In Oldham County, Kentucky, rent on a two-bedroom takes about one in eight dollars of the typical household's income
In Oldham County, 12.4% of the typical household's income would go to rent on a two-bedroom. That is lower than in 99% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 95% of U.S. counties.
What drives Oldham County's score
In Oldham County, collections and bankruptcy is the highest-scoring part, at 31.6. Income and the safety net is the lowest part, at 2.3.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Oldham 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.
Oldham 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.
- 31.6 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector13.4% · August 202512th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people126.8 · 202550th percentile
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- 28.5 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 202643rd percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working14.4% · 2020 to 202413th percentile
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- 23.8 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 rent17.7% · 2020 to 202447th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income12.4% · fiscal year 20270th percentile
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- 6.2 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind2.8% · August 20259th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind2.4% · August 20257th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score23.0% · second quarter of 20261st percentile
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- 2.3 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line6.0% · 20241st percentile
- Children below the poverty line5.2% · 20240th percentile
- People with a disability9.9% · 2020 to 20243rd percentile
- People without health insurance3.2% · 2020 to 20243rd percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$123,360 · 20241st 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 Oldham 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 Oldham County, 14.6% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Oldham County
Kentucky
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
Benefit checks' share of income in Oldham County had its largest rise, from 7.5% in 2004 to 10.1% in 2009.
In Oldham County, benefit checks' share of income has nearly doubled since 1969, reaching 11.3% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in about six times as much as benefit checks
In Oldham County, Kentucky, benefit checks' share of income nearly doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 11.3%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Oldham County getting SNAP food aid had its largest drop, from 5.5% in 2016 to 4.5% in 2017.
The share of households in Oldham County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2015 and has since fallen to 3.4%
Low on the chart: 2.7% 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, Oldham County, Kentucky.
How Oldham County has changed
Oldham County's population had its largest rise, from 16,703 in 1974 to 26,300 in 1979.
Oldham County's population grew to about five times its 1969 size in 2024, reaching 70,525, with no dip in any year shown
Smallest rise: 1969 to 1974, reaching 16,703. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Oldham County, Kentucky.
The number of jobs located in Oldham County had its largest rise, from 8,216 in 1990 to 10,199 in 1995.
The number of jobs located in Oldham County doubled from 1990 to 2025, reaching 16,995, with no dip in any year shown
Smallest rise: 2000 to 2005, reaching 12,566. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Oldham County, Kentucky.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 3.1% | 2025 3.9% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 5.5% | 2024 6.0% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $43,744 | 2024 $123,360 |
Figures are as each agency published them, not adjusted for prices.
Dated events in Oldham County's history
1823
December 15, 1823, from parts of Henry, Jefferson, and Shelby Counties, the 74th Kentucky county. Wikipedia
1990
A tornado in June 1990 did $2.5 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2020
The county's largest recorded population was the 2020 Census count of 67,607, which is also its most recent census. Census Bureau
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Since 1974
18 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Oldham County, 9 of them for flooding. FEMA
Oldham County beside its neighbors
All five counties that border Oldham County, in Kentucky and Indiana, score higher than it does. Of the group, Oldham County gets the smallest share of its income from benefit checks; Trimble County gets the largest, at 28.5%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Henry County, KY | 74 | 15.1% | 28.2% |
| Jefferson County, KY | 69 | 14.6% | 20.1% |
| Trimble County, KY | 53 | 12.5% | 28.5% |
| Clark County, IN | 48 | 10.5% | 22.7% |
| 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 Oldham County the poorest county in Kentucky?
No, Oldham County's poverty rate was 6.0% in 2024, the lowest 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, Oldham County ranks 120th of 120 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Oldham 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.
Download the CSV for Oldham 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 Oldham County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.