In Sierra County, New Mexico, benefit checks have brought in more money than paychecks since 2003
In 2024, 50 cents of every dollar of income here came from benefit checks, including Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid and veterans' benefits. That was a larger share than across the country.
More distressed than 73% of U.S. counties.
What drives Sierra County's score
In Sierra County, jobs weigh most: the score for jobs is 95.0. Unemployment averaged 6.5%, Oct 2025 to Sep 2026, higher than in 95% of U.S. counties. Income and the safety net comes next, at 76.7.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Sierra 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.
Sierra County does better than most counties on two measures: people with a credit card behind (2.3%, August 2025) and people without health insurance (4.1%, 2020 to 2024).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 95.0 of 100
Jobs
Biggest factorUnemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year6.5% · Oct 2025 to Sep 2026top 5%
- Adults 25 to 54 not working33.9% · 2020 to 2024top 5%
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- 76.7 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line20.6% · 202488th percentile
- Children below the poverty line34.1% · 2024top 5%
- People with a disability31.6% · 2020 to 2024top 5%
- People without health insurance4.1% · 2020 to 20249th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$41,829 · 2024top 5%
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- 70.1 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 rent17.3% · 2020 to 202445th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income29.1% · fiscal year 2027top 5%
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- 46.2 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector26.8% · August 202563rd percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people87 · 202529th percentile
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- 31.9 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind2.3% · August 20255th or lower percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind2.8% · August 202511th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score49.7% · second quarter of 202679th 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 Sierra 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 Sierra County, 38.8% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Sierra County
New Mexico
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Sierra County, benefit checks brought in more than pay from work in 2024, a bigger share of income than across New Mexico
In Sierra County, New Mexico, benefit checks' share of income more than doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 49.9%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Sierra County getting SNAP food aid had its largest drop, from 22.3% in 2019 to 17.3% in 2020.
The share of households in Sierra County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2017 and has since fallen by about a third
Low on the chart: 11.3% in 2011. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Sierra County, New Mexico.
How Sierra County has changed
Sierra County's population had its largest rise, from 9,682 in 1989 to 11,436 in 1994.
Sierra County's population was at its highest on the chart in 1999 and is down 13% since
High on the chart: 13,105 in 1999. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Sierra County, New Mexico.
The jobs count covers work located in the county; the population count covers residents.
The number of jobs located in Sierra County nearly doubled to 3,641, the highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 1995 to 2000, reaching 2,789. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Sierra County, New Mexico.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 4.3% | 2025 6.1% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 22.8% | 2024 20.6% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $12,885 | 2024 $41,829 |
The table uses 6.1% for 2025; the score uses 6.5% 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 Sierra County's history
1884
Created in 1884. Wikipedia
1998
Hail in August 1998 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2000
The county's largest recorded population was the 2000 Census count of 13,270. The 2020 Census counted 11,576, 87% of the peak. Census Bureau
2013
A flash flood in September 2013 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2015
A thunderstorm in August 2015 did $1.1 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2020
A flash flood in July 2020 did $2.4 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1972
13 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Sierra County, 7 of them for flooding. FEMA
Sierra County beside its neighbors
Of the seven counties that border Sierra County, six score higher. Of the group, Sierra County gets the largest share of its income from benefit checks (49.9%).
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Luna County, NM | 92 | 23.9% | 41.3% |
| Socorro County, NM | 92 | 28.5% | 38.7% |
| Doña Ana County, NM | 81 | 17.9% | 29.9% |
| Catron County, NM | 76 | 19.0% | 43.6% |
| Otero County, NM | 75 | 19.3% | 30.7% |
| Grant County, NM | 74 | 17.3% | 39.7% |
| Sierra County, NM | 73 | 20.6% | 49.9% |
| Lincoln County, NM | 62 | 15.5% | 33.4% |
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 Sierra County the poorest county in New Mexico?
No, Sierra County's poverty rate was 20.6% in 2024, 9th 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, Sierra County ranks 18th of 33 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Sierra 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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New Mexico Legal Aid
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 Sierra 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 Sierra County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.