Jackson County, Missouri

County Distress Index: Elevated · 52.9 | 718,560 people · 52nd most distressed in Missouri

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Jackson County, MO registers elevated household financial distress with a score of 52.9 — 1379th nationally out of 3144 counties. The primary driver is Housing Cost Burden, where a large share of households spend more than 30% of income on housing. Within Missouri, it ranks 52nd of 115 counties. Among its 7 neighboring counties, 6 show less distress.

The Numbers Behind the Score

The CDI measures five domains of financial distress. Jackson County's primary driver is Housing Cost Burden at 83.8 — worse than roughly 84% of U.S. counties.

Housing Cost Burden Primary driver 83.8
Rent-Burdened (30%+) 82
Severely Rent-Burdened (50%+) 77
Mortgage-Burdened (30%+) 88
Homeownership Rate 94
Rent-to-Income Ratio 78
Debt & Delinquency 73.2
Debt in Collections 76
Medical Debt 73
Student Loan Delinquency 74
Auto Loan Delinquency 77
Credit Card Delinquency 69
Bankruptcy Filing Rate 71
Community Vulnerability 49.1
Uninsured Rate 73
Disability Rate 25
Income & Poverty 30.2
Poverty Rate 38
Income vs. State Median 19
Child Poverty Rate 34
Employment & Wages 28.4
Unemployment Rate 49
Wage-to-Rent Ratio 29
Business Formation Rate 8

Scores are percentile-based: 50 = national median, higher = more distressed. The median line is shown on each bar.

Neighbors and Peers

How Jackson County compares to its 7 neighboring counties and population peers.

Neighboring Counties

County Score Zone vs. Jackson County
Jackson County, MO 52.9 Elevated
Wyandotte County, KS 69.3 Serious +16.3
Lafayette County, MO 50.1 Elevated -2.8
Ray County, MO 45.6 Normal -7.4
Johnson County, MO 43.8 Normal -9.1
Clay County, MO 38.1 Normal -14.8
Cass County, MO 37.9 Normal -15.0
Johnson County, KS 22.3 Healthy -30.6

Population Peers

County Score Zone vs. Jackson County
Forsyth County, NC 53.0 Elevated +0.0
Gwinnett County, GA 52.8 Elevated -0.1
Bernalillo County, NM 52.8 Elevated -0.2
Southeastern Connecticut Planning Region, CT 53.4 Elevated +0.4
Union County, NJ 52.5 Elevated -0.4

Download Data

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Find Help in Jackson County

HUD-Approved Housing Counselors

Free foreclosure prevention and financial counseling near Jackson County.

COMMUNITY SERVICES LEAGUE
Independence
Financial CounselingFair HousingHomeless/DisplacementPre-Purchase
CREDIT & HOMEOWNERSHIP EMPOWERMENT SERVICES, INC.
KANSAS CITY
Foreclosure PreventionMortgage HelpFinancial CounselingFinancial Counseling
HABITAT FOR HUMANITY OF KANSAS CITY
Kansas City
Foreclosure PreventionHome Improvement/RehabPost-PurchasePre-Purchase
NSC (NACA COUNSELING SUBSIDIARY) - KANSAS CITY, MO
Kansas City
Foreclosure PreventionFinancial CounselingFair HousingPost-Purchase

Find an Attorney

Missouri Bar — Lawyer Referral Service offers a lawyer referral service for bankruptcy, foreclosure defense, and consumer rights.

Free Legal Aid

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