About one in two people with a credit file in Pemiscot County, Missouri, has unpaid debt sent to a collector
In Pemiscot County, 46.4% of people with a credit file had unpaid debt sent to a collector (Urban Institute, Debt in America, August 2025). That is higher than in 98% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 99% of U.S. counties.
What drives Pemiscot County's score
In Pemiscot County, collections and bankruptcy weighs most: the score for collections and bankruptcy is 93.1. About one in two people with a credit file (46.4%, August 2025) has unpaid debt sent to a collector, a higher share than in 95% of U.S. counties. Housing costs come next, at 92.0.
The County Distress Index combines five things we measure for every county: jobs, late payments on loans, income and the safety net, collections and bankruptcy, and housing costs. Each gets a score from 0 to 100; the higher the score, the worse off the county is compared with others.
Pemiscot County is worse off than the typical U.S. county on every measure in the score.
The five parts count equally; together they hold 14 measures. Under each part, a bar shows where Pemiscot County ranks among all 3,144 U.S. counties on that measure, as a percentile: the share of counties it is higher than. A longer bar means more trouble.
- 93.1 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector46.4% · August 202595th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people301.1 · 202591st percentile
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- 92.0 of 100
Housing costs
HUD's fair market rents, fiscal year 2027; renters, 2020–24 Census survey
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income26.6% · fiscal year 202789th percentile
- Renters paying half their income or more in rent28.2% · 2020 to 202494th percentile
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- 91.8 of 100
Jobs
Adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey; unemployment through Aug 2026
- Adults 25 to 54 not working33.0% · 2020 to 202494th percentile
- Unemployment rate, 12-month average5.6% · Sep 2025 to Aug 202689th percentile
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- 91.5 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- Children below the poverty line35.7% · 202495th percentile
- People with a disability22.8% · 2020 to 202491st percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$43,377 · 202495th percentile
- People below the poverty line23.7% · 202494th percentile
- People without health insurance12.6% · 2020 to 202481st percentile
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- 88.8 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, Q4 2025
- People with a car or retail loan behind7.2% · August 202576th percentile
- People with a credit card behind12.9% · August 202595th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score41.9% · Q4 202595th percentile
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Sources: U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development Fair Market Rents and U.S. Census Bureau income; Census Bureau, American Community Survey; Urban Institute, Debt in America; Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts, Table F-5A; Equifax via the St. Louis Fed; 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 Aug 2026.
Where the money in Pemiscot County comes from
The Bureau of Economic Analysis adds up all the income that reaches the people of a county and splits it three ways: pay from work, income from investments and rent, and benefit checks.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Pemiscot County
Missouri
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Pemiscot County in 2024, pay from work was 53 cents of every dollar of income. Income from investments and rentals was 9 cents. Benefit checks were 38 cents. Across the country, pay is 61 cents of the dollar and benefit checks are 18.
Benefit checks have grown from 21 cents of every dollar in 1969, but pay from work still brings in more.
In Pemiscot County, benefit checks rose from 21 to 38 cents of every dollar
Benefit checks and pay from work as shares of all personal income, Pemiscot County, Missouri: 37.6% and 53.0% in 2024. Yearly, 1969–2024.
Use this chart Free to use with credit
The quote: In 2024, benefit checks made up 37.6% of all personal income in Pemiscot County, Missouri (U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, CAINC4).
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 Pemiscot County, 18.2% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally.
How Pemiscot County has changed
The number of people living in Pemiscot County fell by about half between 1969 and 2024, from 27,598 to 14,407. The number of jobs located there fell by about two in 10 from 1990 to 2024.
Unemployment fell from 10.0% in 1990 to 5.8% in 2025.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| People living in the countyBEA | 1969 27,598 | 2024 14,407 |
| Jobs located in the countyBLS QCEW | 1990 5,669 | 2024 4,806 |
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 10.0% | 2025 5.8% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 37.0% | 2024 23.7% |
| Median household income (not adjusted for prices)Census SAIPE | 1989 $15,399 | 2024 $43,377 |
| Share of income from benefit checksBEA | 1969 20.7% | 2024 37.6% |
Figures are as each agency published them, not adjusted for prices. We don't chart the distress score over time because it compares counties at one moment.
