In Lewis County, New York, rent on a two-bedroom takes about one in six dollars of the typical household's income
In Lewis County, 17.2% of the typical household's income would go to rent on a two-bedroom. That is lower than in 85% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 72% of U.S. counties.
What drives Lewis County's score
In Lewis County, jobs are the highest-scoring part, at 54.3. Collections and bankruptcy is the lowest part, at 14.8. Bankruptcy filings ran at 49 per 100,000 people (2025), lower than in 90% of U.S. counties.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Lewis 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.
Lewis County isn't among the worst-off quarter of U.S. counties on any measure.
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 54.3 of 100
Jobs
Biggest factorUnemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year4.6% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202669th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working18.9% · 2020 to 202438th percentile
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- 38.9 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line12.6% · 202445th percentile
- Children below the poverty line15.5% · 202441st percentile
- People with a disability15.1% · 2020 to 202441st percentile
- People without health insurance5.7% · 2020 to 202427th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$70,954 · 202438th percentile
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- 38.2 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind5.3% · August 202548th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind5.3% · August 202551st percentile
- People with a subprime credit score30.7% · second quarter of 202615th percentile
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- 37.4 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 rent19.8% · 2020 to 202460th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income17.2% · fiscal year 202714th percentile
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- 14.8 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector15.4% · August 202520th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people49 · 20259th 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 Lewis 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 Lewis County, 20.5% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Lewis County
New York
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Lewis County, benefit checks' share of income has doubled since 1969, reaching 23.1% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in about three times as much as benefit checks
In Lewis County, New York, benefit checks' share of income doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 23.1%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Lewis County getting SNAP food aid had its largest rise, from 11.6% in 2011 to 14.6% in 2012.
The share of households in Lewis 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: 8.7% 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, Lewis County, New York.
How Lewis County has changed
Lewis County's population rose 12% from 1969 to 2024, with most of the change between 1984 and 1989
High on the chart: 27,319 in 1994. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Lewis County, New York.
The jobs count covers work located in the county; the population count covers residents.
The number of jobs located in Lewis County rose 12% from 1990 to 2025, reaching its highest on the chart, with most of the change between 2020 and 2025
High on the chart: 7,072 in 2025. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Lewis County, New York.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 7.1% | 2025 4.3% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 11.2% | 2024 12.6% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $26,142 | 2024 $70,954 |
The table uses 4.3% for 2025; the score uses 4.6% 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 Lewis County's history
1810
Datus Kelley moved to Rockport Ohio and founded Kelley's Island Lake Erie. Wikipedia
1900
The county's largest recorded population was the 1900 Census count of 27,427. The 2020 Census counted 26,582, 97% of the peak. Census Bureau
1995
A thunderstorm in July 1995 did $15 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2008
A thunderstorm in June 2008 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2014
A flash flood in May 2014 did $1.5 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2023
A tornado in August 2023 did $1.5 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1977
28 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Lewis County, 12 of them for flooding. FEMA
Lewis County beside its neighbors
All five counties that border Lewis County score higher than it does. Of the group, Lewis County gets the smallest share of its income from benefit checks; St. Lawrence County gets the largest, at 29.3%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Oswego County, NY | 65 | 15.7% | 28.2% |
| Herkimer County, NY | 57 | 14.6% | 28.7% |
| St. Lawrence County, NY | 56 | 16.8% | 29.3% |
| Jefferson County, NY | 56 | 13.5% | 23.5% |
| Oneida County, NY | 51 | 16.7% | 27.0% |
| Lewis County, NY | 27 | 12.6% | 23.1% |
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 Lewis County the poorest county in New York?
No, Lewis County's poverty rate was 12.6% in 2024, 34th highest of 62 in New York (U.S. Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates). By that measure the poorest county in the state is Bronx County, at 28.7%. On our distress index, which counts more than poverty, Lewis County ranks 56th of 62 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Lewis 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 Society of Mid-New York
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 Lewis County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.