In Schoolcraft County, Michigan, benefit checks brought in more money than paychecks in 2024
In 2024, 42 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.
Less distressed than 59% of U.S. counties.
What drives Schoolcraft County's score
In Schoolcraft County, jobs are the highest-scoring part, at 76.0. Collections and bankruptcy is the lowest part, at 20.9. Bankruptcy filings ran at 61.4 per 100,000 people (2025), lower than in 84% of U.S. counties.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Schoolcraft 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, Schoolcraft County is worse off than most counties on unemployment rate, average over the latest year (7.8%, Oct 2025 to Sep 2026) and children below the poverty line (22.9%, 2024).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 76.0 of 100
Jobs
Biggest factorUnemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year7.8% · Oct 2025 to Sep 2026top 5%
- Adults 25 to 54 not working21.8% · 2020 to 202456th percentile
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- 59.7 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line13.8% · 202455th percentile
- Children below the poverty line22.9% · 202475th percentile
- People with a disability18.7% · 2020 to 202472nd percentile
- People without health insurance5.1% · 2020 to 202420th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$58,519 · 202474th percentile
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- 38.6 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind6.2% · August 202561st percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind3.5% · August 202525th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score34.7% · second quarter of 202628th percentile
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- 28.2 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 rent5.8% · 2020 to 20245th or lower percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income20.8% · fiscal year 202751st percentile
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- 20.9 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector17.0% · August 202526th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people61.4 · 202515th 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 Schoolcraft 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 Schoolcraft County, 28.9% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Schoolcraft County
Michigan
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Schoolcraft County, benefit checks overtook pay in 2024, a bigger share of income than across Michigan
In Schoolcraft County, Michigan, benefit checks' share of income more than doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 42.3%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Schoolcraft County getting SNAP food aid fell most sharply on the way to its 2023 low, from 15.0% in 2022 to 11.0% in 2023.
The share of households in Schoolcraft County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2017 and has since fallen by about a third
Low on the chart: 11.0% in 2023. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Schoolcraft County, Michigan.
How Schoolcraft County has changed
Schoolcraft County's population had its largest drop, from 8,962 in 2004 to 8,487 in 2009.
Schoolcraft County's population was at its highest on the chart in 2004 and is down 9% since
High on the chart: 8,962 in 2004. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Schoolcraft County, Michigan.
The jobs count covers work located in the county; the population count covers residents.
The number of jobs located in Schoolcraft County rose by about a third from 1990 to 2025, reaching 2,764, with most of the change between 2020 and 2025
High on the chart: 2,837 in 2010. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Schoolcraft County, Michigan.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 16.2% | 2025 8.5% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 14.7% | 2024 13.8% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $20,411 | 2024 $58,519 |
The table uses 8.5% for 2025; the score uses 7.8% 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 Schoolcraft County's history
1843
March 9, 1843 (created) 1876 (organized). Wikipedia
1920
The county's largest recorded population was the 1920 Census count of 9,977. The 2020 Census counted 8,047, 81% of the peak. Census Bureau
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Since 1977
6 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Schoolcraft County. FEMA
Schoolcraft County beside its neighbors
Of the four counties that border Schoolcraft County, two score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Schoolcraft County ranks 2nd of the five; Luce County is highest, at 44.5%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Luce County, MI | 62 | 19.4% | 44.5% |
| Delta County, MI | 41 | 12.1% | 35.7% |
| Schoolcraft County, MI | 40 | 13.8% | 42.3% |
| Mackinac County, MI | 39 | 12.0% | 32.0% |
| Alger County, MI | 30 | 12.2% | 37.8% |
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 Schoolcraft County the poorest county in Michigan?
No, Schoolcraft County's poverty rate was 13.8% in 2024, 35th 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, Schoolcraft County ranks 56th of 83 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Schoolcraft 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 Schoolcraft 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 Schoolcraft County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.