In Defiance County, Ohio, rent on a two-bedroom takes about one in six dollars of the typical household's income
In Defiance County, 17.0% of the typical household's income would go to rent on a two-bedroom. That is lower than in 86% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 75% of U.S. counties.
What drives Defiance County's score
In Defiance County, collections and bankruptcy is the highest-scoring part, at 46.3. Housing costs are the lowest part, at 24.8.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Defiance 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.
Defiance 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.
- 46.3 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector20.1% · August 202538th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people135.7 · 202554th percentile
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- 40.9 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind4.4% · August 202531st percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind5.3% · August 202551st percentile
- People with a subprime credit score37.5% · second quarter of 202639th percentile
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- 32.8 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line8.9% · 202414th percentile
- Children below the poverty line12.1% · 202423rd percentile
- People with a disability14.5% · 2020 to 202435th percentile
- People without health insurance8.4% · 2020 to 202454th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$71,913 · 202436th percentile
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- 31.7 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 202632nd percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working17.6% · 2020 to 202430th percentile
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- 24.8 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 rent15.8% · 2020 to 202436th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income17.0% · fiscal year 202713th 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 Defiance 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 Defiance County, 20.2% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Defiance County
Ohio
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Defiance County, benefit checks' share of income has grown since 1969, reaching 27.9% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in twice as much as benefit checks
In Defiance County, Ohio, benefit checks' share of income rose from 1969 to 2024, reaching 27.9%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Defiance County getting SNAP food aid had its largest drop, from 13.1% in 2016 to 11.2% in 2017.
The share of households in Defiance County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2013 and has since fallen by about a third
Low on the chart: 9.2% in 2023. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Defiance County, Ohio.
How Defiance County has changed
Defiance County's population rose 6% from 1969 to 2024, with most of the change between 1974 and 1979
High on the chart: 39,890 in 1979. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Defiance County, Ohio.
The number of jobs located in Defiance County had its largest drop, from 17,037 in 2005 to 15,115 in 2010.
The number of jobs located in Defiance County was at its highest on the chart in 2000 and is down 17% since
High on the chart: 18,560 in 2000. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Defiance County, Ohio.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 8.0% | 2025 4.5% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 7.6% | 2024 8.9% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $31,948 | 2024 $71,913 |
The table uses 4.5% 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 Defiance County's history
1980
The county's largest recorded population was the 1980 Census count of 39,987. The 2020 Census counted 38,286, 96% of the peak. Census Bureau
1986
A tornado in July 1986 did $2.5 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1977
8 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Defiance County, 2 of them for flooding. FEMA
Defiance County beside its neighbors
Of the six counties that border Defiance County, in Ohio and Indiana, three score higher. Of the group, Defiance County gets the largest share of its income from benefit checks (27.9%).
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Allen County, IN | 49 | 12.3% | 20.0% |
| Williams County, OH | 43 | 10.3% | 27.1% |
| Paulding County, OH | 27 | 10.4% | 25.2% |
| Defiance County, OH | 24 | 8.9% | 27.9% |
| DeKalb County, IN | 20 | 8.9% | 22.6% |
| Henry County, OH | 19 | 7.9% | 25.9% |
| Putnam County, OH | 1 | 6.0% | 19.4% |
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 Defiance County the poorest county in Ohio?
No, Defiance County's poverty rate was 8.9% in 2024, 71st highest of 88 in Ohio (U.S. Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates). By that measure the poorest county in the state is Athens County, at 25.3%. On our distress index, which counts more than poverty, Defiance County ranks 69th of 88 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Defiance 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 Western Ohio (LAWO)
Legal aid
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Ohio Legal Help
Legal help website
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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 Defiance 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 Defiance County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.