Benefit checks make up 36 cents of every dollar of income in McDowell County, North Carolina
In McDowell County, 36.2% of all the income people there received came from benefit checks. That is higher than in 85% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 61% of U.S. counties.
What drives McDowell County's score
In McDowell County, income and the safety net weighs most: the score for income and the safety net is 71.1. The typical household earns $57,124 a year (2024), less than in 77% of U.S. counties. Late payments on loans come next, at 67.4.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in McDowell 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.
McDowell County does better than most counties on two measures: bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people (64.6, 2025) and renters paying half their income or more in rent (16.3%, 2020 to 2024).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 71.1 of 100
Income and safety net
Biggest factorPoverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line15.5% · 202467th percentile
- Children below the poverty line20.9% · 202467th percentile
- People with a disability17.8% · 2020 to 202466th percentile
- People without health insurance11.5% · 2020 to 202475th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$57,124 · 202477th percentile
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- 67.4 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind7.4% · August 202577th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind5.7% · August 202557th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score45.3% · second quarter of 202667th percentile
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- 57.1 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year3.8% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202642nd percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working24.6% · 2020 to 202471st percentile
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- 47.5 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 rent16.3% · 2020 to 202439th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income21.3% · fiscal year 202756th percentile
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- 42.4 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector28.0% · August 202567th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people64.6 · 202516th 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 McDowell 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 McDowell County, 21.0% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
McDowell County
North Carolina
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In McDowell County, benefit checks' share of income has grown to about four times its 1969 level, reaching 36.2% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in about a third more than benefit checks
In McDowell County, North Carolina, benefit checks' share of income grew to about four times its 1969 level by 2024, reaching 36.2%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in McDowell County getting SNAP food aid rose most sharply from its first year (9.2% in 2009) to 11.5% in 2010.
The share of households in McDowell County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2016 and has since fallen to 18.3%
Low on the chart: 9.2% 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, McDowell County, North Carolina.
How McDowell County has changed
McDowell County's population rose by about half to 45,269, the highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 1994 to 1999, reaching 41,874. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, McDowell County, North Carolina.
The number of jobs located in McDowell County had its largest rise, from 15,681 in 1990 to 17,820 in 1995.
The number of jobs located in McDowell County was at its highest on the chart in 1995 and is down 14% since
High on the chart: 17,820 in 1995. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, McDowell County, North Carolina.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 6.0% | 2025 4.4% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 9.3% | 2024 15.5% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $22,778 | 2024 $57,124 |
The table uses 4.4% for 2025; the score uses 3.8% 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 McDowell County's history
1842
Formed in 1842 from parts of Burke County and Rutherford County. Wikipedia
1929
Marion Manufacturing Company strike. Wikipedia
1997
Hail in June 1997 did $2 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2010
The county's largest recorded population was the 2010 Census count of 44,996. The 2020 Census counted 44,578, 99% of the peak. Census Bureau
2013
A debris flow in May 2013 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2024
A flash flood in September 2024 did $100 million in property damage and killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2024
A flash flood in September 2024 did $5 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1973
21 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered McDowell County, 3 of them for flooding. FEMA
McDowell County beside its neighbors
Of the six counties that border McDowell County, two score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, McDowell County ranks 2nd of the seven; Rutherford County is highest, at 37.0%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rutherford County, NC | 75 | 14.8% | 37.0% |
| Burke County, NC | 63 | 14.0% | 31.2% |
| McDowell County, NC | 61 | 15.5% | 36.2% |
| Buncombe County, NC | 45 | 12.4% | 20.9% |
| Yancey County, NC | 45 | 14.5% | 35.9% |
| Mitchell County, NC | 39 | 13.5% | 34.3% |
| Avery County, NC | 36 | 15.8% | 28.0% |
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 McDowell County the poorest county in North Carolina?
No, McDowell County's poverty rate was 15.5% in 2024, 41st 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, McDowell County ranks 49th of 100 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in McDowell 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 McDowell 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 McDowell County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.