About one in three adults aged 25 to 54 in Red River Parish, Louisiana, is not working
In Red River Parish, 36.4% of adults aged 25 to 54 were not working. That is higher than in 96% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 94% of U.S. counties.
What drives Red River Parish's score
In Red River Parish, late payments on loans weigh most: the score for late payments on loans is 94.1. People with a credit card behind: 10.7%, August 2025, higher than in 95% of U.S. counties. Collections and bankruptcy comes next, at 91.5.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Red River 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.
Red River Parish does better than most counties on one measure: renters paying half their income or more in rent (9.1%, 2020 to 2024).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 94.1 of 100
Late payments
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind10.7% · August 2025top 5%
- People with a car or retail loan behind10.2% · August 202592nd percentile
- People with a subprime credit score65.0% · second quarter of 2026top 5%
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- 91.5 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector35.9% · August 202587th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people584.6 · 2025top 5%
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- 89.6 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year5.1% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202684th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working36.4% · 2020 to 2024top 5%
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- 82.1 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line22.9% · 202493rd percentile
- Children below the poverty line32.6% · 202494th percentile
- People with a disability19.6% · 2020 to 202478th percentile
- People without health insurance8.1% · 2020 to 202452nd percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$49,844 · 202491st percentile
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- 38.2 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 rent9.1% · 2020 to 202410th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income22.4% · fiscal year 202766th 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 Red River 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 Red River Parish, 19.9% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Red River Parish
Louisiana
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Red River Parish, benefit checks' share of income has doubled since 1969, but pay from work still brings in 38% more than benefit checks in 2024
In Red River Parish, Louisiana, benefit checks' share of income doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 31.9%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Red River Parish getting SNAP food aid had its largest rise in the last span, from 18.8% in 2023 to 25.0% in 2024.
The share of households in Red River Parish getting SNAP food aid fell to its lowest on the chart in 2017, then climbed past the 2009 level
Low on the chart: 13.4% in 2017. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Red River Parish, Louisiana.
How Red River Parish has changed
Red River Parish's population had its largest drop, from 10,443 in 1984 to 9,716 in 1989.
Red River Parish's population was at its highest on the chart in 1984 and has since fallen by about a third
High on the chart: 10,443 in 1984. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Red River Parish, Louisiana.
The number of jobs located in Red River Parish had its largest rise, from 2,127 in 2005 to 2,524 in 2010.
The number of jobs located in Red River Parish fell to its lowest on the chart in 2005, then climbed past the 1990 level
Low on the chart: 2,127 in 2005. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Red River Parish, Louisiana.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 8.4% | 2025 5.3% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 31.7% | 2024 22.9% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $15,711 | 2024 $49,844 |
The table uses 5.3% for 2025; the score uses 5.1% 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 Red River Parish's history
1930
The county's largest recorded population was the 1930 Census count of 16,078. The 2020 Census counted 7,620, 47% of the peak. Census Bureau
1998
A thunderstorm in February 1998 did $6 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2009
A flood in October 2009 did $1 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2017
A thunderstorm in May 2017 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1977
31 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Red River Parish, 4 of them for flooding. FEMA
Red River Parish beside its neighbors
Of the five counties that border Red River Parish, three score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Red River Parish ranks 2nd of the six; Bienville Parish is highest, at 41.9%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Caddo Parish, LA | 98 | 22.1% | 25.8% |
| Natchitoches Parish, LA | 97 | 26.9% | 29.9% |
| Bienville Parish, LA | 95 | 25.8% | 41.9% |
| Red River Parish, LA | 94 | 22.9% | 31.9% |
| De Soto Parish, LA | 87 | 17.0% | 27.9% |
| Bossier Parish, LA | 73 | 16.5% | 23.3% |
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 Red River Parish the poorest county in Louisiana?
No, Red River Parish's poverty rate was 22.9% in 2024, 19th 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, Red River Parish ranks 21st of 64 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Red River 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.
Download the CSV for Red River 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 Red River Parish comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.