About one in four people in Richland Parish, Louisiana, lives below the poverty line
In Richland Parish, 26.4% of people lived below the poverty line. That is higher than in 97% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 96% of U.S. counties.
What drives Richland Parish's score
In Richland Parish, collections and bankruptcy weighs most: the score for collections and bankruptcy is 94.0. Bankruptcy filings ran at 487 per 100,000 people (2025), higher than in 95% of U.S. counties. Late payments on loans come next, at 88.2.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Richland 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.
Richland Parish does better than most counties on two measures: people without health insurance (6.8%, 2020 to 2024) and renters paying half their income or more in rent (16.9%, 2020 to 2024).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 94.0 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector39.2% · August 202593rd percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people487 · 2025top 5%
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- 88.2 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind7.1% · August 202574th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind11.0% · August 202594th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score58.7% · second quarter of 202694th percentile
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- 83.6 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year4.9% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202680th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working28.8% · 2020 to 202486th percentile
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- 79.9 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line26.4% · 2024top 5%
- Children below the poverty line34.2% · 2024top 5%
- People with a disability18.9% · 2020 to 202474th percentile
- People without health insurance6.8% · 2020 to 202440th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$47,023 · 2024top 5%
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- 62.9 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 rent16.9% · 2020 to 202442nd percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income24.9% · fiscal year 202783rd 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 Richland 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 Richland Parish, 18.3% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Richland Parish
Louisiana
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Richland Parish, benefit checks' share of income has more than doubled since 1969, reaching 38.2% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in about a third more than benefit checks
In Richland Parish, Louisiana, benefit checks' share of income more than doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 38.2%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Richland Parish getting SNAP food aid had its largest rise, from 23.9% in 2019 to 27.0% in 2020.
The share of households in Richland Parish getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2020 and has since fallen to 24.6%
Low on the chart: 13.4% in 2014. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Richland Parish, Louisiana.
How Richland Parish has changed
Richland Parish's population had its largest drop, from 22,186 in 1984 to 21,121 in 1989.
Richland Parish's population fell 10% from 1969 to 2024, reaching its lowest on the chart
High on the chart: 22,223 in 1979. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Richland Parish, Louisiana.
The jobs count covers work located in the county; the population count covers residents.
The number of jobs located in Richland Parish rose 11% from 1990 to 2025, with most of the change between 2005 and 2010
High on the chart: 6,497 in 2015. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Richland Parish, Louisiana.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 9.1% | 2025 5.2% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 35.6% | 2024 26.4% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $15,599 | 2024 $47,023 |
The table uses 5.2% for 2025; the score uses 4.9% 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 Richland Parish's history
1868
Created September 29, 1868. Wikipedia
1940
The county's largest recorded population was the 1940 Census count of 28,829. The 2020 Census counted 20,043, 70% of the peak. Census Bureau
1973
A tornado in December 1973 did $2.5 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2006
A flash flood in October 2006 did $10 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2008
A flash flood in September 2008 did $10 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2012
A thunderstorm in December 2012 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1965
35 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Richland Parish, 8 of them for flooding. FEMA
Richland Parish beside its neighbors
Of the seven counties that border Richland Parish, three score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Richland Parish ranks 7th of the eight; East Carroll Parish is highest, at 45.3%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| East Carroll Parish, LA | 99 | 44.4% | 45.3% |
| Madison Parish, LA | 99 | 33.3% | 41.5% |
| Morehouse Parish, LA | 98 | 28.5% | 43.7% |
| Richland Parish, LA | 96 | 26.4% | 38.2% |
| Caldwell Parish, LA | 95 | 21.8% | 40.2% |
| Franklin Parish, LA | 92 | 25.8% | 44.3% |
| Ouachita Parish, LA | 90 | 19.6% | 29.1% |
| West Carroll Parish, LA | 81 | 19.1% | 43.5% |
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 Richland Parish the poorest county in Louisiana?
No, Richland Parish's poverty rate was 26.4% in 2024, 8th 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, Richland Parish ranks 15th of 64 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Richland 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 Richland 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 Richland Parish comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.