McDonald County, Missouri

County Distress Index: Elevated · 59.7 | 23,903 people · 29th most distressed in Missouri

Behind on your mortgage or facing eviction? Take a 2-minute assessment to see your options.

McDonald County, MO registers elevated household financial distress with a score of 59.7 — 857th nationally out of 3144 counties. The primary driver is Income & Poverty, where poverty rates are high and household incomes lag well behind state and national medians. Within Missouri, it ranks 29th of 115 counties. Among its 5 neighboring counties, 3 show less distress.

The Numbers Behind the Score

The CDI measures five domains of financial distress. McDonald County's primary driver is Income & Poverty at 70.9 — above the national median.

Income & Poverty Primary driver 70.9
Poverty Rate 79
Income vs. State Median 58
Child Poverty Rate 76
Community Vulnerability 66.8
Uninsured Rate 97
Disability Rate 37
Debt & Delinquency 66.1
Debt in Collections 79
Medical Debt 75
Student Loan Delinquency 96
Auto Loan Delinquency 87
Credit Card Delinquency 44
Bankruptcy Filing Rate 16
Employment & Wages 49.8
Unemployment Rate 45
Wage-to-Rent Ratio 42
Business Formation Rate 62
Housing Cost Burden 44.8
Rent-Burdened (30%+) 19
Severely Rent-Burdened (50%+) 11
Mortgage-Burdened (30%+) 82
Homeownership Rate 78
Rent-to-Income Ratio 34

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

Neighbors and Peers

How McDonald County compares to its 5 neighboring counties and population peers.

Neighboring Counties

County Score Zone vs. McDonald County
McDonald County, MO 59.7 Elevated
Delaware County, OK 72.1 Serious +12.5
Ottawa County, OK 71.2 Serious +11.5
Barry County, MO 54.1 Elevated -5.6
Newton County, MO 43.8 Normal -15.8
Benton County, AR 27.0 Healthy -32.7

Population Peers

County Score Zone vs. McDonald County
Morgan County, OH 59.7 Elevated +0.0
Hart County, GA 59.7 Elevated -0.0
Gladwin County, MI 59.6 Elevated -0.0
Attala County, MS 59.7 Elevated +0.0
Chowan County, NC 59.7 Elevated +0.0

Download Data

Export all distress indicators for McDonald County as a CSV file.

Find Help in McDonald County

Find an Attorney

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

Free Legal Aid

Legal aid organizations serving McDonald County residents at no cost.

American Default Research does not endorse, rate, or rank any provider. Verify attorney credentials with your state bar.