Benefit checks make up 34 cents of every dollar of income in Caldwell County, North Carolina
In Caldwell County, 33.7% of all the income people there received came from benefit checks. That is higher than in 79% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 60% of U.S. counties.
What drives Caldwell County's score
In Caldwell County, late payments on loans weigh most: the score for late payments on loans is 73.0. People with a credit card behind: 7.2%, August 2025, higher than in 76% of U.S. counties. Income and the safety net comes next, at 64.9.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Caldwell 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.
Caldwell County does better than most counties on two measures: bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people (72, 2025) and renters paying half their income or more in rent (15.0%, 2020 to 2024).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 73.0 of 100
Late payments
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind7.2% · August 202576th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind7.1% · August 202575th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score45.4% · second quarter of 202668th percentile
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- 64.9 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line14.0% · 202456th percentile
- Children below the poverty line18.3% · 202456th percentile
- People with a disability18.4% · 2020 to 202470th percentile
- People without health insurance10.5% · 2020 to 202469th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$59,968 · 202470th percentile
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- 51.2 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 rent15.0% · 2020 to 202431st percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income23.0% · fiscal year 202770th percentile
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- 50.1 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year3.6% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202636th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working22.9% · 2020 to 202463rd percentile
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- 45.1 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector28.7% · August 202570th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people72 · 202520th 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 Caldwell 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 Caldwell County, 21.4% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Caldwell County
North Carolina
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Caldwell County, benefit checks' share of income has grown to about five times its 1969 level, reaching 33.7% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in about one and a half times as much as benefit checks
In Caldwell County, North Carolina, benefit checks' share of income grew to about five times its 1969 level by 2024, reaching 33.7%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Caldwell County getting SNAP food aid had its largest rise, from 11.6% in 2011 to 14.2% in 2012.
The share of households in Caldwell County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2015 and has since fallen by about a quarter
Low on the chart: 10.5% 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, Caldwell County, North Carolina.
How Caldwell County has changed
Caldwell County's population had its largest rise, from 56,025 in 1969 to 62,275 in 1974.
Caldwell County's population rose 44% from 1969 to 2024
High on the chart: 82,798 in 2009. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Caldwell County, North Carolina.
The number of jobs located in Caldwell County had its largest drop, from 34,782 in 2000 to 29,222 in 2005.
The number of jobs located in Caldwell County was at its highest on the chart in 2000 and has since fallen by about a quarter
High on the chart: 34,782 in 2000. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Caldwell County, North Carolina.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 4.0% | 2025 3.9% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 9.8% | 2024 14.0% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $24,343 | 2024 $59,968 |
The table uses 3.9% for 2025; the score uses 3.6% 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 Caldwell County's history
1841
Formed in 1841 from parts of Burke County and Wilkes County. Wikipedia
1998
A tornado in May 1998 did $1.1 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2010
The county's largest recorded population was the 2010 Census count of 83,029. The 2020 Census counted 80,652, 97% of the peak. Census Bureau
2018
A thunderstorm in July 2018 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2024
A flash flood in September 2024 did $40 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1974
23 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Caldwell County, 3 of them for flooding. FEMA
Caldwell County beside its neighbors
Of the six counties that border Caldwell County, one scores higher. Of the group, Caldwell County gets the largest share of its income from benefit checks (33.7%).
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Burke County, NC | 63 | 14.0% | 31.2% |
| Caldwell County, NC | 60 | 14.0% | 33.7% |
| Wilkes County, NC | 59 | 15.3% | 33.5% |
| Alexander County, NC | 45 | 12.2% | 29.0% |
| Catawba County, NC | 41 | 13.0% | 25.3% |
| 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 Caldwell County the poorest county in North Carolina?
No, Caldwell County's poverty rate was 14.0% in 2024, 54th 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, Caldwell County ranks 51st of 100 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Caldwell 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 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 Caldwell 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 Caldwell County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.