In Cherokee County, North Carolina, benefit checks have brought in more money than paychecks since 2019
In 2024, 45 cents of every dollar of income here came from benefit checks, including Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid and veterans' benefits. That was a larger share than across the country.
Less distressed than 50% of U.S. counties.
What drives Cherokee County's score
In Cherokee County, income and the safety net is the highest-scoring part, at 75.4. Collections and bankruptcy is the lowest part, at 32.6. Bankruptcy filings ran at 56.7 per 100,000 people (2025), lower than in 86% of U.S. counties.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Cherokee 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, Cherokee County is worse off than most counties on median household income ($55,351, 2024) and people without health insurance (12.5%, 2020 to 2024).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 75.4 of 100
Income and safety net
Biggest factorPoverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line15.4% · 202467th percentile
- Children below the poverty line23.9% · 202479th percentile
- People with a disability18.0% · 2020 to 202467th percentile
- People without health insurance12.5% · 2020 to 202480th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$55,351 · 202481st percentile
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- 52.6 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year3.9% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202646th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working22.2% · 2020 to 202459th percentile
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- 46.5 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind5.0% · August 202541st percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind5.4% · August 202553rd percentile
- People with a subprime credit score38.8% · second quarter of 202644th percentile
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- 42.0 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 rent12.8% · 2020 to 202421st percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income21.9% · fiscal year 202762nd percentile
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- 32.6 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector23.8% · August 202552nd percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people56.7 · 202513th 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 Cherokee 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 Cherokee County, 31.5% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Cherokee County
North Carolina
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Cherokee County, benefit checks have brought in more than pay since 2019
In Cherokee County, North Carolina, benefit checks' share of income more than tripled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 45.0%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Cherokee County getting SNAP food aid had its largest drop, from 12.4% in 2019 to 10.5% in 2020.
The share of households in Cherokee County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2015 and has since fallen by about a fifth
Low on the chart: 8.5% 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, Cherokee County, North Carolina.
How Cherokee County has changed
Cherokee County's population doubled to 30,373, the highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 1994 to 1999, reaching 23,956. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Cherokee County, North Carolina.
The number of jobs located in Cherokee County had its largest rise, from 8,266 in 1995 to 10,225 in 2000.
The number of jobs located in Cherokee County was at its highest on the chart in 2000 and has since fallen by about a quarter
High on the chart: 10,225 in 2000. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Cherokee County, North Carolina.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 9.1% | 2025 4.0% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 17.9% | 2024 15.4% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $18,066 | 2024 $55,351 |
The table uses 4.0% for 2025; the score uses 3.9% 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 Cherokee County's history
1838
Cherokee people forcibly removed Trail of Tears June 1838. Wikipedia
1839
Formed in 1839 from Macon County. Wikipedia
1940
Hiwassee Dam built by TVA, completed 1940. Wikipedia
1942
Apalachia Dam built by TVA 1942. Wikipedia
1974
A tornado in April 1974 did $25 million in property damage and killed four people. NOAA Storm Events Database
2003
A flash flood in May 2003 did $1.69 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2012
A tornado in March 2012 did $2 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2020
The county's largest recorded population was the 2020 Census count of 28,774, which is also its most recent census. Census Bureau
2022
A flash flood in July 2022 did $1 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1974
16 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Cherokee County, 2 of them for flooding. FEMA
Cherokee County beside its neighbors
Of the seven counties that border Cherokee County, in North Carolina, Tennessee and Georgia, four score higher. Of the group, Cherokee County gets the largest share of its income from benefit checks (45.0%).
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Polk County, TN | 77 | 14.6% | 30.8% |
| Graham County, NC | 77 | 16.4% | 38.7% |
| Monroe County, TN | 75 | 12.6% | 33.9% |
| Fannin County, GA | 50 | 13.9% | 32.0% |
| Cherokee County, NC | 49 | 15.4% | 45.0% |
| Clay County, NC | 43 | 11.5% | 41.5% |
| Macon County, NC | 39 | 12.2% | 32.6% |
| Union County, GA | 33 | 11.4% | 38.1% |
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 Cherokee County the poorest county in North Carolina?
No, Cherokee County's poverty rate was 15.4% in 2024, 43rd 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, Cherokee County ranks 64th of 100 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Cherokee 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 Cherokee 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 Cherokee County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.