Benefit checks make up 43 cents of every dollar of income in Jefferson Davis County, Mississippi
In Jefferson Davis County, 42.8% of all the income people there received came from benefit checks. That is higher than in 96% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 91% of U.S. counties.
What drives Jefferson Davis County's score
In Jefferson Davis County, collections and bankruptcy weighs most: the score for collections and bankruptcy is 91.9. Bankruptcy filings ran at 328.2 per 100,000 people (2025), higher than in 92% of U.S. counties. Late payments on loans come next, at 91.8.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Jefferson Davis 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.
Jefferson Davis County does better than most counties on two measures: renters paying half their income or more in rent (13.9%, 2020 to 2024) and unemployment rate, average over the latest year (3.6%, Oct 2025 to Sep 2026).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 91.9 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector37.7% · August 202590th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people328.2 · 202592nd percentile
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- 91.8 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind14.4% · August 2025top 5%
- People with a car or retail loan behind8.4% · August 202585th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score63.6% · second quarter of 2026top 5%
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- 90.2 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line23.9% · 202494th percentile
- Children below the poverty line35.9% · 2024top 5%
- People with a disability23.2% · 2020 to 202492nd percentile
- People without health insurance11.1% · 2020 to 202473rd percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$41,586 · 2024top 5%
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- 57.3 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 rent13.9% · 2020 to 202426th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income26.1% · fiscal year 202788th percentile
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- 50.3 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year3.6% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202634th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working23.5% · 2020 to 202466th 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 Jefferson Davis 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 Jefferson Davis County, 24.6% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Jefferson Davis County
Mississippi
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Jefferson Davis County, benefit checks' share of income has tripled since 1969, reaching 42.8% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in only a little more than benefit checks
In Jefferson Davis County, Mississippi, benefit checks' share of income tripled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 42.8%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Jefferson Davis County getting SNAP food aid fell most sharply on the way to its 2011 low, from 18.7% in 2010 to 15.1% in 2011.
The share of households in Jefferson Davis County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2016 and has since fallen to 21.9%
Low on the chart: 15.1% in 2011. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Jefferson Davis County, Mississippi.
How Jefferson Davis County has changed
Jefferson Davis County's population had its largest drop, from 14,142 in 1999 to 12,932 in 2004.
Jefferson Davis County's population was at its highest on the chart in 1989 and has since fallen by about a quarter
High on the chart: 14,206 in 1989. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Jefferson Davis County, Mississippi.
The number of jobs located in Jefferson Davis County had its largest rise in the last span, from 1,460 in 2020 to 2,202 in 2025.
The number of jobs located in Jefferson Davis County fell by about a fifth from 1990 to 2025, reaching 2,202, with its low point on the chart in 2020
Low on the chart: 1,460 in 2020. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Jefferson Davis County, Mississippi.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 13.5% | 2025 3.8% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 32.3% | 2024 23.9% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $14,797 | 2024 $41,586 |
The table uses 3.8% for 2025; the score uses 3.6% 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 Jefferson Davis County's history
1935
Bank of Blountville robbed by Raymond Hamilton in 1935. Wikipedia
1940
The county's largest recorded population was the 1940 Census count of 15,869. The 2020 Census counted 11,321, 71% of the peak. Census Bureau
1992
A tornado in November 1992 did $2.5 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2020
A tornado in April 2020 did $18 million in property damage and killed four people. NOAA Storm Events Database
2020
A tornado in April 2020 did $7 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2025
A tornado in March 2025 killed two people. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1969
33 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Jefferson Davis County, 9 of them for flooding. FEMA
Jefferson Davis County beside its neighbors
Jefferson Davis County scores higher than all five counties that border it. Of the group, Jefferson Davis County gets the largest share of its income from benefit checks (42.8%).
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jefferson Davis County, MS | 91 | 23.9% | 42.8% |
| Lawrence County, MS | 88 | 19.9% | 39.0% |
| Simpson County, MS | 88 | 19.7% | 35.2% |
| Marion County, MS | 86 | 19.8% | 37.9% |
| Covington County, MS | 83 | 20.0% | 31.7% |
| Lamar County, MS | 45 | 11.6% | 20.0% |
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 Jefferson Davis County the poorest county in Mississippi?
No, Jefferson Davis County's poverty rate was 23.9% in 2024, 20th highest of 82 in Mississippi (U.S. Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates). By that measure the poorest county in the state is Issaquena County, at 55.7%. On our distress index, which counts more than poverty, Jefferson Davis County ranks 36th of 82 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Jefferson Davis 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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Mississippi Center for Legal Services
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 Jefferson Davis 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 Jefferson Davis County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.