#912 Louisiana · 2026

St. Charles Parish, Louisiana

62.3 · moderate-high county distress 912th of 3,144 counties nationally · 50,620 residents How this is calculated →
The headline number
7% St. Charles Parish residents
vs.
5% U.S. median

Above the national median for auto loan delinquency.

Urban Institute Debt in America (2025)

Main Findings

Wire lede · 41 words · paste-ready

St. Charles Parish, Louisiana ranks 912th most distressed in the United States on the County Distress Index. The driver: 7% of auto loan accounts are 60+ days past due — above the national median of 5%. Its highest-scoring domain is Delinquency.

Key Findings
  • 912th of 3,144 counties on the County Distress Index — 62.3 · moderate-high county distress, 53rd in Louisiana.
  • 7% of auto loan accounts are 60+ days past due (U.S. median 5%). Auto loan delinquency at the 76th percentile nationally. Source: Urban Institute Debt in America (2025).
  • Bankruptcy filing rate at 196 — national median 126, ranked at the 74th percentile. Source: Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts, F-5A (2025).
  • Severe rent burden (50%+) at 33% — national median 18%, ranked at the 99th percentile. Source: U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-year (2023).
  • Unemployment at 4% — national median 4%, ranked at the 64th percentile. Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, LAUS (May 2026).
County Distress Index cluster map. St. Charles Parish, Louisiana and its neighbors colored by county distress score label.
St. Charles Parish and its 3 geographic neighbors, graded by County Distress Index score. St. Charles Parish ranks 912th of 3,144. American Default Research
Wire summary — paste-ready, any angle 22 words

St. Charles Parish has a moderate-high county distress score. The domain mix shows whether pressure is concentrated or spread across the profile.

— American Default Research
Index note — for feature use 31 words

The CDI gives this county a moderate-high county distress label. The domain table shows whether the score comes from debt, labor, safety-net pressure, or a mix. Its highest-scoring domain is Delinquency.

— 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

3.8% -2.3 pp since 1990
Census 1989 to 2024

Poverty rate

12.3% -0.2 pp since 1989
BEA 1969 to 2024

Transfer income share

19.8% +13.2 pp since 1969
FRED/Equifax 2014 Q2 to 2025 Q4

Subprime credit population

29.7% -4.8 pp since 2014 Q2

The Indicators Behind St. Charles Parish's CDI Score

Every number traces to a public source. St. Charles Parish's value shown alongside LA'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 St. Charles Parish's national rank among all 3,144 U.S. counties for that indicator, always oriented so higher = more distressed.
Indicator St. Charles Parish LA median U.S. median Pctile Source
Delinquency — domain score 73 · Rank 745 of 3,144
Auto loan delinquency Share of auto loan accounts 60+ days past due 7% 8% 5% 76th Urban Institute Debt in America (2025)
Credit card delinquency Share of credit card accounts 60+ days past due 7% 8% 5% 68th Urban Institute Debt in America (2025)
Subprime credit share Share of residents with a credit score below 660 30% 35% 23% 74th Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis, Equifax (2025)
Default & Legal — domain score 67 · Rank 834 of 3,144
Debt in collections Share of residents with a credit file who have debt in collections 26% 34% 23% 61st Urban Institute Debt in America (2025)
Bankruptcy filing rate Personal bankruptcy filings per 100,000 residents 196 225 126 74th Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts, F-5A (2025)
Debt Burden (housing basis) — domain score 67 · Rank 845 of 3,144
Rent-to-income ratio Fair Market Rent (2BR) as share of median household income 20% 22% 21% 35th HUD FMR (FY2026); U.S. Census Bureau, SAIPE (2023)
Severe rent burden (50%+) Share of renter households paying 50%+ of income on rent 33% 21% 18% 99th U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-year (2023)
Labor — domain score 64 · Rank 1,088 of 3,144
Unemployment Share of labor force unemployed 4% 5% 4% 64th U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, LAUS (May 2026)
Safety Net & Buffer — domain score 41 · Rank 1,945 of 3,144
Child poverty rate Share of children under 18 below the federal poverty line 19% 28% 18% 56th U.S. Census Bureau, SAIPE (2023)
Disability rate Share of residents reporting a disability 16% 17% 16% 54th U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-year (2023)
Poverty rate Share of population below the federal poverty line 13% 20% 14% 45th U.S. Census Bureau, SAIPE (2023)
Uninsured rate Share of residents without health insurance coverage 7% 8% 8% 36th 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.

Delinquency Primary driver 73
Weight 20% · Rank 745 of 3,144
Default & Legal 67
Weight 20% · Rank 834 of 3,144
Debt Burden (housing basis) 67
Weight 20% · Rank 845 of 3,144
Labor 64
Weight 20% · Rank 1,088 of 3,144
Safety Net & Buffer 41
Weight 20% · Rank 1,945 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 St. Charles Parish 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 136-word AP-style article — use freely with attribution
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HAHNVILLE, La. — St. Charles Parish ranks 912th 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 62.3 out of 100 gives St. Charles Parish a moderate-high county distress label. Among 3,144 U.S. counties scored, 911 counties rank more distressed. Within Louisiana, St. Charles Parish ranks 53rd of 64 parishes.

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 delinquency as the primary driver in St. Charles Parish. 7% of auto loan accounts are 60+ days past due — above the national median of 5%.

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 St. Charles Parish's CDI score, and what does it mean?

St. Charles Parish scores 62.3 out of 100 on the County Distress Index, with the score label moderate-high county distress. It ranks 912th of 3,144 U.S. counties and 53rd of 64 Louisiana parishes. Higher county scores indicate more distress.

What drives St. Charles Parish's distress score?

The highest-scoring domain is Delinquency, at a domain score of 73. Auto loan delinquency ranks at the 76th percentile nationally.

How does St. Charles Parish compare to its neighbors?

St. Charles Parish's neighbors span three CDI score labels. Highest-distress neighbor: St. John the Baptist Parish (80.23, very high county distress). Lowest: Lafourche Parish (65.50, moderate-high 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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