Unemployment in Lamar County, Mississippi, is lower than in 84% of U.S. counties
In Lamar County, 3.1% of the labor force was out of work, on average. That is lower than in 84% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 54% of U.S. counties.
What drives Lamar County's score
In Lamar County, late payments on loans are the highest-scoring part, at 75.7. Jobs are the lowest part, at 29.6.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Lamar 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, Lamar County is worse off than most counties on people with a car or retail loan behind (7.9%, August 2025) and people with a credit card behind (7.2%, August 2025).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 75.7 of 100
Late payments
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind7.2% · August 202575th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind7.9% · August 202582nd percentile
- People with a subprime credit score45.8% · second quarter of 202669th percentile
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- 57.6 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector25.0% · August 202556th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people145 · 202558th percentile
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- 44.1 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line11.6% · 202436th percentile
- Children below the poverty line15.3% · 202440th percentile
- People with a disability15.9% · 2020 to 202449th percentile
- People without health insurance11.1% · 2020 to 202473rd percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$79,568 · 202421st percentile
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- 30.0 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 rent12.1% · 2020 to 202419th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income19.9% · fiscal year 202740th percentile
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- 29.6 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year3.1% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202616th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working19.5% · 2020 to 202442nd 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 Lamar 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 Lamar County, 15.3% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Lamar County
Mississippi
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
Benefit checks' share of income in Lamar County rose most in two steps: 11.5% in 1969 to 14.2% in 1974; 13.0% in 1999 to 15.7% in 2004.
In Lamar County, benefit checks' share of income has nearly doubled since 1969, reaching 20.0% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in about three times as much as benefit checks
In Lamar County, Mississippi, benefit checks' share of income nearly doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 20.0%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Lamar County getting SNAP food aid had its largest rise, from 12.1% in 2012 to 14.4% in 2013.
The share of households in Lamar County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2014 and has since fallen by about a third
Biggest drop: 2017 to 2018, reaching 12.9%. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Lamar County, Mississippi.
How Lamar County has changed
Lamar County's population had its largest rise, from 45,001 in 2004 to 54,197 in 2009.
Lamar County's population rose 341% from 1969 to 2024, with no dip in any year shown
Smallest rise: 1989 to 1994, reaching 32,669. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Lamar County, Mississippi.
The number of jobs located in Lamar County had its largest rise, from 6,294 in 1990 to 9,986 in 1995.
The number of jobs located in Lamar County more than tripled from 1990 to 2025, reaching 20,964, with no dip in any year shown
Smallest rise: 2015 to 2020, reaching 18,789. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Lamar County, Mississippi.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 5.0% | 2025 3.3% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 18.3% | 2024 11.6% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $24,216 | 2024 $79,568 |
The table uses 3.3% for 2025; the score uses 3.1% 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 Lamar County's history
1905
Purvis began as sawmill town, lumber companies bought large tracts of virgin pine forest and erected sawmills along railroad. Wikipedia
2004
A flash flood in March 2004 did $6 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2013
A tornado in February 2013 did $13.5 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2016
A tornado in February 2016 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2016
Lightning in June 2016 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2020
The county's largest recorded population was the 2020 Census count of 64,222, which is also its most recent census. Census Bureau
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Since 1969
27 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Lamar County, 5 of them for flooding. FEMA
Lamar County beside its neighbors
All five counties that border Lamar County score higher than it does. Of the group, Lamar County gets the smallest share of its income from benefit checks; Jefferson Davis County gets the largest, at 42.8%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Forrest County, MS | 92 | 21.4% | 28.3% |
| Jefferson Davis County, MS | 91 | 23.9% | 42.8% |
| Marion County, MS | 86 | 19.8% | 37.9% |
| Covington County, MS | 83 | 20.0% | 31.7% |
| Pearl River County, MS | 76 | 16.5% | 30.2% |
| 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 Lamar County the poorest county in Mississippi?
No, Lamar County's poverty rate was 11.6% in 2024, 79th 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, Lamar County ranks 81st of 82 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Lamar 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.
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 Lamar County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.