In Oakland County, Michigan, benefit checks make up only 13 cents of every dollar of income
In Oakland County, 12.8% of all the income people there received came from benefit checks. That is lower than in 96% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 76% of U.S. counties.
What drives Oakland County's score
In Oakland County, collections and bankruptcy is the highest-scoring part, at 51.1. Income and the safety net is the lowest part, at 7.2. The typical household earns $99,070 a year (2024), more than in 94% of U.S. counties.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Oakland 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.
Even so, Oakland County is worse off than most counties on bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people (206.8, 2025).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 51.1 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector16.9% · August 202525th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people206.8 · 202576th percentile
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- 44.5 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 rent21.6% · 2020 to 202470th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income17.7% · fiscal year 202718th percentile
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- 42.6 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year4.3% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202658th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working16.9% · 2020 to 202426th percentile
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- 27.6 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind3.8% · August 202522nd percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind5.0% · August 202547th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score30.0% · second quarter of 202612th percentile
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- 7.2 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line7.6% · 20246th percentile
- Children below the poverty line8.0% · 20246th percentile
- People with a disability11.5% · 2020 to 202411th percentile
- People without health insurance3.8% · 2020 to 20246th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$99,070 · 20245th 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 Oakland 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 Oakland County, 18.4% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Oakland County
Michigan
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
Benefit checks' share of income in Oakland County had its largest rise, from 8.4% in 2004 to 14.1% in 2009.
In Oakland County, benefit checks' share of income has tripled since 1969, reaching 12.8% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in about five times as much as benefit checks
In Oakland County, Michigan, benefit checks' share of income tripled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 12.8%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Oakland County getting SNAP food aid had its largest rise, from 6.7% in 2010 to 8.0% in 2011.
The share of households in Oakland County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2014 and has since fallen by about a quarter
Low on the chart: 5.5% in 2009. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Oakland County, Michigan.
How Oakland County has changed
Oakland County's population rose by about half to 1,296,888, the highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 1989 to 1994, reaching 1,141,823. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Oakland County, Michigan.
The number of jobs located in Oakland County had its largest drop, from 716,646 in 2005 to 611,142 in 2010.
The number of jobs located in Oakland County rose by about a quarter from 1990 to 2025, reaching 720,266
High on the chart: 767,675 in 2000. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Oakland County, Michigan.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 6.0% | 2025 3.9% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 6.3% | 2024 7.6% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $42,077 | 2024 $99,070 |
The table uses 3.9% for 2025; the score uses 4.3% 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 Oakland County's history
1819
1819 (created) 1820 (organized). Wikipedia
1820
Oakland County was founded by Territorial Governor Lewis Cass in 1819 and formed from Macomb County on 28 March 1820. Wikipedia
1907
Oakland Motor Car Company founded 1907, became part of General Motors. Wikipedia
1976
A tornado in March 1976 did $25 million in property damage and killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
1987
A tornado in June 1987 did $2.5 million in property damage and killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
1997
A tornado in July 1997 did $2 million in property damage and killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2014
A flash flood in August 2014 did $400 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2020
The county's largest recorded population was the 2020 Census count of 1,274,395, which is also its most recent census. Census Bureau
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Since 1975
15 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Oakland County, 8 of them for flooding. FEMA
Oakland County beside its neighbors
Of the six counties that border Oakland County, five score higher. Of the group, Oakland County gets the smallest share of its income from benefit checks; Genesee County gets the largest, at 30.0%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Wayne County, MI | 98 | 22.1% | 27.6% |
| Genesee County, MI | 88 | 18.0% | 30.0% |
| Macomb County, MI | 59 | 10.8% | 21.0% |
| Lapeer County, MI | 51 | 9.0% | 24.6% |
| Washtenaw County, MI | 31 | 13.9% | 13.1% |
| Oakland County, MI | 23 | 7.6% | 12.8% |
| Livingston County, MI | 6 | 5.4% | 15.6% |
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 Oakland County the poorest county in Michigan?
No, Oakland County's poverty rate was 7.6% in 2024, 81st 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, Oakland County ranks 74th of 83 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Oakland 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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Community Housing Network, Inc
HUD-approved housing counselor
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Gesher Human Services
HUD-approved housing counselor
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Greenpath Financial Wellness
HUD-approved housing counselor
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Legal Aid & Defender Association of Detroit
Legal aid
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Counsel & Advocacy Law Line (Lakeshore Legal Aid)
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 Oakland 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 Oakland County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.