About one in six people with a credit file in Lake County, Montana, has unpaid debt sent to a collector
In Lake County, 16.7% of people with a credit file had unpaid debt sent to a collector. That is lower than in 75% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 52% of U.S. counties.
What drives Lake County's score
In Lake County, housing costs are the highest-scoring part, at 70.0. Late payments on loans are the lowest part, at 17.6. People with a credit card behind: 2.4%, August 2025, lower than in 94% of U.S. counties.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Lake 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, Lake County is worse off than most counties on rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income (28.3%, fiscal year 2027) and people without health insurance (14.5%, 2020 to 2024).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 70.0 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 rent17.4% · 2020 to 202445th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income28.3% · fiscal year 202794th percentile
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- 70.0 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year4.1% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202654th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working28.1% · 2020 to 202485th percentile
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- 64.2 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line14.9% · 202464th percentile
- Children below the poverty line18.1% · 202455th percentile
- People with a disability15.7% · 2020 to 202447th percentile
- People without health insurance14.5% · 2020 to 202487th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$61,452 · 202466th percentile
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- 21.4 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector16.7% · August 202525th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people66 · 202517th percentile
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- 17.6 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind2.4% · August 20255th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind2.9% · August 202513th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score36.1% · second quarter of 202633rd 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 Lake 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 Lake County, 24.2% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Lake County
Montana
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
Benefit checks' share of income in Lake County had its largest rise, from 22.2% in 2004 to 27.8% in 2009.
In Lake County, benefit checks' share of income has doubled since 1969, reaching 27.8% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in about one and a half times as much as benefit checks
In Lake County, Montana, benefit checks' share of income doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 27.8%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Lake County getting SNAP food aid had its largest rise, from 15.3% in 2012 to 17.0% in 2013.
The share of households in Lake County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2014 and has since fallen to 10.7%
Biggest drop: 2023 to 2024, reaching 10.7%. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Lake County, Montana.
How Lake County has changed
Lake County's population had its largest rise in the last span, from 30,798 in 2019 to 33,403 in 2024.
Lake County's population more than doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 33,403, with no dip in any year shown
Smallest rise: 2009 to 2014, reaching 29,333. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Lake County, Montana.
The jobs count covers work located in the county; the population count covers residents.
The number of jobs located in Lake County nearly doubled to 9,694, the highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 1995 to 2000, reaching 8,474. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Lake County, Montana.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 8.3% | 2025 4.0% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 22.9% | 2024 14.9% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $18,817 | 2024 $61,452 |
The table uses 4.0% for 2025; the score uses 4.1% 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 Lake County's history
1923
Founded in 1923. Wikipedia
2020
The county's largest recorded population was the 2020 Census count of 31,134, which is also its most recent census. Census Bureau
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Since 2000
7 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Lake County, 2 of them for flooding. FEMA
Lake County beside its neighbors
Of the three counties that border Lake County, one scores higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Lake County ranks 2nd of the four; Sanders County is highest, at 36.5%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sanders County, MT | 65 | 13.9% | 36.5% |
| Lake County, MT | 47 | 14.9% | 27.8% |
| Flathead County, MT | 20 | 8.6% | 17.8% |
| Missoula County, MT | 18 | 9.2% | 15.9% |
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 Lake County the poorest county in Montana?
No, Lake County's poverty rate was 14.9% in 2024, 15th highest of 56 in Montana (U.S. Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates). By that measure the poorest county in the state is Glacier County, at 25.9%. On our distress index, which counts more than poverty, Lake County ranks 12th of 56 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Lake 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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Montana Legal Services Association (MLSA)
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.
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 Lake County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.