About one in 11 people in Carteret County, North Carolina, lives below the poverty line
In Carteret County, 9.5% of people lived below the poverty line. That is lower than in 82% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 75% of U.S. counties.
What drives Carteret County's score
In Carteret County, housing costs are the highest-scoring part, at 46.9. Collections and bankruptcy is the lowest part, at 24.8. Bankruptcy filings ran at 54.6 per 100,000 people (2025), lower than in 88% of U.S. counties.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Carteret 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.
Carteret 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.
- 46.9 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 rent18.4% · 2020 to 202451st percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income20.0% · fiscal year 202742nd percentile
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- 37.7 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line9.5% · 202418th percentile
- Children below the poverty line13.2% · 202428th percentile
- People with a disability17.5% · 2020 to 202463rd percentile
- People without health insurance8.1% · 2020 to 202452nd percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$76,739 · 202425th percentile
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- 37.1 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year3.3% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202626th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working20.3% · 2020 to 202447th percentile
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- 29.6 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind4.8% · August 202538th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind3.4% · August 202520th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score35.0% · second quarter of 202629th percentile
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- 24.8 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector20.0% · August 202538th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people54.6 · 202511th 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 Carteret 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 Carteret County, 27.0% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Carteret County
North Carolina
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
Benefit checks' share of income in Carteret County had its largest rise, from 18.2% in 2004 to 21.2% in 2009.
In Carteret County, benefit checks' share of income has tripled since 1969, reaching 25.9% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in twice as much as benefit checks
In Carteret County, North Carolina, benefit checks' share of income tripled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 25.9%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Carteret County getting SNAP food aid had its largest rise, from 8.5% in 2010 to 10.6% in 2011.
The share of households in Carteret County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2015 and has since fallen by about a third
Low on the chart: 7.1% 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, Carteret County, North Carolina.
How Carteret County has changed
Carteret County's population more than doubled to 70,259, the highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 1979 to 1984, reaching 47,089. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Carteret County, North Carolina.
The jobs count covers work located in the county; the population count covers residents.
The number of jobs located in Carteret County rose by about half to 25,622, the highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 2020 to 2025, reaching 25,622. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Carteret County, North Carolina.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 4.2% | 2025 3.5% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 12.6% | 2024 9.5% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $23,610 | 2024 $76,739 |
The table uses 3.5% for 2025; the score uses 3.3% 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 Carteret County's history
1722
Created in 1722 as Carteret Precinct and gained county status in 1739. Wikipedia
1998
Lightning in May 1998 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2002
A rip current in May 2002 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2002
A rip current in July 2002 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2004
A rip current in July 2004 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2020
The county's largest recorded population was the 2020 Census count of 67,686, which is also its most recent census. Census Bureau
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Since 1993
30 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Carteret County. FEMA
Carteret County beside its neighbors
All three counties that border Carteret County score higher than it does. For the share of income from benefit checks, Carteret County ranks 3rd of the four; Jones County is highest, at 35.3%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jones County, NC | 79 | 17.3% | 35.3% |
| Onslow County, NC | 60 | 11.5% | 23.7% |
| Craven County, NC | 59 | 12.7% | 29.0% |
| Carteret County, NC | 24 | 9.5% | 25.9% |
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 Carteret County the poorest county in North Carolina?
No, Carteret County's poverty rate was 9.5% in 2024, 92nd 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, Carteret County ranks 91st of 100 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Carteret 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 Carteret 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 Carteret County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.