About nine in ten adults aged 25 to 54 in Valley County, Nebraska, have a job
In Valley County, 8.3% of adults aged 25 to 54 were not working. That is lower than in 99% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 90% of U.S. counties.
What drives Valley County's score
In Valley County, income and the safety net is the highest-scoring part, at 42.9. Jobs are the lowest part, at 5.0. Unemployment averaged 2.3%, Oct 2025 to Sep 2026, lower than in 95% of U.S. counties.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Valley 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, Valley County is worse off than most counties on people with a disability (19.6%, 2020 to 2024).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 42.9 of 100
Income and safety net
Biggest factorPoverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line10.8% · 202429th percentile
- Children below the poverty line14.1% · 202434th percentile
- People with a disability19.6% · 2020 to 202478th percentile
- People without health insurance5.6% · 2020 to 202426th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$67,775 · 202446th percentile
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- 37.4 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector14.1% · August 202515th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people149.6 · 202559th percentile
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- 20.7 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind3.8% · August 202522nd percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behindnot published for this county; scored at the state median · August 202521st percentile
- People with a subprime credit score31.6% · second quarter of 202618th percentile
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- 15.0 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 rent8.5% · 2020 to 20249th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income18.0% · fiscal year 202720th percentile
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- 5.0 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year2.3% · Oct 2025 to Sep 20265th or lower percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working8.3% · 2020 to 20245th or lower 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 Valley 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 Valley County, 25.8% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Valley County
Nebraska
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
Benefit checks' share of income in Valley County fell most sharply after its 2009 high, from 24.4% in 2009 to 19.0% in 2014.
In Valley County, benefit checks' share of income has doubled since 1969, reaching 22.7% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in more than twice as much as benefit checks
In Valley County, Nebraska, benefit checks' share of income doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 22.7%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
SNAP food aid is one of the benefit checks counted in the income totals above.
The share of households in Valley County getting SNAP food aid nearly doubled to 9.8%, the highest on the chart, with most of the change between 2022 and 2023
Low on the chart: 5.4% in 2019. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Valley County, Nebraska.
How Valley County has changed
Valley County's population fell by about a third to 4,032, the lowest on the chart
Biggest drop: 1969 to 1974, reaching 5,296. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Valley County, Nebraska.
The number of jobs located in Valley County fell most sharply on the way to its 2000 low, from 1,674 in 1995 to 1,576 in 2000.
The number of jobs located in Valley County rose 9% from 1990 to 2025
High on the chart: 1,775 in 2020. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Valley County, Nebraska.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 1.9% | 2025 2.6% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 13.9% | 2024 10.8% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $21,542 | 2024 $67,775 |
The table uses 2.6% for 2025; the score uses 2.3% 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 Valley County's history
1871
1871 (formed) 1873 (organized). Wikipedia
1920
The county's largest recorded population was the 1920 Census count of 9,823. The 2020 Census counted 4,059, 41% of the peak. Census Bureau
1953
A tornado in June 1953 killed 11 people. NOAA Storm Events Database
1960
A tornado in August 1960 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2010
Bredthauer Dam broke on June 12, 2010, flooding rural Valley County and the village of North Loup. Wikipedia
2019
A flood in March 2019 did $2 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2019
A flash flood in March 2019 did $2 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1966
18 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Valley County, 8 of them for flooding. FEMA
Valley County beside its neighbors
Of the five counties that border Valley County, two score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Valley County ranks 4th of the six; Garfield County is highest, at 31.1%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sherman County, NE | 11 | 11.6% | 27.2% |
| Custer County, NE | 10 | 11.5% | 24.2% |
| Greeley County, NE | 9 | 10.7% | 21.3% |
| Valley County, NE | 9 | 10.8% | 22.7% |
| Garfield County, NE | 8 | 11.8% | 31.1% |
| Wheeler County, NE | 6 | 11.4% | 19.2% |
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 Valley County the poorest county in Nebraska?
No, Valley County's poverty rate was 10.8% in 2024, 49th 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, Valley County ranks 55th of 93 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Valley 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 Valley 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 Valley County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.