About one in four people in Vernon Parish, Louisiana, has a disability
In Vernon Parish, 23.1% of people reported a disability. That is higher than in 92% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 82% of U.S. counties.
What drives Vernon Parish's score
In Vernon Parish, jobs weigh most: the score for jobs is 79.8. Unemployment averaged 5.1%, Oct 2025 to Sep 2026, higher than in 82% of U.S. counties. Collections and bankruptcy comes next, at 78.9.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Vernon 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.
Vernon Parish does better than most counties on two measures: renters paying half their income or more in rent (14.9%, 2020 to 2024) and people without health insurance (6.8%, 2020 to 2024).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 79.8 of 100
Jobs
Biggest factorUnemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year5.1% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202682nd percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working25.6% · 2020 to 202476th percentile
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- 78.9 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector33.6% · August 202583rd percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people198.9 · 202574th percentile
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- 69.1 of 100
Late payments
Credit 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 behind5.2% · August 202549th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score50.7% · second quarter of 202681st percentile
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- 68.5 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line15.7% · 202468th percentile
- Children below the poverty line20.4% · 202466th percentile
- People with a disability23.1% · 2020 to 202492nd percentile
- People without health insurance6.8% · 2020 to 202440th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$58,533 · 202474th percentile
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- 49.3 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 rent14.9% · 2020 to 202430th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income22.6% · fiscal year 202767th 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 Vernon 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 Vernon Parish, 14.0% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Vernon Parish
Louisiana
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Vernon Parish, benefit checks' share of income has grown to about eight times its 1969 level, reaching 27.3% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in twice as much as benefit checks
In Vernon Parish, Louisiana, benefit checks' share of income grew to about eight times its 1969 level by 2024, reaching 27.3%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Vernon Parish getting SNAP food aid had its largest drop, from 15.0% in 2010 to 13.1% in 2011.
The share of households in Vernon Parish getting SNAP food aid fell from 2009 to 2024, reaching 14.6%, with its low point on the chart in 2020
Low on the chart: 10.4% in 2020. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Vernon Parish, Louisiana.
How Vernon Parish has changed
Vernon Parish's population had its largest rise, from 51,435 in 1979 to 62,239 in 1984.
Vernon Parish's population was at its highest on the chart in 1984 and has since fallen by about a quarter
High on the chart: 62,239 in 1984. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Vernon Parish, Louisiana.
The number of jobs located in Vernon Parish had its largest rise, from 12,603 in 2000 to 14,791 in 2005.
The number of jobs located in Vernon Parish was at its highest on the chart in 2005 and is down 15% since
High on the chart: 14,791 in 2005. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Vernon Parish, Louisiana.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 6.9% | 2025 5.1% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 17.4% | 2024 15.7% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $19,166 | 2024 $58,533 |
Figures are as each agency published them, not adjusted for prices.
Dated events in Vernon Parish's history
1871
Timber industry dominated economy from parish creation. Wikipedia
1953
A tornado in December 1953 did $2.5 million in property damage and killed seven people. NOAA Storm Events Database
1975
A tornado in April 1975 killed two people. NOAA Storm Events Database
1990
The county's largest recorded population was the 1990 Census count of 61,961. The 2020 Census counted 48,750, 79% of the peak. Census Bureau
2016
A flood in March 2016 did $50 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2019
A tornado in December 2019 did $1 million in property damage and killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1977
35 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Vernon Parish, 5 of them for flooding. FEMA
Vernon Parish beside its neighbors
Of the six counties that border Vernon Parish, in Louisiana and Texas, four score higher. Of the group, Vernon Parish gets the smallest share of its income from benefit checks; Sabine Parish gets the largest, at 34.8%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Natchitoches Parish, LA | 97 | 26.9% | 29.9% |
| Allen Parish, LA | 94 | 23.6% | 31.7% |
| Rapides Parish, LA | 90 | 18.8% | 30.9% |
| Sabine Parish, LA | 86 | 21.0% | 34.8% |
| Vernon Parish, LA | 82 | 15.7% | 27.3% |
| Newton County, TX | 81 | 17.5% | 34.6% |
| 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 Vernon Parish the poorest county in Louisiana?
No, Vernon Parish's poverty rate was 15.7% in 2024, 53rd 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, Vernon Parish ranks 42nd of 64 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Vernon 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 Vernon 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 Vernon Parish comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.