About one in four people with a credit file in Hardin County, Ohio, has unpaid debt sent to a collector
In Hardin County, 25.9% of people with a credit file had unpaid debt sent to a collector. That is higher than in 59% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 50% of U.S. counties.
What drives Hardin County's score
In Hardin County, late payments on loans weigh most: the score for late payments on loans is 65.3. People with a credit card behind: 6.8%, August 2025, higher than in 70% of U.S. counties. Collections and bankruptcy comes next, at 57.7.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Hardin 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.
Hardin County does better than most counties on two measures: rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income (17.5%, fiscal year 2027) and people with a disability (12.4%, 2020 to 2024).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 65.3 of 100
Late payments
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind6.8% · August 202570th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind6.4% · August 202566th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score42.6% · second quarter of 202658th percentile
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- 57.7 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector25.9% · August 202560th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people138.3 · 202555th percentile
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- 53.4 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year4.1% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202656th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working20.8% · 2020 to 202450th percentile
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- 48.3 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line14.3% · 202459th percentile
- Children below the poverty line16.5% · 202446th percentile
- People with a disability12.4% · 2020 to 202417th percentile
- People without health insurance11.1% · 2020 to 202473rd percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$68,612 · 202444th percentile
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- 26.3 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 rent15.6% · 2020 to 202434th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income17.5% · fiscal year 202717th 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 Hardin 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 Hardin County, 16.1% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Hardin County
Ohio
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Hardin County, benefit checks' share of income has more than tripled since 1969, reaching 28.9% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in twice as much as benefit checks
In Hardin County, Ohio, benefit checks' share of income more than tripled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 28.9%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Hardin County getting SNAP food aid had its largest rise, from 8.0% in 2010 to 10.5% in 2011.
The share of households in Hardin County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2014 and has since fallen to 12.4%
Low on the chart: 7.8% 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, Hardin County, Ohio.
How Hardin County has changed
Hardin County's population had its largest rise, from 30,506 in 1969 to 32,041 in 1974.
Hardin County's population was about the same in 2024 as in 1969
High on the chart: 32,331 in 1979. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Hardin County, Ohio.
The number of jobs located in Hardin County had its largest drop, from 8,901 in 2005 to 7,872 in 2010.
The number of jobs located in Hardin County was at its highest on the chart in 2000 and is down 14% since
High on the chart: 8,912 in 2000. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Hardin County, Ohio.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 7.5% | 2025 5.1% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 14.1% | 2024 14.3% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $25,127 | 2024 $68,612 |
The table uses 5.1% for 2025; the score uses 4.1% 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 Hardin County's history
1812
Fort McArthur erected 1812 by Colonel Duncan McArthur during War of 1812. Wikipedia
1952
Kenton Hardware Company manufactured locks and toys 1890-1952. Wikipedia
1980
The county's largest recorded population was the 1980 Census count of 32,719. The 2020 Census counted 30,696, 94% of the peak. Census Bureau
1983
International Car Company manufactured rail cabooses in Kenton, purchased by Paccar 1975, closed 1983. Wikipedia
2005
Lightning in June 2005 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1977
12 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Hardin County, 3 of them for flooding. FEMA
Hardin County beside its neighbors
Of the seven counties that border Hardin County, two score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Hardin County ranks 2nd of the eight; Marion County is highest, at 31.6%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Marion County, OH | 73 | 16.0% | 31.6% |
| Allen County, OH | 59 | 14.8% | 26.8% |
| Hardin County, OH | 50 | 14.3% | 28.9% |
| Logan County, OH | 32 | 9.7% | 26.3% |
| Hancock County, OH | 25 | 9.0% | 17.5% |
| Wyandot County, OH | 16 | 9.4% | 23.0% |
| Auglaize County, OH | 5 | 7.0% | 21.2% |
| Union County, OH | 2 | 5.3% | 11.7% |
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 Hardin County the poorest county in Ohio?
No, Hardin County's poverty rate was 14.3% in 2024, 23rd 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, Hardin County ranks 40th of 88 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Hardin 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 Hardin 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 Hardin County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.