About one in four people in Allen Parish, Louisiana, lives below the poverty line
In Allen Parish, 23.6% of people lived below the poverty line. That is higher than in 94% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 94% of U.S. counties.
What drives Allen Parish's score
In Allen Parish, collections and bankruptcy weighs most: the score for collections and bankruptcy is 93.1. Bankruptcy filings ran at 384.4 per 100,000 people (2025), higher than in 95% of U.S. counties. Jobs come next, at 83.9.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Allen 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.
Allen Parish does better than most counties on two measures: people without health insurance (7.2%, 2020 to 2024) and rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income (20.3%, fiscal year 2027).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 93.1 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector37.5% · August 202590th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people384.4 · 202595th percentile
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- 83.9 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year4.8% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202677th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working30.5% · 2020 to 202490th percentile
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- 82.7 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind8.7% · August 202589th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind7.0% · August 202572nd percentile
- People with a subprime credit score53.3% · second quarter of 202686th percentile
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- 74.2 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line23.6% · 202494th percentile
- Children below the poverty line24.6% · 202481st percentile
- People with a disability17.8% · 2020 to 202466th percentile
- People without health insurance7.2% · 2020 to 202444th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$53,939 · 202484th percentile
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- 61.4 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 rent22.9% · 2020 to 202477th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income20.3% · fiscal year 202745th 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 Allen 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 Allen Parish, 14.7% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Allen Parish
Louisiana
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Allen Parish, benefit checks' share of income has doubled since 1969, reaching 31.7% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in nearly twice as much as benefit checks
In Allen Parish, Louisiana, benefit checks' share of income doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 31.7%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Allen Parish getting SNAP food aid had its largest drop, from 25.2% in 2010 to 18.8% in 2011.
The share of households in Allen Parish getting SNAP food aid fell from 2009 to 2024, reaching 26.5%, with its low point on the chart in 2015
Low on the chart: 14.4% in 2015. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Allen Parish, Louisiana.
How Allen Parish has changed
Allen Parish's population had its largest rise, from 21,384 in 1989 to 23,792 in 1994.
Allen Parish's population was at its highest on the chart in 2009 and is down 13% since
High on the chart: 25,863 in 2009. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Allen Parish, Louisiana.
The number of jobs located in Allen Parish rose most sharply from its first year (4,462 in 1990) to 7,316 in 1995.
The number of jobs located in Allen Parish was at its highest on the chart in 2000 and is down 16% since
High on the chart: 8,766 in 2000. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Allen Parish, Louisiana.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 9.9% | 2025 4.8% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 30.2% | 2024 23.6% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $17,458 | 2024 $53,939 |
Figures are as each agency published them, not adjusted for prices.
Dated events in Allen Parish's history
1912
Separated in 1912 from Calcasieu Parish. Wikipedia
2006
A flood in October 2006 did $3 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2010
The county's largest recorded population was the 2010 Census count of 25,764. The 2020 Census counted 22,750, 88% of the peak. Census Bureau
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Since 1979
39 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Allen Parish, 6 of them for flooding. FEMA
Allen Parish beside its neighbors
Allen Parish scores higher than all five counties that border it. For the share of income from benefit checks, Allen Parish ranks 2nd of the six; Evangeline Parish is highest, at 37.6%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Allen Parish, LA | 94 | 23.6% | 31.7% |
| Evangeline Parish, LA | 92 | 25.9% | 37.6% |
| Rapides Parish, LA | 90 | 18.8% | 30.9% |
| Vernon Parish, LA | 82 | 15.7% | 27.3% |
| Jefferson Davis Parish, LA | 71 | 17.8% | 30.2% |
| Beauregard Parish, LA | 70 | 15.1% | 28.5% |
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 Allen Parish the poorest county in Louisiana?
No, Allen Parish's poverty rate was 23.6% in 2024, 17th 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, Allen Parish ranks 22nd of 64 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Allen 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.
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Acadiana Legal Service Corporation
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.
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 Allen Parish comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.