#1,166 Kentucky · 2026

Todd County, Kentucky

57.8 · moderate county distress 1,166th of 3,144 counties nationally · 12,494 residents How this is calculated →
The headline number
240 Todd residents
vs.
126 U.S. median

Above the national median for bankruptcy filing rate — and 32.9× the rate of the healthiest U.S. county (Glacier County, MT — 7).

Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts, F-5A (2025)

Main Findings

Wire lede · 38 words · paste-ready

Todd County, Kentucky ranks 1,166th most distressed in the United States on the County Distress Index. The driver: a bankruptcy filing rate of 240 — above the national median of 126. Its highest-scoring domain is Default & Legal.

Key Findings
  • 1,166th of 3,144 counties on the County Distress Index — 57.8 · moderate county distress, 99th in Kentucky.
  • A bankruptcy filing rate of 240 (U.S. median 126). Bankruptcy filing rate at the 84th percentile nationally. Source: Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts, F-5A (2025).
  • Uninsured rate at 18% — national median 8%, ranked at the 95th percentile. Source: U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-year (2023).
  • Unemployment at 4% — national median 4%, ranked at the 60th percentile. Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, LAUS (May 2026).
  • Subprime credit share at 29% — national median 23%, ranked at the 72nd percentile. Source: Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis, Equifax (2025).
Distinctive Signals
Boundary Signal

Neighbors span five CDI score labels. The 36-point drop to Robertson County, TN marks a cross-border distress gradient.

County Distress Index cluster map. Todd County, Kentucky and its neighbors colored by county distress score label.
Todd and its 5 geographic neighbors, graded by County Distress Index score. Todd County ranks 1,166th of 3,144. American Default Research
Wire summary — paste-ready, any angle 26 words

Todd County has a moderate county distress score. The county sits near the middle of the CDI score scale, so the domain mix carries the story.

— American Default Research
Index note — for feature use 33 words

The CDI gives this county a moderate county distress label. The domain mix matters because the same composite score can come from very different local conditions. Its highest-scoring domain is Default & Legal.

— American Default Research

Indicator History

Period-correct raw indicators from the county-history panel. The CDI composite is excluded because it is a current cross-sectional score.

Updated Jul 1, 2026
BLS 1990 to 2025

Unemployment rate

3.9% -2.8 pp since 1990
Census 1989 to 2024

Poverty rate

16.6% -1.3 pp since 1989
BEA 1969 to 2024

Transfer income share

27.2% +14.5 pp since 1969
FRED/Equifax 2014 Q2 to 2025 Q4

Subprime credit population

29.1% -2.6 pp since 2014 Q2

The Indicators Behind Todd County's CDI Score

Every number traces to a public source. Todd County's value shown alongside KY's median and the U.S. median. Full CSV available for download.

How to read the table. A domain score is a 0–100 composite of the indicators in that domain; higher values represent a higher mean of distress-oriented indicator percentiles. A county's domain rank is computed separately against all counties. Percentile is Todd County's national rank among all 3,144 U.S. counties for that indicator, always oriented so higher = more distressed.
Indicator Todd KY median U.S. median Pctile Source
Delinquency — domain score 60 · Rank 1,226 of 3,144
Auto loan delinquency Share of auto loan accounts 60+ days past due 5% 6% 5% 42nd Urban Institute Debt in America (2025)
Credit card delinquency Share of credit card accounts 60+ days past due 6% 6% 5% 65th Urban Institute Debt in America (2025)
Subprime credit share Share of residents with a credit score below 660 29% 28% 23% 72nd Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis, Equifax (2025)
Default & Legal — domain score 77 · Rank 528 of 3,144
Debt in collections Share of residents with a credit file who have debt in collections 28% 29% 23% 70th Urban Institute Debt in America (2025)
Bankruptcy filing rate Personal bankruptcy filings per 100,000 residents 240 243 126 84th Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts, F-5A (2025)
Debt Burden (housing basis) — domain score 20 · Rank 2,773 of 3,144
Rent-to-income ratio Fair Market Rent (2BR) as share of median household income 19% 20% 21% 30th HUD FMR (FY2026); U.S. Census Bureau, SAIPE (2023)
Severe rent burden (50%+) Share of renter households paying 50%+ of income on rent 9% 18% 18% 10th U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-year (2023)
Labor — domain score 60 · Rank 1,197 of 3,144
Unemployment Share of labor force unemployed 4% 5% 4% 60th U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, LAUS (May 2026)
Safety Net & Buffer — domain score 72 · Rank 695 of 3,144
Child poverty rate Share of children under 18 below the federal poverty line 23% 22% 18% 72nd U.S. Census Bureau, SAIPE (2023)
Disability rate Share of residents reporting a disability 17% 21% 16% 59th U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-year (2023)
Poverty rate Share of population below the federal poverty line 16% 17% 14% 69th U.S. Census Bureau, SAIPE (2023)
Uninsured rate Share of residents without health insurance coverage 18% 6% 8% 95th U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-year (2023)
Data compiled May 2026 from Urban Institute Debt in America (2025 panel), U.S. Census Bureau (ACS 5-yr 2023, SAIPE 2023, Business Formation Statistics 2024), U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (LAUS May 2026, QCEW 2024), Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts (F-5A bankruptcy filings 2025), and HUD Fair Market Rents (FY2026).

