Unemployment in Avery County, North Carolina, is lower than in 80% of U.S. counties
In Avery County, 3.2% of the labor force was out of work, on average. That is lower than in 80% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 63% of U.S. counties.
What drives Avery County's score
In Avery County, income and the safety net is the highest-scoring part, at 71.1. Collections and bankruptcy is the lowest part, at 24.3. Bankruptcy filings ran at 22.8 per 100,000 people (2025), lower than in 95% of U.S. counties.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Avery 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, Avery County is worse off than most counties on people without health insurance (12.5%, 2020 to 2024) and median household income ($58,017, 2024).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 71.1 of 100
Income and safety net
Biggest factorPoverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line15.8% · 202469th percentile
- Children below the poverty line19.9% · 202464th percentile
- People with a disability17.7% · 2020 to 202465th percentile
- People without health insurance12.5% · 2020 to 202480th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$58,017 · 202475th percentile
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- 45.3 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 rent16.1% · 2020 to 202437th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income20.9% · fiscal year 202752nd percentile
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- 40.2 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind6.2% · August 202561st percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind3.5% · August 202523rd percentile
- People with a subprime credit score36.5% · second quarter of 202635th percentile
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- 29.1 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year3.2% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202622nd percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working18.5% · 2020 to 202436th percentile
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- 24.3 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector21.4% · August 202543rd percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people22.8 · 20255th 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 Avery 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 Avery County, 23.6% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Avery County
North Carolina
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
Benefit checks' share of income in Avery County rose most in two steps: 12.5% in 1969 to 16.9% in 1974; 19.3% in 1999 to 23.7% in 2004.
In Avery County, benefit checks' share of income has more than doubled since 1969, reaching 28.0% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in nearly twice as much as benefit checks
In Avery County, North Carolina, benefit checks' share of income more than doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 28.0%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Avery County getting SNAP food aid had its largest rise in the last span, from 10.7% in 2023 to 13.9% in 2024.
The share of households in Avery 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: 9.1% in 2021. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Avery County, North Carolina.
How Avery County has changed
Avery County's population had its largest rise, from 15,472 in 1994 to 17,040 in 1999.
Avery County's population rose 41% from 1969 to 2024
High on the chart: 17,971 in 2004. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Avery County, North Carolina.
The jobs count covers work located in the county; the population count covers residents.
The number of jobs located in Avery County rose 37% from 1990 to 2025, reaching its highest on the chart, with most of the change between 2020 and 2025
Biggest rise: 2020 to 2025, reaching 7,784. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Avery County, North Carolina.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 6.1% | 2025 4.0% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 17.3% | 2024 15.8% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $19,688 | 2024 $58,017 |
The table uses 4.0% for 2025; the score uses 3.2% 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 Avery County's history
1998
A flash flood in January 1998 did $5.5 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2020
The county's largest recorded population was the 2020 Census count of 17,806, which is also its most recent census. Census Bureau
2024
A flash flood in September 2024 did $40 million in property damage and killed six people. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1977
22 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Avery County, 6 of them for flooding. FEMA
Avery County beside its neighbors
Of the seven counties that border Avery County, in North Carolina and Tennessee, six score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Avery County ranks 7th of the eight; Johnson County is highest, at 39.0%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Carter County, TN | 85 | 16.1% | 34.5% |
| Johnson County, TN | 78 | 20.9% | 39.0% |
| Burke County, NC | 63 | 14.0% | 31.2% |
| McDowell County, NC | 61 | 15.5% | 36.2% |
| Caldwell County, NC | 60 | 14.0% | 33.7% |
| Mitchell County, NC | 39 | 13.5% | 34.3% |
| Avery County, NC | 36 | 15.8% | 28.0% |
| Watauga County, NC | 36 | 20.8% | 20.3% |
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 Avery County the poorest county in North Carolina?
No, Avery County's poverty rate was 15.8% in 2024, 39th 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, Avery County ranks 84th of 100 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Avery 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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Pisgah Legal Services
Legal aid
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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.
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 Avery County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.