Thurston County, Nebraska

County Distress Index: Elevated · 51.8 | 6,557 people · 5th most distressed in Nebraska
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Thurston County, NE registers elevated household financial distress with a score of 51.8 — 1461st nationally out of 3144 counties. The primary driver is Income & Poverty, where poverty rates are high and household incomes lag well behind state and national medians. Within Nebraska, it ranks 5th of 93 counties. It scores higher than all 7 of its neighboring counties.

The Numbers Behind the Score

The CDI measures five domains of financial distress. Thurston County's primary driver is Income & Poverty at 80.9 — worse than roughly 81% of U.S. counties.

Income & Poverty Primary driver 80.9
Poverty Rate 84
Income vs. State Median 77
Child Poverty Rate 81
Debt & Delinquency 53.0
Debt in Collections 85
Medical Debt 45
Student Loan Delinquency 28
Auto Loan Delinquency 88
Credit Card Delinquency 41
Bankruptcy Filing Rate 32
Community Vulnerability 50.7
Uninsured Rate 89
Disability Rate 12
Employment & Wages 37.3
Unemployment Rate 13
Wage-to-Rent Ratio 8
Business Formation Rate 90
Housing Cost Burden 37.1
Rent-Burdened (30%+) 15
Severely Rent-Burdened (50%+) 29
Mortgage-Burdened (30%+) 12
Homeownership Rate 92
Rent-to-Income Ratio 39

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

Neighbors and Peers

How Thurston County compares to its 7 neighboring counties and population peers.

Neighboring Counties

County Score Zone vs. Thurston County
Thurston County, NE 51.8 Elevated —
Woodbury County, IA 50.8 Elevated -1.0
Dakota County, NE 47.7 Normal -4.1
Monona County, IA 38.5 Normal -13.3
Burt County, NE 38.1 Normal -13.7
Wayne County, NE 38.0 Normal -13.8
Cuming County, NE 25.5 Healthy -26.3
Dixon County, NE 24.2 Healthy -27.6

Population Peers

County Score Zone vs. Thurston County
Decatur County, IA 51.8 Elevated -0.0
Worth County, MO 51.7 Elevated -0.1
Boyd County, NE 51.9 Elevated +0.1
Sherman County, OR 51.7 Elevated -0.1
Livingston County, KY 51.6 Elevated -0.1

Download Data

Export all distress indicators for Thurston County as a CSV file.

Find Help in Thurston County

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Nebraska State Bar Association Lawyer Referral Service offers a lawyer referral service for bankruptcy, foreclosure defense, and consumer rights.

Nebraska State Bar Association Lawyer Referral Service 402-475-7091

Free Legal Aid

Legal aid organizations serving Thurston County residents at no cost.

Legal Aid of Nebraska 1-877-250-2016

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Frequently Asked Questions

  • What is the distress score for Thurston County, Nebraska?

    Thurston County has a County Distress Index score of 51.8 out of 100, placing it in the Elevated zone. It ranks 1,461st nationally out of 3,144 counties and 5th in Nebraska out of 93 counties.

  • What drives financial distress in Thurston County?

    The primary driver of distress in Thurston County is Income & Poverty, where the county scores 80.9 out of 100. This domain is measured by indicators including Poverty Rate, Income vs. State Median, Child Poverty Rate.

  • How does Thurston County compare to neighboring counties?

    Thurston County (51.8) can be compared to its 7 neighboring counties: Woodbury County, IA (50.8); Dakota County, NE (47.7); Monona County, IA (38.5).

  • How is the County Distress Index calculated?

    The County Distress Index uses percentile-rank averaging across five domains: Debt & Delinquency, Income & Poverty, Housing Cost Burden, Employment & Wages, and Community Vulnerability. Each county's indicators are ranked against all 3,144 U.S. counties. A score of 50 means the county is at the national median; higher scores indicate greater distress.

  • What is the population of Thurston County?

    Thurston County, Nebraska has a population of approximately 6,557 (2023 Census estimate), classified as a tiny county.