In Gates County, North Carolina, rent on a two-bedroom takes about three in ten dollars of the typical household's income
In Gates County, 29.2% of the typical household's income would go to rent on a two-bedroom. That is higher than in 95% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 70% of U.S. counties.
What drives Gates County's score
In Gates County, collections and bankruptcy weighs most: the score for collections and bankruptcy is 83.3. Bankruptcy filings ran at 280.4 per 100,000 people (2025), higher than in 88% of U.S. counties. Late payments on loans come next, at 65.5.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Gates 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.
Gates County does better than most counties on two measures: renters paying half their income or more in rent (11.0%, 2020 to 2024) and unemployment rate, average over the latest year (3.4%, Oct 2025 to Sep 2026).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 83.3 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector31.3% · August 202577th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people280.4 · 202588th percentile
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- 65.5 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind6.0% · August 202559th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind6.8% · August 202570th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score45.0% · second quarter of 202666th percentile
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- 55.0 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 rent11.0% · 2020 to 202414th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income29.2% · fiscal year 2027top 5%
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- 54.0 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year3.4% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202630th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working25.9% · 2020 to 202477th percentile
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- 50.9 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line14.3% · 202459th percentile
- Children below the poverty line17.5% · 202451st percentile
- People with a disability17.7% · 2020 to 202465th percentile
- People without health insurance6.2% · 2020 to 202433rd percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$68,522 · 202444th 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 Gates 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 Gates County, 22.7% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Gates County
North Carolina
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Gates County, benefit checks' share of income has grown to about four times its 1969 level, reaching 29.9% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in twice as much as benefit checks
In Gates County, North Carolina, benefit checks' share of income grew to about four times its 1969 level by 2024, reaching 29.9%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Gates County getting SNAP food aid had its largest drop, from 17.3% in 2016 to 13.2% in 2017.
The share of households in Gates County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2016 and has since fallen by about a fifth
Low on the chart: 12.1% 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, Gates County, North Carolina.
How Gates County has changed
Gates County's population had its largest rise, from 10,874 in 2004 to 12,138 in 2009.
Gates County's population was at its highest on the chart in 2009 and is down 15% since
High on the chart: 12,138 in 2009. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Gates County, North Carolina.
The number of jobs located in Gates County rose most sharply from its first year (1,323 in 1990) to 1,538 in 1995.
The number of jobs located in Gates County was at its highest on the chart in 2000 and is down 12% since
High on the chart: 1,628 in 2000. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Gates County, North Carolina.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 2.6% | 2025 3.6% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 14.2% | 2024 14.3% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $22,637 | 2024 $68,522 |
The table uses 3.6% for 2025; the score uses 3.4% 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 Gates County's history
1660
First English settlement near Corapeake. Wikipedia
1779
Organized in 1779 from parts of Chowan, Hertford, and Perquimans counties. Wikipedia
1878
Peanuts introduced to Gates County. Wikipedia
1984
A tornado in March 1984 did $2.5 million in property damage and killed two people. NOAA Storm Events Database
2010
The county's largest recorded population was the 2010 Census count of 12,197. The 2020 Census counted 10,478, 86% of the peak. Census Bureau
2012
A thunderstorm in May 2012 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2016
A flash flood in October 2016 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1984
21 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Gates County. FEMA
Gates County beside its neighbors
Of the seven counties that border Gates County, in North Carolina and Virginia, two score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Gates County ranks 5th of the seven; Hertford County is highest, at 39.6%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hertford County, NC | 93 | 22.9% | 39.6% |
| Chowan County, NC | 79 | 15.9% | 33.0% |
| Gates County, NC | 70 | 14.3% | 29.9% |
| Pasquotank County, NC | 67 | 15.3% | 30.3% |
| Suffolk city, VA | 55 | 8.3% | 21.9% |
| Southampton County, VA | 52 | 12.7% | — |
| Perquimans County, NC | 40 | 13.8% | 33.2% |
| Camden County, NC | 3 | 7.5% | 23.0% |
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 Gates County the poorest county in North Carolina?
No, Gates County's poverty rate was 14.3% in 2024, 51st 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, Gates County ranks 35th of 100 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Gates 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.
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 Gates County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.