In Carroll County, Missouri, rent on a two-bedroom takes about one in six dollars of the typical household's income
In Carroll County, 18.0% of the typical household's income would go to rent on a two-bedroom. That is lower than in 79% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 62% of U.S. counties.
What drives Carroll County's score
In Carroll County, collections and bankruptcy is the highest-scoring part, at 55.5. Housing costs are the lowest part, at 14.4. About one in 13 renters (7.9%, 2020 to 2024) pays half their income or more in rent, a lower share than in 92% of U.S. counties.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Carroll 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, Carroll County is worse off than most counties on people with a car or retail loan behind (9.0%, August 2025).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 55.5 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector25.6% · August 202558th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people131.1 · 202552nd percentile
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- 53.0 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line14.3% · 202459th percentile
- Children below the poverty line18.2% · 202456th percentile
- People with a disability15.0% · 2020 to 202440th percentile
- People without health insurance8.1% · 2020 to 202452nd percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$64,304 · 202456th percentile
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- 50.0 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind2.6% · August 20256th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind9.0% · August 202588th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score41.5% · second quarter of 202654th percentile
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- 39.6 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year3.9% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202646th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working17.9% · 2020 to 202432nd percentile
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- 14.4 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 rent7.9% · 2020 to 20247th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income18.0% · fiscal year 202720th 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 Carroll 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 Carroll County, 22.3% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Carroll County
Missouri
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Carroll County, benefit checks' share of income has more than doubled since 1969, reaching 26.6% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in twice as much as benefit checks
In Carroll County, Missouri, benefit checks' share of income more than doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 26.6%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Carroll County getting SNAP food aid had its largest drop, from 15.3% in 2018 to 13.0% in 2019.
The share of households in Carroll County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2018 and has since fallen to 9.0%
Low on the chart: 7.9% in 2023. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Carroll County, Missouri.
How Carroll County has changed
Carroll County's population had its largest drop, from 11,536 in 1984 to 10,795 in 1989.
Carroll County's population fell by about a third from 1969 to 2024, reaching 8,414, with no rise in any year shown
Smallest drop: 2019 to 2024, reaching 8,414. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Carroll County, Missouri.
The number of jobs located in Carroll County had its largest rise, from 2,335 in 1990 to 2,897 in 1995.
The number of jobs located in Carroll County was at its highest on the chart in 1995 and is down 8% since
High on the chart: 2,897 in 1995. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Carroll County, Missouri.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 7.3% | 2025 4.3% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 15.7% | 2024 14.3% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $20,628 | 2024 $64,304 |
The table uses 4.3% for 2025; the score uses 3.9% 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 Carroll County's history
1833
Organized January 2, 1833 from part of Ray County. Wikipedia
1900
The county's largest recorded population was the 1900 Census count of 26,455. The 2020 Census counted 8,495, 32% of the peak. Census Bureau
1977
A tornado in May 1977 did $2.5 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1965
29 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Carroll County, 20 of them for flooding. FEMA
Carroll County beside its neighbors
Of the six counties that border Carroll County, four score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Carroll County ranks 6th of the seven; Livingston County is highest, at 29.9%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Saline County, MO | 61 | 15.5% | 29.0% |
| Lafayette County, MO | 54 | 9.7% | 29.4% |
| Ray County, MO | 45 | 9.0% | 26.4% |
| Caldwell County, MO | 43 | 10.9% | 28.9% |
| Carroll County, MO | 37 | 14.3% | 26.6% |
| Livingston County, MO | 25 | 14.3% | 29.9% |
| Chariton County, MO | 12 | 11.7% | 28.8% |
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 Carroll County the poorest county in Missouri?
No, Carroll County's poverty rate was 14.3% in 2024, 53rd highest of 115 in Missouri (U.S. Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates). By that measure the poorest county in the state is Dunklin County, at 25.4%. On our distress index, which counts more than poverty, Carroll County ranks 72nd of 115 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Carroll 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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Legal Aid of Western Missouri
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 Carroll 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 Carroll County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.