In Madison County, North Carolina, rent on a two-bedroom takes about one in three dollars of the typical household's income
In Madison County, 36.3% of the typical household's income would go to rent on a two-bedroom. That is higher than in 99% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 56% of U.S. counties.
What drives Madison County's score
In Madison County, housing costs weigh most: the score for housing costs is 74.9. Income and the safety net comes next, at 62.9.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Madison 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.
Madison County does better than most counties on two measures: bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people (72.5, 2025) and unemployment rate, average over the latest year (3.5%, Oct 2025 to Sep 2026).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 74.9 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 rent18.2% · 2020 to 202450th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income36.3% · fiscal year 202799th percentile
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- 62.9 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line14.9% · 202464th percentile
- Children below the poverty line19.3% · 202461st percentile
- People with a disability18.1% · 2020 to 202468th percentile
- People without health insurance8.4% · 2020 to 202454th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$61,754 · 202465th percentile
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- 54.7 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind5.8% · August 202556th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind5.9% · August 202560th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score39.3% · second quarter of 202646th percentile
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- 46.8 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year3.5% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202633rd percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working22.3% · 2020 to 202459th percentile
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- 32.3 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector21.6% · August 202544th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people72.5 · 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 Madison 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 Madison County, 23.2% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Madison County
North Carolina
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Madison County, benefit checks' share of income has more than doubled since 1969, reaching 33.4% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in about one and a half times as much as benefit checks
In Madison County, North Carolina, benefit checks' share of income more than doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 33.4%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Madison County getting SNAP food aid had its largest rise, from 9.7% in 2010 to 12.6% in 2011.
The share of households in Madison County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2014 and has since fallen by about a quarter
Low on the chart: 8.0% 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, Madison County, North Carolina.
How Madison County has changed
Madison County's population had its largest rise, from 17,835 in 1994 to 19,392 in 1999.
Madison County's population rose by about a third to 22,352, the highest on the chart
High on the chart: 22,352 in 2024. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Madison County, North Carolina.
The jobs count covers work located in the county; the population count covers residents.
The number of jobs located in Madison County rose by about a third to 4,351, the highest on the chart, with most of the change between 1995 and 2000
Biggest rise: 1995 to 2000, reaching 4,157. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Madison County, North Carolina.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 4.3% | 2025 4.7% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 19.9% | 2024 14.9% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $18,768 | 2024 $61,754 |
The table uses 4.7% for 2025; the score uses 3.5% 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 Madison County's history
1851
Formed in 1851 from parts of Buncombe County and Yancey County. Wikipedia
1861
Civil War conflict in Marshall. Wikipedia
1940
The county's largest recorded population was the 1940 Census count of 22,522. The 2020 Census counted 21,193, 94% of the peak. Census Bureau
2003
A flash flood in July 2003 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2010
Lightning in June 2010 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2024
A flash flood in September 2024 did $10 million in property damage and killed five people. NOAA Storm Events Database
2024
A flood in September 2024 did $25 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1977
22 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Madison County, 6 of them for flooding. FEMA
Madison County beside its neighbors
Of the six counties that border Madison County, in North Carolina and Tennessee, three score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Madison County ranks 5th of the seven; Cocke County is highest, at 38.5%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cocke County, TN | 94 | 20.9% | 38.5% |
| Greene County, TN | 72 | 16.3% | 36.1% |
| Unicoi County, TN | 71 | 14.4% | 37.8% |
| Madison County, NC | 56 | 14.9% | 33.4% |
| Haywood County, NC | 50 | 13.6% | 32.2% |
| Buncombe County, NC | 45 | 12.4% | 20.9% |
| Yancey County, NC | 45 | 14.5% | 35.9% |
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 Madison County the poorest county in North Carolina?
No, Madison County's poverty rate was 14.9% in 2024, 47th 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, Madison County ranks 56th of 100 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Madison 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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Pisgah Legal Services
Legal aid
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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 Madison 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 Madison County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.