Benefit checks make up 33 cents of every dollar of income in Hocking County, Ohio
In Hocking County, 33.0% of all the income people there received came from benefit checks. That is higher than in 76% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 60% of U.S. counties.
What drives Hocking County's score
In Hocking County, collections and bankruptcy weighs most: the score for collections and bankruptcy is 74.0. Bankruptcy filings ran at 225.1 per 100,000 people (2025), higher than in 81% of U.S. counties. Jobs come next, at 63.1.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Hocking 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.
Hocking County does better than most counties on two measures: rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income (19.2%, fiscal year 2027) and renters paying half their income or more in rent (16.0%, 2020 to 2024).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 74.0 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector27.7% · August 202566th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people225.1 · 202581st percentile
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- 63.1 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year4.3% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202659th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working23.5% · 2020 to 202466th percentile
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- 56.4 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind5.5% · August 202550th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind5.1% · August 202549th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score45.8% · second quarter of 202669th percentile
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- 55.2 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line13.2% · 202449th percentile
- Children below the poverty line18.3% · 202456th percentile
- People with a disability17.6% · 2020 to 202464th percentile
- People without health insurance7.4% · 2020 to 202445th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$63,690 · 202458th percentile
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- 35.2 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 rent16.0% · 2020 to 202436th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income19.2% · fiscal year 202733rd 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 Hocking 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 Hocking 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
Hocking County
Ohio
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Hocking County, benefit checks' share of income has tripled since 1969, reaching 33.0% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in nearly twice as much as benefit checks
In Hocking County, Ohio, benefit checks' share of income tripled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 33.0%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Hocking County getting SNAP food aid had its largest rise, from 14.5% in 2011 to 16.9% in 2012.
The share of households in Hocking County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2016 and has since fallen by about a quarter
Low on the chart: 12.4% 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, Hocking County, Ohio.
How Hocking County has changed
Hocking County's population had its largest rise, from 20,333 in 1969 to 22,161 in 1974.
Hocking County's population rose by about a third from 1969 to 2024, reaching 27,429
High on the chart: 29,358 in 2009. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Hocking County, Ohio.
The jobs count covers work located in the county; the population count covers residents.
The number of jobs located in Hocking County rose by about a fifth to 7,527, the highest on the chart, with most of the change between 2020 and 2025
Biggest rise: 2020 to 2025, reaching 7,527. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Hocking County, Ohio.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 9.1% | 2025 4.9% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 14.9% | 2024 13.2% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $23,254 | 2024 $63,690 |
The table uses 4.9% for 2025; the score uses 4.3% 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 Hocking County's history
1818
Organized March 1, 1818 from land previously included in Athens, Fairfield, and Ross counties. Wikipedia
1997
A flash flood in March 1997 did $1 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2010
The county's largest recorded population was the 2010 Census count of 29,380. The 2020 Census counted 28,050, 95% of the peak. Census Bureau
2019
A tornado in May 2019 did $1.5 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2025
A flash flood in July 2025 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1968
18 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Hocking County, 10 of them for flooding. FEMA
Hocking County beside its neighbors
Of the six counties that border Hocking County, four score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Hocking County ranks 2nd of the seven; Vinton County is highest, at 36.4%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ross County, OH | 81 | 13.4% | 31.3% |
| Athens County, OH | 72 | 25.3% | 29.0% |
| Vinton County, OH | 69 | 16.8% | 36.4% |
| Perry County, OH | 61 | 13.7% | 30.6% |
| Hocking County, OH | 60 | 13.2% | 33.0% |
| Pickaway County, OH | 48 | 9.3% | 22.5% |
| Fairfield County, OH | 31 | 8.1% | 18.8% |
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 Hocking County the poorest county in Ohio?
No, Hocking County's poverty rate was 13.2% in 2024, 38th 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, Hocking County ranks 30th of 88 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Hocking 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 Southeast and Central Ohio (LASCO)
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 Hocking 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 Hocking County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.