In Montmorency County, Michigan, benefit checks have brought in more money than paychecks since 2007
In 2024, 52 cents of every dollar of income here came from benefit checks, including Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid and veterans' benefits. That was a larger share than across the country.
More distressed than 76% of U.S. counties.
What drives Montmorency County's score
In Montmorency County, jobs weigh most: the score for jobs is 87.0. Unemployment averaged 7.5%, Oct 2025 to Sep 2026, higher than in 95% of U.S. counties. Housing costs come next, at 84.5.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Montmorency County: 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.
Montmorency County does better than most counties on two measures: people with a car or retail loan behind (3.1%, August 2025) and people without health insurance (6.1%, 2020 to 2024).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 87.0 of 100
Jobs
Biggest factorUnemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year7.5% · Oct 2025 to Sep 2026top 5%
- Adults 25 to 54 not working26.3% · 2020 to 202478th percentile
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- 84.5 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 rent32.6% · 2020 to 2024top 5%
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income23.4% · fiscal year 202774th percentile
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- 72.6 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line15.3% · 202466th percentile
- Children below the poverty line24.3% · 202480th percentile
- People with a disability24.7% · 2020 to 2024top 5%
- People without health insurance6.1% · 2020 to 202432nd percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$51,992 · 202488th percentile
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- 55.6 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector23.9% · August 202553rd percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people144.7 · 202558th percentile
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- 29.9 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind4.9% · August 202540th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind3.1% · August 202515th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score36.2% · second quarter of 202634th 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 Montmorency County 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 Montmorency County, 33.1% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Montmorency County
Michigan
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Montmorency County, benefit checks brought in more than pay from work in 2024, a bigger share of income than across Michigan
In Montmorency County, Michigan, benefit checks' share of income more than doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 51.5%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Montmorency County getting SNAP food aid had its largest rise in the last span, from 13.5% in 2023 to 16.8% in 2024.
The share of households in Montmorency County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2013 and has since fallen by about a quarter
Low on the chart: 11.5% 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, Montmorency County, Michigan.
How Montmorency County has changed
Montmorency County's population had its largest rise, from 4,524 in 1969 to 6,695 in 1974.
Montmorency County's population doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 9,828
High on the chart: 10,326 in 2004. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Montmorency County, Michigan.
The number of jobs located in Montmorency County fell most sharply on the way to its 2010 low, from 2,278 in 2005 to 1,926 in 2010.
The number of jobs located in Montmorency County was at its highest on the chart in 2005 and is down 10% since
High on the chart: 2,278 in 2005. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Montmorency County, Michigan.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 15.1% | 2025 8.2% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 17.2% | 2024 15.3% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $16,374 | 2024 $51,992 |
The table uses 8.2% for 2025; the score uses 7.5% 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 Montmorency County's history
1840
1840 (created) 1881 (organized). Wikipedia
2000
The county's largest recorded population was the 2000 Census count of 10,315. The 2020 Census counted 9,153, 89% of the peak. Census Bureau
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Since 1977
8 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Montmorency County, 1 of them for flooding. FEMA
Montmorency County beside its neighbors
Of the five counties that border Montmorency County, one scores higher. Of the group, Montmorency County gets the largest share of its income from benefit checks (51.5%).
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Oscoda County, MI | 83 | 16.5% | 44.0% |
| Montmorency County, MI | 76 | 15.3% | 51.5% |
| Cheboygan County, MI | 48 | 12.5% | 32.6% |
| Otsego County, MI | 45 | 8.5% | 28.2% |
| Alpena County, MI | 45 | 16.7% | 38.1% |
| Presque Isle County, MI | 42 | 13.2% | 39.8% |
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 Montmorency County the poorest county in Michigan?
No, Montmorency County's poverty rate was 15.3% in 2024, 20th highest of 83 in Michigan (U.S. Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates). By that measure the poorest county in the state is Lake County, at 24.2%. On our distress index, which counts more than poverty, Montmorency County ranks 8th of 83 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Montmorency County
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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Legal Services of Northern Michigan
Legal aid
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Michigan Legal Help
Legal help website
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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 Montmorency County · 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 Montmorency County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.