Dated events in Pemiscot County's history
Largest decennial census count
The county's largest recorded population was the 1940 Census count of 46,857. The 2020 Census counted 15,661, 33% of the peak. Census Bureau
1851
County officially organized on February 19, 1851. Wikipedia
1940
Mechanization of agriculture required fewer laborers, causing population decline since 1940 peak. Wikipedia
1952
Tornado: $2.5 million in property damage, 17 deaths. NOAA Storm Events Database
2004
Tornado: three deaths. NOAA Storm Events Database
2006
Tornado: $60 million in property damage, two deaths. NOAA Storm Events Database
2021
Tornado: $1.25 million in property damage, two deaths. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1973
26 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Pemiscot County, 18 of them for flooding. FEMA
Storms are listed if they did $1 million or more in damage or killed someone.
Pemiscot County beside its neighbors
Pemiscot County scores higher than all five counties that border it, in Missouri, Arkansas and Tennessee. For the share of income from benefit checks, Pemiscot County ranks 3rd of the six; Lake County is highest, at 51.4%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pemiscot County, MO | 99 | 23.7% | 37.6% |
| Mississippi County, AR | 97 | 20.0% | 28.6% |
| Lake County, TN | 97 | 31.2% | 51.4% |
| Dunklin County, MO | 96 | 25.4% | 41.3% |
| New Madrid County, MO | 90 | 19.1% | 32.5% |
| Dyer County, TN | 75 | 14.3% | 26.9% |
Distress score: American Default Research, County Distress Index, data through Aug 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 Pemiscot County the poorest county in Missouri?
No, Pemiscot County's poverty rate was 23.7% in 2024, 2nd 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, Pemiscot County ranks 1st of 115 in the state.
Pemiscot County in photographs
Places in Pemiscot County from Wikimedia Commons, each captioned in its photographer's own words.
Pemiscot County MO Courthouse in Caruthersville, Missouri.
Fields on the western side of Route E east of Cooter in Pemiscot Township, Pemiscot County, Missouri, United States.
Pemiscot County, Missouri: common questions
What is the poverty rate in Pemiscot County, Missouri?
23.7% in 2024, according to the U.S. Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates: about one in four people. Among children it was 35.7%.
Is Pemiscot County the poorest county in Missouri?
No, Pemiscot County's poverty rate was 23.7% in 2024, 2nd 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, Pemiscot County ranks 1st of 115 in the state.
What is the population of Pemiscot County, Missouri?
About 14,407 people in 2024, by the Bureau of Economic Analysis's count. The 2020 Census counted 15,661, 33% of the county's peak of 46,857 in 1940.
How is the County Distress Index calculated?
We rank every U.S. county on 14 federal measures of money trouble, grouped into five equally weighted parts, and average them. The published score is the share of the other 3,143 counties with a lower average. The methodology lists every measure and its source.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Pemiscot County
A U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development-approved housing counselor works at a nonprofit agency approved by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. The counseling to avoid foreclosure is free, and a counselor can help you talk to your mortgage company and understand what it offers, according to the Consumer Financial Protection BureauSourceCFPB.
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The Legal Aid and Defender Association (LAD)
Legal aid
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HUD-approved housing counselors
Counseling to avoid foreclosure is free. Our help directory lists 1,313 approved agencies 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 Pemiscot County · Every U.S. county (CSV)
Sources and method
- American Default Research · County Distress Index Data through Aug 2026, built from HUD Fair Market Rents and Census income; Census Bureau, American Community Survey; Urban Institute, Debt in America; U.S. Courts, Table F-5A; Equifax via the St. Louis Fed; Bureau of Labor Statistics, Local Area Unemployment Statistics; Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates. Our methodology
- U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Economic Accounts (CAINC4) · income shares Where the money in Pemiscot County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.