About three in ten adults aged 25 to 54 in Acadia Parish, Louisiana, are not working
In Acadia Parish, 31.6% of adults aged 25 to 54 were not working. That is higher than in 91% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 85% of U.S. counties.
What drives Acadia Parish's score
In Acadia Parish, late payments on loans weigh most: the score for late payments on loans is 77.2. About half of people (49.6%, Q2 2026) have a subprime credit score, a higher share than in 78% of U.S. counties. Jobs come next, at 73.8.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Acadia Parish: 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.
Acadia Parish does better than most counties on one measure: people without health insurance (6.4%, 2020 to 2024).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 77.2 of 100
Late payments
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind7.2% · August 202576th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind7.2% · August 202576th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score49.6% · second quarter of 202678th percentile
-
- 73.8 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year4.1% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202655th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working31.6% · 2020 to 202492nd percentile
-
- 72.7 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector32.0% · August 202579th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people168.2 · 202566th percentile
-
- 71.9 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line20.9% · 202489th percentile
- Children below the poverty line21.3% · 202469th percentile
- People with a disability19.1% · 2020 to 202475th percentile
- People without health insurance6.4% · 2020 to 202435th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$51,455 · 202489th percentile
-
- 60.4 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 rent20.9% · 2020 to 202466th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income21.0% · fiscal year 202754th percentile
-
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 Acadia Parish 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 Acadia Parish, 16.5% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Acadia Parish
Louisiana
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Acadia Parish, benefit checks' share of income has more than doubled since 1969, reaching 32.0% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in nearly twice as much as benefit checks
In Acadia Parish, Louisiana, benefit checks' share of income more than doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 32.0%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Acadia Parish getting SNAP food aid had its largest rise, from 20.3% in 2011 to 22.7% in 2012.
The share of households in Acadia Parish getting SNAP food aid fell to its lowest on the chart in 2019, then climbed past the 2009 level
Low on the chart: 18.6% in 2019. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Acadia Parish, Louisiana.
How Acadia Parish has changed
Acadia Parish's population had its largest rise, from 55,402 in 1979 to 58,754 in 1984.
Acadia Parish's population was at its highest on the chart in 2009 and is down 8% since
High on the chart: 61,451 in 2009. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Acadia Parish, Louisiana.
The jobs count covers work located in the county; the population count covers residents.
The number of jobs located in Acadia Parish rose by about a quarter from 1990 to 2025, reaching 14,889, with most of the change between 1990 and 1995
High on the chart: 14,993 in 2010. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Acadia Parish, Louisiana.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 6.5% | 2025 4.1% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 27.9% | 2024 20.9% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $19,068 | 2024 $51,455 |
Figures are as each agency published them, not adjusted for prices.
Dated events in Acadia Parish's history
1974
A tornado in October 1974 did $25 million in property damage and killed two people. NOAA Storm Events Database
2010
The county's largest recorded population was the 2010 Census count of 61,773. The 2020 Census counted 57,576, 93% of the peak. Census Bureau
2013
A flood in January 2013 did $39.9 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2016
A flash flood in August 2016 did $45 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2016
A flood in August 2016 did $200 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
-
Since 1965
42 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Acadia Parish, 6 of them for flooding. FEMA
Acadia Parish beside its neighbors
Of the five counties that border Acadia Parish, two score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Acadia Parish ranks 3rd of the six; Evangeline Parish is highest, at 37.6%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| St. Landry Parish, LA | 96 | 24.5% | 36.3% |
| Evangeline Parish, LA | 92 | 25.9% | 37.6% |
| Acadia Parish, LA | 85 | 20.9% | 32.0% |
| Vermilion Parish, LA | 73 | 22.4% | 28.2% |
| Jefferson Davis Parish, LA | 71 | 17.8% | 30.2% |
| Lafayette Parish, LA | 64 | 16.5% | 18.8% |
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 Acadia Parish the poorest county in Louisiana?
No, Acadia Parish's poverty rate was 20.9% in 2024, 31st highest of 64 in Louisiana (U.S. Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates). By that measure the poorest county in the state is East Carroll Parish, at 44.4%. On our distress index, which counts more than poverty, Acadia Parish ranks 37th of 64 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Acadia Parish
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.
-
Assist Agency
HUD-approved housing counselor
-
Acadiana Legal Service Corporation
Legal aid
-
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 Acadia Parish · 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 Acadia Parish comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.