In Lincoln County, North Carolina, rent on a two-bedroom takes about one in six dollars of the typical household's income
In Lincoln County, 16.3% of the typical household's income would go to rent on a two-bedroom. That is lower than in 91% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 70% of U.S. counties.
What drives Lincoln County's score
In Lincoln County, late payments on loans are the highest-scoring part, at 45.6. Income and the safety net is the lowest part, at 31.5. The typical household earns $83,859 a year (2024), more than in 84% of U.S. counties.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Lincoln 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, Lincoln County is worse off than most counties on renters paying half their income or more in rent (23.9%, 2020 to 2024).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 45.6 of 100
Late payments
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind5.6% · August 202553rd percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind5.1% · August 202549th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score36.4% · second quarter of 202634th 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 rent23.9% · 2020 to 202482nd percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income16.3% · fiscal year 20278th percentile
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- 34.3 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector22.2% · August 202546th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people75.3 · 202522nd percentile
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- 33.5 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 202623rd percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working19.6% · 2020 to 202443rd percentile
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- 31.5 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line9.7% · 202419th percentile
- Children below the poverty line12.5% · 202425th percentile
- People with a disability14.9% · 2020 to 202439th percentile
- People without health insurance8.7% · 2020 to 202457th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$83,859 · 202415th 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 Lincoln 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 Lincoln County, 19.5% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Lincoln County
North Carolina
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
Benefit checks' share of income in Lincoln County made its largest gain on the way to its 2009 high, from 16.8% in 2004 to 22.4% in 2009.
In Lincoln County, benefit checks' share of income has tripled since 1969, reaching 21.5% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in about three times as much as benefit checks
In Lincoln County, North Carolina, benefit checks' share of income tripled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 21.5%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Lincoln County getting SNAP food aid had its largest drop, from 12.3% in 2019 to 10.1% in 2020.
The share of households in Lincoln 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: 7.7% 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, Lincoln County, North Carolina.
How Lincoln County has changed
Lincoln County's population had its largest rise in the last span, from 85,746 in 2019 to 97,611 in 2024.
Lincoln County's population tripled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 97,611, with no dip in any year shown
Smallest rise: 2009 to 2014, reaching 79,075. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Lincoln County, North Carolina.
The jobs count covers work located in the county; the population count covers residents.
The number of jobs located in Lincoln County doubled to 28,818, the highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 2020 to 2025, reaching 28,818. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Lincoln County, North Carolina.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 4.1% | 2025 3.4% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 7.7% | 2024 9.7% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $28,540 | 2024 $83,859 |
The table uses 3.4% 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 Lincoln County's history
1779
Formed in 1779 from the eastern part of Tryon County, which had been settled by Europeans in the mid-18th Century. Wikipedia
1989
A tornado in May 1989 did $25 million in property damage and killed four people. NOAA Storm Events Database
2010
A tornado in October 2010 did $1.2 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2013
A flash flood in July 2013 did $1.2 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2015
A thunderstorm in June 2015 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2020
The county's largest recorded population was the 2020 Census count of 86,810, which is also its most recent census. Census Bureau
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Since 1974
21 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Lincoln County, 1 of them for flooding. FEMA
Lincoln County beside its neighbors
All six counties that border Lincoln County score higher than it does. For the share of income from benefit checks, Lincoln County ranks 5th of the seven; Cleveland County is highest, at 33.4%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cleveland County, NC | 80 | 16.3% | 33.4% |
| Gaston County, NC | 73 | 12.4% | 25.6% |
| Burke County, NC | 63 | 14.0% | 31.2% |
| Mecklenburg County, NC | 49 | 10.6% | 12.0% |
| Catawba County, NC | 41 | 13.0% | 25.3% |
| Iredell County, NC | 36 | 9.6% | 17.8% |
| Lincoln County, NC | 29 | 9.7% | 21.5% |
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 Lincoln County the poorest county in North Carolina?
No, Lincoln County's poverty rate was 9.7% in 2024, 89th 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, Lincoln County ranks 90th of 100 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Lincoln 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 Lincoln 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 Lincoln County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.