Buffalo County, Nebraska

County Distress Index: Healthy · 34.1 | 50,697 people · 55th most distressed in Nebraska

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Buffalo County, NE ranks among the least distressed counties in the country at 34.1 — 2694th nationally out of 3144 counties. The primary driver is Housing Cost Burden, where housing costs consume a moderate share of household income. Within Nebraska, it ranks 55th of 93 counties. Among its 8 neighboring counties, 5 show more distress.

The Numbers Behind the Score

The CDI measures five domains of financial distress. Buffalo County's primary driver is Housing Cost Burden at 57.4 — above the national median.

Housing Cost Burden Primary driver 57.4
Rent-Burdened (30%+) 48
Severely Rent-Burdened (50%+) 62
Mortgage-Burdened (30%+) 86
Homeownership Rate 84
Rent-to-Income Ratio 7
Community Vulnerability 35.6
Uninsured Rate 45
Disability Rate 27
Employment & Wages 34.4
Unemployment Rate 6
Wage-to-Rent Ratio 39
Business Formation Rate 58
Debt & Delinquency 31.9
Debt in Collections 29
Medical Debt 68
Student Loan Delinquency 15
Auto Loan Delinquency 15
Credit Card Delinquency 23
Bankruptcy Filing Rate 41
Income & Poverty 11.2
Poverty Rate 8
Income vs. State Median 19
Child Poverty Rate 6

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

Neighbors and Peers

How Buffalo County compares to its 8 neighboring counties and population peers.

Neighboring Counties

County Score Zone vs. Buffalo County
Buffalo County, NE 34.1 Healthy
Hall County, NE 51.0 Elevated +16.9
Sherman County, NE 41.6 Normal +7.5
Adams County, NE 40.7 Normal +6.6
Dawson County, NE 39.0 Normal +5.0
Howard County, NE 35.9 Normal +1.8
Custer County, NE 33.3 Healthy -0.8
Kearney County, NE 25.7 Healthy -8.3
Phelps County, NE 24.6 Healthy -9.4

Population Peers

County Score Zone vs. Buffalo County
Wilson County, TN 34.1 Healthy -0.0
Orange County, NC 34.1 Healthy +0.1
Johnson County, IA 34.0 Healthy -0.1
Kauai County, HI 34.3 Healthy +0.2
Ascension Parish, LA 33.8 Healthy -0.3

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