In Hall County, Nebraska, benefit checks make up only 19 cents of every dollar of income
In Hall County, 18.6% of all the income people there received came from benefit checks. That is lower than in 83% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 61% of U.S. counties.
What drives Hall County's score
In Hall County, income and the safety net is the highest-scoring part, at 53.4. Jobs are the lowest part, at 22.6. About one in six adults aged 25 to 54 (15.9%, 2020 to 2024) isn't working, a lower share than in 79% of U.S. counties.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Hall 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, Hall County is worse off than most counties on people without health insurance (12.9%, 2020 to 2024).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 53.4 of 100
Income and safety net
Biggest factorPoverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line15.1% · 202465th percentile
- Children below the poverty line19.0% · 202460th percentile
- People with a disability12.7% · 2020 to 202420th percentile
- People without health insurance12.9% · 2020 to 202482nd percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$71,025 · 202438th percentile
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- 53.0 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector26.0% · August 202560th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people117.4 · 202545th percentile
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- 45.2 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 rent16.9% · 2020 to 202442nd percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income20.4% · fiscal year 202747th percentile
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- 41.5 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind4.5% · August 202533rd percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind5.0% · August 202546th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score38.7% · second quarter of 202644th percentile
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- 22.6 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year3.4% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202624th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working15.9% · 2020 to 202420th 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 Hall 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 Hall County, 15.7% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Hall County
Nebraska
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
Benefit checks' share of income in Hall County had its largest rise, from 7.6% in 1969 to 10.3% in 1974.
In Hall County, benefit checks' share of income has more than doubled since 1969, reaching 18.6% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in about three times as much as benefit checks
In Hall County, Nebraska, benefit checks' share of income more than doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 18.6%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Hall County getting SNAP food aid rose most sharply from its first year (7.2% in 2009) to 9.4% in 2010.
The share of households in Hall County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2014 and has since fallen by about a quarter
Low on the chart: 7.2% 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, Hall County, Nebraska.
How Hall County has changed
Hall County's population had its largest rise, from 57,955 in 2009 to 61,837 in 2014.
Hall County's population rose by about half from 1969 to 2024, reaching 62,869
High on the chart: 63,051 in 2019. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Hall County, Nebraska.
The jobs count covers work located in the county; the population count covers residents.
The number of jobs located in Hall County rose by about half to 35,892, the highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 1990 to 1995, reaching 28,455. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Hall County, Nebraska.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 2.1% | 2025 3.7% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 10.3% | 2024 15.1% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $27,424 | 2024 $71,025 |
The table uses 3.7% for 2025; the score uses 3.4% 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 Hall County's history
1965
A tornado in May 1965 did $25 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
1980
A tornado in June 1980 did $250 million in property damage and killed three people. NOAA Storm Events Database
1980
A tornado in June 1980 did $25 million in property damage and killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
1980
A tornado in June 1980 did $2.5 million in property damage and killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2020
The county's largest recorded population was the 2020 Census count of 62,895, which is also its most recent census. Census Bureau
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Since 1967
17 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Hall County, 8 of them for flooding. FEMA
Hall County beside its neighbors
Hall County scores higher than all five counties that border it. For the share of income from benefit checks, Hall County ranks 4th of the six; Merrick County is highest, at 22.7%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hall County, NE | 38 | 15.1% | 18.6% |
| Adams County, NE | 22 | 11.0% | 20.1% |
| Merrick County, NE | 7 | 9.8% | 22.7% |
| Buffalo County, NE | 6 | 8.7% | 15.5% |
| Howard County, NE | 6 | 9.5% | 22.2% |
| Hamilton County, NE | 0 | 6.6% | 17.8% |
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 Hall County the poorest county in Nebraska?
No, Hall County's poverty rate was 15.1% in 2024, 5th 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, Hall County ranks 5th of 93 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Hall 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 Hall County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.