In Lyon County, Minnesota, rent on a two-bedroom takes about one in six dollars of the typical household's income
In Lyon County, 16.2% of the typical household's income would go to rent on a two-bedroom. That is lower than in 92% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 83% of U.S. counties.
What drives Lyon County's score
In Lyon County, jobs are the highest-scoring part, at 39.1. Collections and bankruptcy is the lowest part, at 20.0. About one in eight people with a credit file (12.2%, August 2025) has unpaid debt sent to a collector, a lower share than in 91% of U.S. counties.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Lyon 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.
Lyon 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.
- 39.2 of 100
Jobs
Biggest factorUnemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year4.5% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202664th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working14.5% · 2020 to 202413th percentile
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- 37.3 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 rent20.9% · 2020 to 202466th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income16.2% · fiscal year 20277th percentile
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- 28.9 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line11.1% · 202431st percentile
- Children below the poverty line12.2% · 202423rd percentile
- People with a disability13.6% · 2020 to 202427th percentile
- People without health insurance6.1% · 2020 to 202432nd percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$75,285 · 202428th percentile
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- 23.6 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind3.3% · August 202515th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind4.8% · August 202544th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score29.1% · second quarter of 202610th percentile
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- 20.0 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector12.2% · August 20258th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people90.5 · 202531st 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 Lyon 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 Lyon County, 17.6% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Lyon County
Minnesota
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Lyon County, benefit checks' share of income has more than doubled since 1969, reaching 23.4% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in more than twice as much as benefit checks
In Lyon County, Minnesota, benefit checks' share of income more than doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 23.4%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Lyon County getting SNAP food aid had its largest rise, from 8.0% in 2013 to 9.8% in 2014.
The share of households in Lyon County getting SNAP food aid doubled from 2009 to 2024, reaching 9.4%
High on the chart: 10.1% in 2015. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Lyon County, Minnesota.
How Lyon County has changed
Lyon County's population rose 12% from 1969 to 2024, with most of the change between 1969 and 1974
High on the chart: 25,768 in 2009. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Lyon County, Minnesota.
The number of jobs located in Lyon County rose most sharply from its first year (11,159 in 1990) to 13,572 in 1995.
The number of jobs located in Lyon County was at its highest on the chart in 2005 and is down 9% since
High on the chart: 14,856 in 2005. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Lyon County, Minnesota.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 4.3% | 2025 3.9% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 10.7% | 2024 11.1% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $26,385 | 2024 $75,285 |
The table uses 3.9% for 2025; the score uses 4.5% 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 Lyon County's history
1955
A tornado in July 1955 did $2.5 million in property damage and killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
1968
A tornado in June 1968 did $2.5 million in property damage and killed nine people. NOAA Storm Events Database
2010
The county's largest recorded population was the 2010 Census count of 25,857. The 2020 Census counted 25,269, 98% of the peak. Census Bureau
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Since 1969
18 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Lyon County, 12 of them for flooding. FEMA
Lyon County beside its neighbors
Of the five counties that border Lyon County, two score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Lyon County ranks 4th of the six; Lincoln County is highest, at 28.0%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Redwood County, MN | 24 | 11.0% | 19.6% |
| Lincoln County, MN | 17 | 12.3% | 28.0% |
| Pipestone County, MN | 16 | 10.0% | 21.2% |
| Lyon County, MN | 16 | 11.1% | 23.4% |
| Yellow Medicine County, MN | 10 | 9.8% | 24.4% |
| Murray County, MN | 7 | 10.2% | 24.7% |
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 Lyon County the poorest county in Minnesota?
No, Lyon County's poverty rate was 11.1% in 2024, 29th 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, Lyon County ranks 49th of 87 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Lyon 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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Mid-Minnesota 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.
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 Lyon County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.