In Walsh County, North Dakota, rent on a two-bedroom takes about one in six dollars of the typical household's income
In Walsh County, 16.5% of the typical household's income would go to rent on a two-bedroom. That is lower than in 89% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 81% of U.S. counties.
What drives Walsh County's score
In Walsh County, late payments on loans are the highest-scoring part, at 43.2. Collections and bankruptcy is the lowest part, at 14.7. Bankruptcy filings ran at 29.1 per 100,000 people (2025), lower than in 95% of U.S. counties.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Walsh 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.
Walsh 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.
- 43.2 of 100
Late payments
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind5.3% · August 202546th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind4.7% · August 202543rd percentile
- People with a subprime credit score37.6% · second quarter of 202640th percentile
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- 36.6 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 line13.5% · 202430th percentile
- People with a disability14.1% · 2020 to 202431st percentile
- People without health insurance8.0% · 2020 to 202451st percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$73,571 · 202432nd percentile
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- 32.5 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 rent18.9% · 2020 to 202454th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income16.5% · fiscal year 202710th percentile
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- 28.7 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year3.1% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202616th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working19.3% · 2020 to 202441st percentile
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- 14.7 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector16.4% · August 202524th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people29.1 · 20255th or lower 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 Walsh 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 Walsh County, 21.9% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Walsh County
North Dakota
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
Benefit checks' share of income in Walsh County had its largest rise, from 10.2% in 1974 to 14.9% in 1979.
In Walsh County, benefit checks' share of income has doubled since 1969, reaching 21.5% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in about three times as much as benefit checks
In Walsh County, North Dakota, benefit checks' share of income doubled 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
SNAP food aid is one of the benefit checks counted in the income totals above.
The share of households in Walsh County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2015 and has since fallen to 4.1%
Biggest drop: 2017 to 2018, reaching 8.3%. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Walsh County, North Dakota.
How Walsh County has changed
Walsh County's population had its largest drop, from 15,487 in 1984 to 14,006 in 1989.
Walsh County's population fell 38% from 1969 to 2024, with no rise in any year shown
Smallest drop: 1974 to 1979, reaching 15,963. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Walsh County, North Dakota.
The number of jobs located in Walsh County fell most sharply on the way to its 2020 low, from 5,165 in 2015 to 4,636 in 2020.
The number of jobs located in Walsh County was at its highest on the chart in 2000 and is down 14% since
High on the chart: 5,505 in 2000. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Walsh County, North Dakota.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 4.6% | 2025 3.4% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 15.3% | 2024 11.7% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $22,203 | 2024 $73,571 |
The table uses 3.4% for 2025; the score uses 3.1% 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 Walsh County's history
1881
May 2, 1881 (created) August 30, 1881 (organized). Wikipedia
1940
The county's largest recorded population was the 1940 Census count of 20,747. The 2020 Census counted 10,563, 51% of the peak. Census Bureau
1946
1946 tornado killed 11 people in Walsh County. Wikipedia
1994
A thunderstorm in August 1994 did $1.3 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2013
A flood in April 2013 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2023
A flood in April 2023 did $1 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2023
A flood in April 2023 did $1 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1965
41 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Walsh County, 36 of them for flooding. FEMA
Walsh County beside its neighbors
Walsh County scores higher than all six counties that border it, in North Dakota and Minnesota. For the share of income from benefit checks, Walsh County ranks 4th of the seven; Nelson County is highest, at 27.3%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Walsh County, ND | 18 | 11.7% | 21.5% |
| Grand Forks County, ND | 8 | 12.4% | 15.6% |
| Marshall County, MN | 7 | 9.0% | 25.5% |
| Ramsey County, ND | 6 | 11.6% | 23.5% |
| Pembina County, ND | 5 | 9.5% | 18.5% |
| Cavalier County, ND | 3 | 9.7% | 18.4% |
| Nelson County, ND | 2 | 11.0% | 27.3% |
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 Walsh County the poorest county in North Dakota?
No, Walsh 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, Walsh County ranks 8th of 53 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Walsh 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.
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 Walsh County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.