About one in 14 people in Colfax County, Nebraska, has a disability
In Colfax County, 7.3% of people reported a disability. That is lower than in 99% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 86% of U.S. counties.
What drives Colfax County's score
In Colfax County, collections and bankruptcy is the highest-scoring part, at 43.1. Late payments on loans are the lowest part, at 20.5. People with a car or retail loan behind: 2.8%, August 2025, lower than in 87% of U.S. counties.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Colfax 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, Colfax County is worse off than most counties on people without health insurance (12.2%, 2020 to 2024).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 43.1 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector18.7% · August 202533rd percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people132.5 · 202552nd percentile
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- 28.5 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line8.4% · 202410th percentile
- Children below the poverty line10.7% · 202416th percentile
- People with a disability7.3% · 2020 to 20245th or lower percentile
- People without health insurance12.2% · 2020 to 202479th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$74,226 · 202430th percentile
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- 24.6 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 rent2.3% · 2020 to 20245th or lower percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income20.2% · fiscal year 202744th percentile
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- 21.5 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year2.6% · Oct 2025 to Sep 20266th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working18.5% · 2020 to 202436th percentile
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- 20.5 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind4.1% · August 202526th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind2.8% · August 202512th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score33.2% · second quarter of 202623rd 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 Colfax 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 Colfax County, 13.8% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Colfax County
Nebraska
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Colfax County, benefit checks' share of income has nearly doubled since 1969, reaching 16.8% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in about four times as much as benefit checks
In Colfax County, Nebraska, benefit checks' share of income nearly doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 16.8%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Colfax County getting SNAP food aid had its largest drop, from 9.5% in 2019 to 4.7% in 2020.
The share of households in Colfax County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2015 and has since fallen by about a fifth
Low on the chart: 3.1% in 2009. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Colfax County, Nebraska.
How Colfax County has changed
Colfax County's population rose 15% from 1969 to 2024, reaching its highest on the chart, with most of the change between 1989 and 1994
High on the chart: 10,826 in 2024. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Colfax County, Nebraska.
The number of jobs located in Colfax County had its largest rise, from 4,096 in 1995 to 4,705 in 2000.
The number of jobs located in Colfax County rose 39% from 1990 to 2025
High on the chart: 5,077 in 2015. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Colfax County, Nebraska.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 1.4% | 2025 2.8% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 10.7% | 2024 8.4% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $23,056 | 2024 $74,226 |
The table uses 2.8% for 2025; the score uses 2.6% 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 Colfax County's history
1869
Created by Nebraska legislature February 15, 1869 as part of division of Platte County. Wikipedia
1920
The county's largest recorded population was the 1920 Census count of 11,624. The 2020 Census counted 10,582, 91% of the peak. Census Bureau
1990
A tornado in March 1990 did $25 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2008
A flood in May 2008 did $1 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2008
Hail in July 2008 did $3 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2010
A flood in June 2010 did $1.5 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1966
20 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Colfax County, 15 of them for flooding. FEMA
Colfax County beside its neighbors
Of the five counties that border Colfax County, four score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Colfax County ranks 5th of the six; Dodge County is highest, at 21.9%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dodge County, NE | 27 | 13.1% | 21.9% |
| Stanton County, NE | 20 | 7.8% | 15.7% |
| Butler County, NE | 15 | 9.5% | 18.5% |
| Platte County, NE | 15 | 8.5% | 18.1% |
| Colfax County, NE | 13 | 8.4% | 16.8% |
| Cuming County, NE | 2 | 8.6% | 17.3% |
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 Colfax County the poorest county in Nebraska?
No, Colfax County's poverty rate was 8.4% in 2024, 80th 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, Colfax County ranks 45th of 93 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Colfax 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.
Download the CSV for Colfax County · Every U.S. county (CSV)
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 Colfax County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.