Five-Domain Breakdown

The CDI is an equal-weight composite of five family-v1 distress domains. Each domain contributes 20% of the county score.

Default & Legal Primary driver 77
Weight 20% · Rank 528 of 3,144
Safety Net & Buffer 72
Weight 20% · Rank 695 of 3,144
Labor 60
Weight 20% · Rank 1,197 of 3,144
Delinquency 60
Weight 20% · Rank 1,226 of 3,144
Debt Burden (housing basis) 20
Weight 20% · Rank 2,773 of 3,144

Methodology

The County Distress Index is a 0–100 composite score of household financial distress, computed for all 3,144 U.S. counties. Higher scores indicate greater distress. The index is built from five equal-weighted domains: Delinquency, Default & Legal, Debt Burden, Labor, and Safety Net & Buffer. Each domain is the mean of distress-oriented indicator percentiles; the CDI score is the equal-weight mean of those domain scores.

Data sources include the Urban Institute Debt in America (Equifax consumer credit panel), FRED/Equifax (subprime credit share), U.S. Census Bureau (American Community Survey 5-year, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates), Bureau of Labor Statistics (Local Area Unemployment Statistics), U.S. Courts Administrative Office (F-5A bankruptcy filings), and HUD Fair Market Rents. Data vintages range from 2022 to 2026 depending on source; full indicator-level vintage detail is in the methodology document.

For Press & Research

Everything you need to cite Todd County data — in under 60 seconds.

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Press contact: Ross Kilburn · press@americandefault.org · (307) 264-2992 · same-day response, 9am–6pm ET
Draft wire copy 127-word AP-style article — use freely with attribution
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ELKTON, Ky. — Todd County ranks 1,166th among the nation's most financially distressed counties, according to the County Distress Index released this month by American Default Research.

The composite score of 57.8 out of 100 gives Todd a moderate county distress label. Among 3,144 U.S. counties scored, 1,165 counties rank more distressed. Within Kentucky, Todd ranks 99th of 120 counties.

The index, which draws on 13 source indicators from the U.S. Census Bureau, Bureau of Labor Statistics, Urban Institute and federal court filings, identifies default & legal as the primary driver in Todd. A bankruptcy filing rate of 240 — above the national median of 126.

American Default Research founder Ross Kilburn is available for interview at press@americandefault.org.

Full methodology and county-by-county data are available at americandefault.org/methodology/cdi.

— 30 —

Frequently Asked Questions

What is Todd County's CDI score, and what does it mean?

Todd County scores 57.8 out of 100 on the County Distress Index, with the score label moderate county distress. It ranks 1,166th of 3,144 U.S. counties and 99th of 120 Kentucky counties. Higher county scores indicate more distress.

What drives Todd County's distress score?

The highest-scoring domain is Default & Legal, at a domain score of 77. Bankruptcy filing rate ranks at the 84th percentile nationally.

How does Todd County compare to its neighbors?

Todd County's neighbors span 5 CDI score labels. Highest-distress neighbor: Christian County (83.70, very high county distress). Lowest: Robertson County, TN (47.68, moderate-low county distress).

How is the County Distress Index calculated?

The CDI is a 0–100 composite of 13 source indicators across five equal-weighted domains: Delinquency, Default & Legal, Debt Burden, Labor, and Safety Net & Buffer. Data comes from Urban Institute, Census Bureau, BLS, U.S. Courts, HUD, and related public sources. Full methodology →
Ross Kilburn
Written by

Ross Kilburn, Founder

Founder · American Default Research · Seattle, Washington

Two decades working directly with financially distressed American households — from property preservation in 2003, to negotiating over 1,000 short sales during the Great Recession, to foreclosure defense marketing today. Author, The Ark Law Group Complete Guide to Short Sales (Auroch Press, 2013). Founded American Default Research in 2026.

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