About one in five people in Montgomery County, Kentucky, has a disability
In Montgomery County, 21.1% of people reported a disability. That is higher than in 84% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 71% of U.S. counties.
What drives Montgomery County's score
In Montgomery County, collections and bankruptcy weighs most: the score for collections and bankruptcy is 78.5. Bankruptcy filings ran at 259.4 per 100,000 people (2025), higher than in 86% of U.S. counties. Jobs come next, at 75.9.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Montgomery 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.
Montgomery County does better than most counties on two measures: renters paying half their income or more in rent (14.9%, 2020 to 2024) and rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income (19.5%, fiscal year 2027).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 78.6 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector28.9% · August 202570th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people259.4 · 202586th percentile
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- 75.9 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year4.9% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202677th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working25.1% · 2020 to 202474th percentile
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- 63.0 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line15.5% · 202467th percentile
- Children below the poverty line17.7% · 202452nd percentile
- People with a disability21.1% · 2020 to 202485th percentile
- People without health insurance7.2% · 2020 to 202444th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$61,732 · 202465th percentile
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- 62.6 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind5.7% · August 202554th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind6.0% · August 202561st percentile
- People with a subprime credit score46.9% · second quarter of 202672nd percentile
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- 33.7 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 rent14.9% · 2020 to 202430th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income19.5% · fiscal year 202736th 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 Montgomery 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 Montgomery County, 16.9% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Montgomery County
Kentucky
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Montgomery County, benefit checks' share of income has tripled since 1969, reaching 30.1% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in twice as much as benefit checks
In Montgomery County, Kentucky, benefit checks' share of income tripled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 30.1%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Montgomery County getting SNAP food aid had its largest rise, from 20.2% in 2011 to 23.0% in 2012.
The share of households in Montgomery County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2012 and has since fallen to 16.5%
Biggest drop: 2016 to 2017, reaching 18.9%. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Montgomery County, Kentucky.
How Montgomery County has changed
Montgomery County's population doubled to 28,771, the highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 2004 to 2009, reaching 26,407. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Montgomery County, Kentucky.
The number of jobs located in Montgomery County had its largest rise, from 7,034 in 1995 to 10,133 in 2000.
The number of jobs located in Montgomery County was at its highest on the chart in 2015 and is down 8% since
High on the chart: 10,981 in 2015. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Montgomery County, Kentucky.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 10.9% | 2025 5.1% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 18.3% | 2024 15.5% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $21,276 | 2024 $61,732 |
The table uses 5.1% for 2025; the score uses 4.9% 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 Montgomery County's history
1796
1796, established from land given by Clark County. Wikipedia
1864
Battle of Mount Sterling June 1864 Confederate defeat. Wikipedia
1995
A thunderstorm in May 1995 did $5 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
1996
A flash flood in May 1996 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2020
The county's largest recorded population was the 2020 Census count of 28,114, which is also its most recent census. Census Bureau
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Since 1974
23 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Montgomery County, 10 of them for flooding. FEMA
Montgomery County beside its neighbors
All five counties that border Montgomery County score higher than it does. For the share of income from benefit checks, Montgomery County ranks 4th of the six; Menifee County is highest, at 46.6%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Powell County, KY | 94 | 20.8% | 42.2% |
| Menifee County, KY | 90 | 23.6% | 46.6% |
| Bath County, KY | 82 | 22.6% | 39.6% |
| Bourbon County, KY | 80 | 13.9% | 22.0% |
| Clark County, KY | 77 | 14.1% | 27.0% |
| Montgomery County, KY | 71 | 15.5% | 30.1% |
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 Montgomery County the poorest county in Kentucky?
No, Montgomery County's poverty rate was 15.5% in 2024, 74th 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, Montgomery County ranks 73rd of 120 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Montgomery 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 of the Bluegrass
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 Montgomery 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 Montgomery County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.