In Gasconade County, Missouri, rent on a two-bedroom takes about one in six dollars of the typical household's income
In Gasconade County, 18.1% of the typical household's income would go to rent on a two-bedroom. That is lower than in 77% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 68% of U.S. counties.
What drives Gasconade County's score
In Gasconade County, late payments on loans are the highest-scoring part, at 58.5. Housing costs are the lowest part, at 26.0.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Gasconade 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, Gasconade County is worse off than most counties on people with a car or retail loan behind (8.8%, August 2025).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 58.5 of 100
Late payments
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind5.0% · August 202542nd percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind8.8% · August 202587th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score39.0% · second quarter of 202645th percentile
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- 44.3 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line12.1% · 202440th percentile
- Children below the poverty line15.1% · 202439th percentile
- People with a disability16.4% · 2020 to 202453rd percentile
- People without health insurance5.8% · 2020 to 202429th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$63,921 · 202458th percentile
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- 37.8 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector23.0% · August 202549th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people81.6 · 202526th percentile
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- 31.5 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year3.4% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202626th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working18.6% · 2020 to 202436th percentile
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- 26.0 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 rent14.7% · 2020 to 202429th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income18.1% · fiscal year 202722nd 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 Gasconade 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 Gasconade County, 23.4% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Gasconade County
Missouri
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Gasconade County, benefit checks' share of income has more than doubled since 1969, reaching 32.0% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in about one and a half times as much as benefit checks
In Gasconade County, Missouri, benefit checks' share of income more than doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 32.0%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Gasconade County getting SNAP food aid moved most in two steps: 10.7% in 2016 to 8.8% in 2017; 6.6% in 2019 to 8.5% in 2020.
The share of households in Gasconade County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2013 and has since fallen to 10.3%
Low on the chart: 6.6% in 2019. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Gasconade County, Missouri.
How Gasconade County has changed
Gasconade County's population had its largest rise, from 14,440 in 1994 to 15,184 in 1999.
Gasconade County's population rose by about a fifth from 1969 to 2024, reaching 14,655
High on the chart: 15,464 in 2004. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Gasconade County, Missouri.
The number of jobs located in Gasconade County had its largest rise, from 5,153 in 1995 to 5,870 in 2000.
The number of jobs located in Gasconade County was at its highest on the chart in 2000 and is down 14% since
High on the chart: 5,870 in 2000. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Gasconade County, Missouri.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 7.5% | 2025 3.7% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 9.8% | 2024 12.1% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $22,241 | 2024 $63,921 |
The table uses 3.7% for 2025; the score uses 3.4% 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 Gasconade County's history
1820
Organized November 25, 1820. Wikipedia
1855
Gasconade Bridge train disaster on November 1, 1855. Wikipedia
1984
A tornado in April 1984 did $25 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
1997
Hail in June 1997 did $1 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2000
The county's largest recorded population was the 2000 Census count of 15,342. The 2020 Census counted 14,794, 96% of the peak. Census Bureau
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Since 1973
21 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Gasconade County, 14 of them for flooding. FEMA
Gasconade County beside its neighbors
Of the seven counties that border Gasconade County, four score higher. Of the group, Gasconade County gets the largest share of its income from benefit checks (32.0%).
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Crawford County, MO | 59 | 15.1% | 31.9% |
| Phelps County, MO | 52 | 17.1% | 29.2% |
| Montgomery County, MO | 38 | 12.2% | 27.6% |
| Maries County, MO | 34 | 11.5% | 31.4% |
| Gasconade County, MO | 31 | 12.1% | 32.0% |
| Franklin County, MO | 31 | 9.0% | 24.0% |
| Warren County, MO | 25 | 8.0% | 22.9% |
| Osage County, MO | 3 | 7.7% | 19.5% |
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 Gasconade County the poorest county in Missouri?
No, Gasconade County's poverty rate was 12.1% in 2024, 81st 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, Gasconade County ranks 84th of 115 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Gasconade 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 Services of Southern 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 Gasconade 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 Gasconade County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.