In Alamance County, North Carolina, rent on a two-bedroom takes about one in four dollars of the typical household's income
In Alamance County, 24.3% of the typical household's income would go to rent on a two-bedroom. That is higher than in 79% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 56% of U.S. counties.
What drives Alamance County's score
In Alamance County, housing costs weigh most: the score for housing costs is 68.9. Late payments on loans come next, at 65.2.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Alamance 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.
Alamance County does better than most counties on two measures: people with a disability (12.3%, 2020 to 2024) and bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people (87.6, 2025).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 68.9 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 rent19.5% · 2020 to 202458th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income24.3% · fiscal year 202779th percentile
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- 65.2 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind6.6% · August 202567th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind6.5% · August 202567th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score43.0% · second quarter of 202660th percentile
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- 49.2 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line13.8% · 202455th percentile
- Children below the poverty line18.2% · 202456th percentile
- People with a disability12.3% · 2020 to 202417th percentile
- People without health insurance10.2% · 2020 to 202467th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$66,652 · 202450th percentile
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- 48.0 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector27.6% · August 202566th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people87.6 · 202529th percentile
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- 39.9 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year3.7% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202639th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working19.2% · 2020 to 202440th 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 Alamance 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 Alamance County, 17.2% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Alamance County
North Carolina
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Alamance County, benefit checks' share of income has grown to about four times its 1969 level, reaching 25.0% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in more than twice as much as benefit checks
In Alamance County, North Carolina, benefit checks' share of income grew to about four times its 1969 level by 2024, reaching 25.0%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Alamance County getting SNAP food aid rose most sharply from its first year (8.7% in 2009) to 10.6% in 2010.
The share of households in Alamance County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2015 and has since fallen to 13.6%
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, Alamance County, North Carolina.
How Alamance County has changed
Alamance County's population doubled to 183,040, the highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 2014 to 2019, reaching 169,609. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Alamance County, North Carolina.
The jobs count covers work located in the county; the population count covers residents.
The number of jobs located in Alamance County rose by about a fifth to 66,529, the highest on the chart, with most of the change between 1995 and 2000
High on the chart: 66,529 in 2025. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Alamance County, North Carolina.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 4.0% | 2025 3.9% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 9.0% | 2024 13.8% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $26,574 | 2024 $66,652 |
The table uses 3.9% for 2025; the score uses 3.7% 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 Alamance County's history
1849
Formed in 1849 from Orange County. Wikipedia
2003
A flash flood in July 2003 did $1.4 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2010
Lightning in June 2010 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2018
A flood in September 2018 did $1.07 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2020
The county's largest recorded population was the 2020 Census count of 171,415, which is also its most recent census. Census Bureau
2025
A flash flood in July 2025 killed two people. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1977
27 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Alamance County, 1 of them for flooding. FEMA
Alamance County beside its neighbors
Of the six counties that border Alamance County, four score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Alamance County ranks 4th of the seven; Rockingham County is highest, at 33.3%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rockingham County, NC | 74 | 17.2% | 33.3% |
| Randolph County, NC | 65 | 12.5% | 28.1% |
| Guilford County, NC | 61 | 13.5% | 20.9% |
| Caswell County, NC | 60 | 16.8% | 32.2% |
| Alamance County, NC | 56 | 13.8% | 25.0% |
| Orange County, NC | 22 | 12.4% | 11.8% |
| Chatham County, NC | 11 | 8.7% | 15.5% |
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 Alamance County the poorest county in North Carolina?
No, Alamance County's poverty rate was 13.8% in 2024, 56th highest of 100 in North Carolina (U.S. Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates). By that measure the poorest county in the state is Robeson County, at 23.7%. On our distress index, which counts more than poverty, Alamance County ranks 57th of 100 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Alamance 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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CCCS of Greater Greensboro
HUD-approved housing counselor
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Legal Aid of North Carolina
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 Alamance 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 Alamance County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.