In Clay County, Minnesota, rent on a two-bedroom takes about one in six dollars of the typical household's income
In Clay County, 16.3% of the typical household's income would go to rent on a two-bedroom. That is lower than in 91% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 80% of U.S. counties.
What drives Clay County's score
In Clay County, housing costs are the highest-scoring part, at 51.8. Income and the safety net is the lowest part, at 19.4.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Clay 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, Clay County is worse off than most counties on renters paying half their income or more in rent (28.4%, 2020 to 2024).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 51.8 of 100
Housing costs
Biggest factorRenters, 2020–24 Census survey; HUD's fair market rents, fiscal year 2027
- Renters paying half their income or more in rent28.4% · 2020 to 202494th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income16.3% · fiscal year 20278th percentile
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- 34.5 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year4.2% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202653rd percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working14.9% · 2020 to 202415th percentile
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- 31.7 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector15.3% · August 202519th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people114.7 · 202543rd percentile
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- 23.5 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind4.6% · August 202534th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind3.4% · August 202520th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score30.8% · second quarter of 202615th percentile
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- 19.4 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line11.2% · 202432nd percentile
- Children below the poverty line10.6% · 202416th percentile
- People with a disability12.8% · 2020 to 202420th percentile
- People without health insurance4.0% · 2020 to 20248th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$81,226 · 202418th 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 Clay 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 Clay County, 14.0% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Clay County
Minnesota
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Clay County, benefit checks' share of income has tripled since 1969, reaching 22.9% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in about three times as much as benefit checks
In Clay County, Minnesota, benefit checks' share of income tripled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 22.9%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
SNAP food aid is one of the benefit checks counted in the income totals above.
The share of households in Clay County getting SNAP food aid rose by about half to 9.9%, the highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 2021 to 2022, reaching 8.9%. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Clay County, Minnesota.
How Clay County has changed
Clay County's population rose by more than half to 66,848, the highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 2004 to 2009, reaching 58,351. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Clay County, Minnesota.
The jobs count covers work located in the county; the population count covers residents.
The number of jobs located in Clay County rose 39% from 1990 to 2025, reaching its highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 1990 to 1995, reaching 15,678. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Clay County, Minnesota.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 5.3% | 2025 3.4% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 14.7% | 2024 11.2% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $25,908 | 2024 $81,226 |
The table uses 3.4% for 2025; the score uses 4.2% 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 Clay County's history
1862
March 8, 1862 (created) February 27, 1872 (organized). Wikipedia
2000
A flash flood in June 2000 did $5 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2007
Hail in September 2007 did $10 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2020
The county's largest recorded population was the 2020 Census count of 65,318, which is also its most recent census. Census Bureau
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Since 1966
29 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Clay County, 23 of them for flooding. FEMA
Clay County beside its neighbors
Of the six counties that border Clay County, in Minnesota and North Dakota, two score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Clay County ranks 5th of the seven; Norman County is highest, at 35.4%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Becker County, MN | 24 | 12.8% | 27.9% |
| Norman County, MN | 23 | 10.5% | 35.4% |
| Clay County, MN | 19 | 11.2% | 22.9% |
| Wilkin County, MN | 15 | 8.5% | 24.5% |
| Otter Tail County, MN | 12 | 10.5% | 27.0% |
| Cass County, ND | 7 | 11.0% | 11.7% |
| Richland County, ND | 5 | 10.4% | 18.2% |
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 Clay County the poorest county in Minnesota?
No, Clay County's poverty rate was 11.2% in 2024, 27th highest of 87 in Minnesota (U.S. Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates). By that measure the poorest county in the state is Beltrami County, at 17.3%. On our distress index, which counts more than poverty, Clay County ranks 41st of 87 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Clay 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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Justice North
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.
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 Clay County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.