Benefit checks make up 33 cents of every dollar of income in Rockingham County, North Carolina
In Rockingham County, 33.3% of all the income people there received came from benefit checks. That is higher than in 77% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 74% of U.S. counties.
What drives Rockingham County's score
In Rockingham County, late payments on loans weigh most: the score for late payments on loans is 75.5. People with a car or retail loan behind: 8.0%, August 2025, higher than in 83% of U.S. counties. Income and the safety net comes next, at 73.2.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Rockingham 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.
Rockingham County does better than most counties on two measures: bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people (112.4, 2025) and unemployment rate, average over the latest year (3.9%, Oct 2025 to Sep 2026).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 75.5 of 100
Late payments
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind6.5% · August 202565th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind8.0% · August 202583rd percentile
- People with a subprime credit score49.0% · second quarter of 202676th percentile
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- 73.2 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line17.2% · 202476th percentile
- Children below the poverty line24.5% · 202481st percentile
- People with a disability18.0% · 2020 to 202467th percentile
- People without health insurance9.1% · 2020 to 202460th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$56,141 · 202480th percentile
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- 61.4 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 202647th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working25.3% · 2020 to 202475th percentile
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- 56.8 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector29.0% · August 202571st percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people112.4 · 202542nd percentile
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- 56.7 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 rent18.8% · 2020 to 202453rd percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income21.6% · fiscal year 202759th 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 Rockingham 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 Rockingham County, 21.1% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Rockingham County
North Carolina
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
Benefit checks' share of income in Rockingham County had its largest rise, from 22.9% in 2004 to 29.0% in 2009.
In Rockingham County, benefit checks' share of income has grown to about four times its 1969 level, reaching 33.3% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in about one and a half times as much as benefit checks
In Rockingham County, North Carolina, benefit checks' share of income grew to about four times its 1969 level by 2024, reaching 33.3%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Rockingham County getting SNAP food aid had its largest rise, from 14.8% in 2013 to 16.4% in 2014.
The share of households in Rockingham County getting SNAP food aid rose by more than half from 2009 to 2024, reaching 17.7%
High on the chart: 18.7% in 2016. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Rockingham County, North Carolina.
How Rockingham County has changed
Rockingham County's population had its largest rise, from 72,122 in 1969 to 79,057 in 1974.
Rockingham County's population rose 30% from 1969 to 2024
High on the chart: 93,547 in 2009. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Rockingham County, North Carolina.
The number of jobs located in Rockingham County had its largest drop, from 30,667 in 2005 to 26,545 in 2010.
The number of jobs located in Rockingham County fell by about a quarter from 1990 to 2025, reaching 23,947
High on the chart: 34,230 in 1995. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Rockingham County, North Carolina.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 5.3% | 2025 4.2% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 11.8% | 2024 17.2% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $24,272 | 2024 $56,141 |
The table uses 4.2% 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 Rockingham County's history
1785
Formed on December 29, 1785, from a northern portion of Guilford County. Wikipedia
1998
A tornado in March 1998 did $34 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 93,643. The 2020 Census counted 91,096, 97% of the peak. Census Bureau
2014
Coal ash pond spill into Dan River. Wikipedia
2017
A tornado in May 2017 did $4 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2018
A tornado in April 2018 did $2.2 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2018
A flash flood in October 2018 did $2.05 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1977
25 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Rockingham County, 1 of them for flooding. FEMA
Rockingham County beside its neighbors
Of the six counties that border Rockingham County, in North Carolina and Virginia, one scores higher. Of the group, Rockingham County gets the largest share of its income from benefit checks (33.3%).
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Henry County, VA | 85 | 16.0% | — |
| Rockingham County, NC | 74 | 17.2% | 33.3% |
| Pittsylvania County, VA | 63 | 13.5% | — |
| Guilford County, NC | 61 | 13.5% | 20.9% |
| Caswell County, NC | 60 | 16.8% | 32.2% |
| Alamance County, NC | 56 | 13.8% | 25.0% |
| Stokes County, NC | 49 | 11.8% | 32.2% |
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 Rockingham County the poorest county in North Carolina?
No, Rockingham County's poverty rate was 17.2% in 2024, 28th 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, Rockingham County ranks 31st of 100 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Rockingham 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 Rockingham 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 Rockingham County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.