About one in 14 people with a credit file in Kittson County, Minnesota, has unpaid debt sent to a collector
In Kittson County, 7.4% of people with a credit file had unpaid debt sent to a collector. That is lower than in 99% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 93% of U.S. counties.
What drives Kittson County's score
In Kittson County, jobs are the highest-scoring part, at 41.5. Housing costs are the lowest part, at 8.8. Rent on a two-bedroom takes 15.7% of the typical household's income (fiscal year 2027), lower than in 94% of U.S. counties.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Kittson 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.
Kittson County isn't among the worst-off quarter of U.S. counties on any measure.
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 41.5 of 100
Jobs
Biggest factorUnemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year4.7% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202670th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working14.0% · 2020 to 202412th percentile
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- 26.7 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector7.4% · August 20255th or lower percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people123.2 · 202548th percentile
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- 15.6 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind2.3% · August 20255th or lower percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behindnot published for this county; scored at the state median · August 20259th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score35.6% · second quarter of 202632nd percentile
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- 15.5 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line10.0% · 202422nd percentile
- Children below the poverty line11.5% · 202420th percentile
- People with a disability10.2% · 2020 to 20245th or lower percentile
- People without health insurance2.5% · 2020 to 20245th or lower percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$77,479 · 202424th percentile
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- 8.8 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 rent9.9% · 2020 to 202411th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income15.7% · fiscal year 20275th 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 Kittson 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 Kittson County, 26.2% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Kittson County
Minnesota
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
Benefit checks' share of income in Kittson County had its largest rise, from 16.8% in 1989 to 22.7% in 1994.
In Kittson County, benefit checks' share of income has doubled since 1969, reaching 29.8% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in nearly twice as much as benefit checks
In Kittson County, Minnesota, benefit checks' share of income doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 29.8%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Kittson County getting SNAP food aid had its largest rise, from 4.4% in 2011 to 5.7% in 2012.
The share of households in Kittson County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2013 and has since fallen by about a fifth
Low on the chart: 3.4% 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, Kittson County, Minnesota.
How Kittson County has changed
Kittson County's population had its largest drop, from 7,529 in 1969 to 6,933 in 1974.
Kittson County's population fell by about half from 1969 to 2024, reaching 3,992, with no rise in any year shown
Smallest drop: 1974 to 1979, reaching 6,870. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Kittson County, Minnesota.
The number of jobs located in Kittson County fell most sharply on the way to its 2010 low, from 1,495 in 2005 to 1,385 in 2010.
The number of jobs located in Kittson County was about the same in 2025 as in 1990
High on the chart: 1,557 in 1995. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Kittson County, Minnesota.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 7.8% | 2025 3.9% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 12.4% | 2024 10.0% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $25,041 | 2024 $77,479 |
The table uses 3.9% for 2025; the score uses 4.7% 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 Kittson County's history
1878
March 9, 1878 (created by re-naming Pembina Co.) February 25, 1879 (organized). Wikipedia
1940
The county's largest recorded population was the 1940 Census count of 10,717. The 2020 Census counted 4,207, 39% of the peak. Census Bureau
1995
A tornado in July 1995 did $3 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2006
County population declined from over 10,000 to below 5,000 by 2006. Wikipedia
2006
A flood in April 2006 did $1.37 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1965
30 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Kittson County, 26 of them for flooding. FEMA
Kittson County beside its neighbors
Of the three counties that border Kittson County, in Minnesota and North Dakota, two score higher. Of the group, Kittson County gets the largest share of its income from benefit checks (29.8%).
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Roseau County, MN | 9 | 8.8% | 22.9% |
| Marshall County, MN | 7 | 9.0% | 25.5% |
| Kittson County, MN | 6 | 10.0% | 29.8% |
| Pembina County, ND | 5 | 9.5% | 18.5% |
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 Kittson County the poorest county in Minnesota?
No, Kittson County's poverty rate was 10.0% in 2024, 46th 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, Kittson County ranks 81st of 87 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Kittson 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.
Download the CSV for Kittson 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 Kittson County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.