About one in 16 people in Cass County, Nebraska, lives below the poverty line
In Cass County, 6.2% of people lived below the poverty line. That is lower than in 97% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 95% of U.S. counties.
What drives Cass County's score
In Cass County, collections and bankruptcy is the highest-scoring part, at 40.4. Jobs are the lowest part, at 7.9. About one in nine adults aged 25 to 54 (11.8%, 2020 to 2024) isn't working, a lower share than in 94% of U.S. counties.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Cass 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.
Cass County isn't among the worst-off quarter of U.S. counties on any measure.
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 40.4 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector15.3% · August 202519th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people153 · 202560th percentile
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- 18.6 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 rent7.5% · 2020 to 20247th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income18.9% · fiscal year 202730th percentile
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- 14.0 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line6.2% · 20242nd percentile
- Children below the poverty line6.4% · 20242nd percentile
- People with a disability13.3% · 2020 to 202424th percentile
- People without health insurance6.0% · 2020 to 202431st percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$92,296 · 20249th percentile
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- 12.0 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind3.4% · August 202516th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind2.9% · August 202513th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score27.0% · second quarter of 20266th percentile
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- 7.9 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year2.9% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202610th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working11.8% · 2020 to 20245th 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 Cass 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 Cass County, 18.8% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Cass County
Nebraska
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Cass County, benefit checks' share of income has more than doubled since 1969, reaching 18.8% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in about three times as much as benefit checks
In Cass County, Nebraska, benefit checks' share of income more than doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 18.8%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Cass County getting SNAP food aid had its largest drop, from 5.2% in 2022 to 3.8% in 2023.
The share of households in Cass County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2020 and has since fallen by about a third
Low on the chart: 3.2% in 2010. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Cass County, Nebraska.
How Cass County has changed
Cass County's population had its largest rise, from 17,443 in 1969 to 20,049 in 1974.
Cass County's population rose by more than half from 1969 to 2024, reaching 27,492, with no dip in any year shown
Smallest rise: 2004 to 2009, reaching 25,122. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Cass County, Nebraska.
The jobs count covers work located in the county; the population count covers residents.
The number of jobs located in Cass County doubled to 6,206, the highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 1995 to 2000, reaching 4,702. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Cass County, Nebraska.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 3.0% | 2025 3.1% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 8.1% | 2024 6.2% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $28,742 | 2024 $92,296 |
The table uses 3.1% for 2025; the score uses 2.9% 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 Cass County's history
1848
Libeas T. Coon established ferry across Missouri River in 1848 to convey Mormon emigrants traveling westward to Utah. Wikipedia
1854
Created November 23, 1854. Wikipedia
1984
A tornado in June 1984 did $2.5 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
1994
A thunderstorm in July 1994 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
1996
Hail in July 1996 did $1 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2019
A flood in March 2019 did $15 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2020
The county's largest recorded population was the 2020 Census count of 26,598, which is also its most recent census. Census Bureau
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Since 1967
26 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Cass County, 17 of them for flooding. FEMA
Cass County beside its neighbors
Of the six counties that border Cass County, in Nebraska and Iowa, three score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Cass County ranks 4th of the seven; Fremont County is highest, at 29.7%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lancaster County, NE | 17 | 11.8% | 15.6% |
| Mills County, IA | 14 | 9.8% | 21.6% |
| Fremont County, IA | 10 | 10.2% | 29.7% |
| Sarpy County, NE | 4 | 5.8% | 14.4% |
| Otoe County, NE | 4 | 8.0% | 22.4% |
| Cass County, NE | 4 | 6.2% | 18.8% |
| Saunders County, NE | 1 | 6.0% | 17.2% |
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 Cass County the poorest county in Nebraska?
No, Cass County's poverty rate was 6.2% in 2024, 91st highest of 93 in Nebraska (U.S. Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates). By that measure the poorest county in the state is Garden County, at 16.9%. On our distress index, which counts more than poverty, Cass County ranks 79th of 93 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Cass 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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Legal Aid of Nebraska
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 Cass County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.