About one in 11 people with a credit file in McHenry County, North Dakota, has unpaid debt sent to a collector
In McHenry County, 8.8% of people with a credit file had unpaid debt sent to a collector. That is lower than in 97% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 93% of U.S. counties.
What drives McHenry County's score
In McHenry County, jobs are the highest-scoring part, at 40.1. Housing costs are the lowest part, at 5.5. About one in 32 renters (3.1%, 2020 to 2024) pays half their income or more in rent, a lower share than in 95% of U.S. counties.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in McHenry 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.
McHenry County isn't among the worst-off quarter of U.S. counties on any measure.
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 40.1 of 100
Jobs
Biggest factorUnemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year3.9% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202645th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working18.2% · 2020 to 202434th percentile
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- 34.0 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line11.7% · 202437th percentile
- Children below the poverty line14.7% · 202437th percentile
- People with a disability12.2% · 2020 to 202416th percentile
- People without health insurance8.3% · 2020 to 202454th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$77,267 · 202424th percentile
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- 14.5 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector8.8% · August 20255th or lower percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people78 · 202524th percentile
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- 14.3 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind1.6% · August 20255th or lower percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind0.0% · August 20255th or lower percentile
- People with a subprime credit score35.9% · second quarter of 202633rd percentile
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- 5.5 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 rent3.1% · 2020 to 20245th or lower percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income15.8% · fiscal year 20276th 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 McHenry 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 McHenry County, 22.1% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
McHenry County
North Dakota
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
Benefit checks' share of income in McHenry County rose most sharply after its 1974 low, from 11.5% in 1974 to 16.5% in 1979.
In McHenry County, benefit checks' share of income has doubled since 1969, reaching 22.7% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in more than twice as much as benefit checks
In McHenry County, North Dakota, benefit checks' share of income doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 22.7%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in McHenry County getting SNAP food aid had its largest rise, from 7.1% in 2011 to 9.1% in 2012.
The share of households in McHenry County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2019 and has since fallen by about a third
Low on the chart: 5.5% 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, McHenry County, North Dakota.
How McHenry County has changed
McHenry County's population fell 44% from 1969 to 2024, reaching its lowest on the chart
Biggest drop: 1984 to 1989, reaching 6,701. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, McHenry County, North Dakota.
The jobs count covers work located in the county; the population count covers residents.
The number of jobs located in McHenry County rose by about a quarter to 1,311, the highest on the chart, with most of the change between 2005 and 2010
Biggest rise: 2005 to 2010, reaching 1,244. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, McHenry County, North Dakota.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 5.9% | 2025 3.8% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 18.8% | 2024 11.7% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $17,844 | 2024 $77,267 |
The table uses 3.8% 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 McHenry County's history
1873
January 4, 1873 (created) October 15, 1884 (organized). Wikipedia
1884
Organized October 15, 1884. Wikipedia
1910
The county's largest recorded population was the 1910 Census count of 17,627. The 2020 Census counted 5,345, 30% of the peak. Census Bureau
2011
A flood in May 2011 did $5 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1966
32 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered McHenry County, 25 of them for flooding. FEMA
McHenry County beside its neighbors
Of the six counties that border McHenry County, two score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, McHenry County ranks 3rd of the seven; Sheridan County is highest, at 30.4%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sheridan County, ND | 16 | 15.5% | 30.4% |
| Ward County, ND | 14 | 10.7% | 15.5% |
| McHenry County, ND | 6 | 11.7% | 22.7% |
| Pierce County, ND | 4 | 11.7% | 27.0% |
| Bottineau County, ND | 2 | 10.0% | 22.0% |
| Renville County, ND | 1 | 9.6% | 19.8% |
| McLean County, ND | 0 | 10.8% | 22.6% |
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 McHenry County the poorest county in North Dakota?
No, McHenry County's poverty rate was 11.7% in 2024, 18th highest of 53 in North Dakota (U.S. Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates). By that measure the poorest county in the state is Sioux County, at 29.9%. On our distress index, which counts more than poverty, McHenry County ranks 28th of 53 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in McHenry 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 Services of North Dakota
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 McHenry 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 McHenry County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.