 95
Housing Cost Burden 44.9
Rent-Burdened (30%+) 39
Severely Rent-Burdened (50%+) 68
Mortgage-Burdened (30%+) 5
Homeownership Rate 18
Rent-to-Income Ratio 94

Scores are percentile-based: 50 = national median, higher = more distressed. The median line is shown on each bar.

Neighbors and Peers

How Martin County compares to its 6 neighboring counties and population peers.

Neighboring Counties

County Score Zone vs. Martin County
Martin County, KY 64.0 Elevated —
Johnson County, KY 69.1 Serious +5.1
Mingo County, WV 68.3 Serious +4.3
Lawrence County, KY 68.0 Serious +4.0
Pike County, KY 66.8 Serious +2.8
Floyd County, KY 66.5 Serious +2.5
Wayne County, WV 58.8 Elevated -5.3

Population Peers

County Score Zone vs. Martin County
Cross County, AR 64.0 Elevated -0.0
San Juan County, UT 64.0 Elevated -0.0
Chester County, SC 64.0 Elevated -0.0
Wayne County, TN 64.0 Elevated -0.0
Gallia County, OH 64.0 Elevated -0.0

Download Data

Export all distress indicators for Martin County as a CSV file.

Find Help in Martin County

Find an Attorney

Kentucky Bar Association Lawyer Referral offers a lawyer referral service for bankruptcy, foreclosure defense, and consumer rights.

Kentucky Bar Association Lawyer Referral 502-564-3795

Free Legal Aid

Legal aid organizations serving Martin County residents at no cost.

Legal Aid of the Bluegrass 1-800-928-4615
Kentucky Legal Aid 1-866-452-9243
Appalachian Research and Defense Fund of Kentucky (866) 277-5733
Legal Aid Society (502) 584-1254

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Frequently Asked Questions

  • What is the distress score for Martin County, Kentucky?

    Martin County has a County Distress Index score of 64.0 out of 100, placing it in the Elevated zone. It ranks 558th nationally out of 3,144 counties and 27th in Kentucky out of 120 counties.

  • What drives financial distress in Martin County?

    The primary driver of distress in Martin County is Income & Poverty, where the county scores 95.0 out of 100. This domain is measured by indicators including Poverty Rate, Income vs. State Median, Child Poverty Rate.

  • How does Martin County compare to neighboring counties?

    Martin County (64.0) can be compared to its 6 neighboring counties: Johnson County, KY (69.1); Mingo County, WV (68.3); Lawrence County, KY (68.0).

  • How is the County Distress Index calculated?

    The County Distress Index uses percentile-rank averaging across five domains: Debt & Delinquency, Income & Poverty, Housing Cost Burden, Employment & Wages, and Community Vulnerability. Each county's indicators are ranked against all 3,144 U.S. counties. A score of 50 means the county is at the national median; higher scores indicate greater distress.

  • What is the population of Martin County?

    Martin County, Kentucky has a population of approximately 10,928 (2023 Census estimate), classified as a small county.