In Santa Fe County, New Mexico, benefit checks make up only 18 cents of every dollar of income
In Santa Fe County, 18.4% of all the income people there received came from benefit checks. That is lower than in 84% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 59% of U.S. counties.
What drives Santa Fe County's score
In Santa Fe County, housing costs are the highest-scoring part, at 84.5. Collections and bankruptcy is the lowest part, at 24.9. Bankruptcy filings ran at 62.8 per 100,000 people (2025), lower than in 83% of U.S. counties.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Santa Fe 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, Santa Fe County is worse off than most counties on renters paying half their income or more in rent (25.8%, 2020 to 2024) and rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income (24.3%, fiscal year 2027).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 84.5 of 100
Housing costs
Biggest factorRenters, 2020–24 Census survey; HUD's fair market rents, fiscal year 2027
- Renters paying half their income or more in rent25.8% · 2020 to 202488th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income24.3% · fiscal year 202780th percentile
-
- 49.9 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year4.2% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202653rd percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working20.1% · 2020 to 202446th percentile
-
- 36.8 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line10.9% · 202429th percentile
- Children below the poverty line14.8% · 202437th percentile
- People with a disability15.3% · 2020 to 202443rd percentile
- People without health insurance8.9% · 2020 to 202458th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$85,540 · 202413th percentile
-
- 26.6 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind3.7% · August 202521st percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind4.5% · August 202540th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score31.5% · second quarter of 202617th percentile
-
- 24.9 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector18.7% · August 202533rd percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people62.8 · 202516th percentile
-
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 Santa Fe 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 Santa Fe County, 28.0% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Santa Fe County
New Mexico
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Santa Fe County, benefit checks' share of income has more than doubled since 1969, reaching 18.4% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in more than twice as much as benefit checks
In Santa Fe County, New Mexico, benefit checks' share of income more than doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 18.4%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Santa Fe County getting SNAP food aid had its largest rise, from 7.4% in 2011 to 9.2% in 2012.
The share of households in Santa Fe County getting SNAP food aid doubled from 2009 to 2024, reaching 11.0%
High on the chart: 11.4% in 2022. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Santa Fe County, New Mexico.
How Santa Fe County has changed
Santa Fe County's population had its largest rise, from 96,962 in 1989 to 113,944 in 1994.
Santa Fe County's population tripled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 157,765, with no dip in any year shown
Smallest rise: 2019 to 2024, reaching 157,765. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Santa Fe County, New Mexico.
The jobs count covers work located in the county; the population count covers residents.
The number of jobs located in Santa Fe County rose by about half from 1990 to 2025, reaching 61,880, with most of the change between 1990 and 1995
High on the chart: 62,857 in 2005. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Santa Fe County, New Mexico.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 3.3% | 2025 3.7% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 11.5% | 2024 10.9% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $26,603 | 2024 $85,540 |
The table uses 3.7% for 2025; the score uses 4.2% 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 Santa Fe County's history
1852
Created in 1852. Wikipedia
1997
Lightning in August 1997 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2008
A flash flood in July 2008 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2013
A flash flood in July 2013 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2014
A flash flood in September 2014 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2020
The county's largest recorded population was the 2020 Census count of 154,823, which is also its most recent census. Census Bureau
-
Since 1973
9 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Santa Fe County, 4 of them for flooding. FEMA
Santa Fe County beside its neighbors
Of the seven counties that border Santa Fe County, six score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Santa Fe County ranks 7th of the eight; San Miguel County is highest, at 45.4%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| San Miguel County, NM | 77 | 26.0% | 45.4% |
| Torrance County, NM | 74 | 20.2% | 34.2% |
| Mora County, NM | 63 | 19.2% | 40.9% |
| Bernalillo County, NM | 59 | 13.7% | 21.8% |
| Rio Arriba County, NM | 56 | 17.1% | 37.2% |
| Sandoval County, NM | 43 | 9.4% | 21.9% |
| Santa Fe County, NM | 40 | 10.9% | 18.4% |
| Los Alamos County, NM | 0 | 3.8% | 9.3% |
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 Santa Fe County the poorest county in New Mexico?
No, Santa Fe County's poverty rate was 10.9% in 2024, 31st highest of 33 in New Mexico (U.S. Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates). By that measure the poorest county in the state is Socorro County, at 28.5%. On our distress index, which counts more than poverty, Santa Fe County ranks 32nd of 33 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Santa Fe 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.
-
New Mexico Legal Aid
Legal aid
-
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 Santa Fe 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 Santa Fe County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.