In Waseca County, Minnesota, rent on a two-bedroom takes about one in six dollars of the typical household's income
In Waseca County, 15.5% of the typical household's income would go to rent on a two-bedroom. That is lower than in 95% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 86% of U.S. counties.
What drives Waseca County's score
In Waseca County, jobs are the highest-scoring part, at 45.5. Income and the safety net is the lowest part, at 12.8. About one in 28 people (3.6%, 2020 to 2024) has no health insurance, a lower share than in 94% of U.S. counties.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Waseca 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, Waseca County is worse off than most counties on unemployment rate, average over the latest year (5.2%, Oct 2025 to Sep 2026).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 45.5 of 100
Jobs
Biggest factorUnemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year5.2% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202681st percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working13.2% · 2020 to 20249th percentile
-
- 44.9 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector15.7% · August 202521st percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people173.9 · 202568th percentile
-
- 19.2 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 rent15.3% · 2020 to 202433rd percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income15.5% · fiscal year 20275th or lower percentile
-
- 16.3 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind4.4% · August 202530th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind2.4% · August 20257th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score28.9% · second quarter of 202610th percentile
-
- 12.8 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line8.9% · 202414th percentile
- Children below the poverty line9.4% · 202410th percentile
- People with a disability11.7% · 2020 to 202412th percentile
- People without health insurance3.6% · 2020 to 20245th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$79,832 · 202420th percentile
-
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 Waseca 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 Waseca County, 19.1% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Waseca County
Minnesota
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
Benefit checks' share of income in Waseca County had its largest rise, from 19.0% in 2014 to 24.4% in 2019.
In Waseca County, benefit checks' share of income has more than doubled since 1969, reaching 22.0% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in about three times as much as benefit checks
In Waseca County, Minnesota, benefit checks' share of income more than doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 22.0%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Waseca County getting SNAP food aid moved most in two steps: 6.4% in 2011 to 7.8% in 2012; 8.4% in 2018 to 7.0% in 2019.
The share of households in Waseca County getting SNAP food aid rose by more than half to 8.8%, the highest on the chart
Biggest drop: 2018 to 2019, reaching 7.0%. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Waseca County, Minnesota.
How Waseca County has changed
Waseca County's population rose 12% from 1969 to 2024, with most of the change between 1994 and 1999
High on the chart: 19,477 in 1999. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Waseca County, Minnesota.
The number of jobs located in Waseca County had its largest drop, from 7,567 in 2010 to 6,651 in 2015.
The number of jobs located in Waseca County was at its highest on the chart in 2000 and has since fallen by about a third
High on the chart: 8,282 in 2000. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Waseca County, Minnesota.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 3.7% | 2025 4.6% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 8.5% | 2024 8.9% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $27,971 | 2024 $79,832 |
The table uses 4.6% for 2025; the score uses 5.2% 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 Waseca County's history
1857
County authorized February 27, 1857, created from western Steele County with original seat at Wilton. Wikipedia
1967
Waseca severely damaged by tornado. Wikipedia
1967
A tornado in April 1967 did $25 million in property damage and killed six people. NOAA Storm Events Database
1967
A tornado in April 1967 did $25 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
1967
A tornado in April 1967 did $25 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
1992
University of Minnesota Waseca, two-year technical college, closed. Wikipedia
1996
A thunderstorm in May 1996 did $4 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2000
The county's largest recorded population was the 2000 Census count of 19,526. The 2020 Census counted 18,968, 97% of the peak. Census Bureau
-
Since 1965
14 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Waseca County, 8 of them for flooding. FEMA
Waseca County beside its neighbors
Of the six counties that border Waseca County, five score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Waseca County ranks 4th of the seven; Faribault County is highest, at 31.4%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Faribault County, MN | 33 | 10.8% | 31.4% |
| Freeborn County, MN | 32 | 11.3% | 28.3% |
| Steele County, MN | 24 | 8.3% | 23.0% |
| Blue Earth County, MN | 24 | 14.1% | 21.2% |
| Rice County, MN | 17 | 10.6% | 21.1% |
| Waseca County, MN | 13 | 8.9% | 22.0% |
| Le Sueur County, MN | 10 | 7.4% | 19.8% |
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 Waseca County the poorest county in Minnesota?
No, Waseca County's poverty rate was 8.9% in 2024, 62nd 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, Waseca County ranks 59th of 87 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Waseca 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.
-
Southern Minnesota Regional Legal Services
Legal aid
-
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 Waseca 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 Waseca County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.