In Seneca County, Ohio, rent on a two-bedroom takes about one in five dollars of the typical household's income
In Seneca County, 19.4% of the typical household's income would go to rent on a two-bedroom. That is lower than in 63% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 52% of U.S. counties.
What drives Seneca County's score
In Seneca County, collections and bankruptcy is the highest-scoring part, at 64.1. Income and the safety net is the lowest part, at 42.1. About one in 19 people (5.3%, 2020 to 2024) has no health insurance, a lower share than in 76% of U.S. counties.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Seneca 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.
Seneca 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.
- 64.1 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector24.2% · August 202553rd percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people198.1 · 202574th percentile
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- 46.8 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind4.8% · August 202539th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind5.6% · August 202556th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score38.8% · second quarter of 202644th percentile
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- 45.2 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year3.9% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202647th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working19.5% · 2020 to 202442nd percentile
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- 45.0 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 rent18.8% · 2020 to 202453rd percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income19.4% · fiscal year 202736th percentile
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- 42.2 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line13.0% · 202448th percentile
- Children below the poverty line15.6% · 202442nd percentile
- People with a disability15.2% · 2020 to 202442nd percentile
- People without health insurance5.3% · 2020 to 202423rd percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$65,260 · 202454th 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 Seneca 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 Seneca County, 19.2% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Seneca County
Ohio
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Seneca County, benefit checks' share of income has grown to about four times its 1969 level, reaching 30.5% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in nearly twice as much as benefit checks
In Seneca County, Ohio, benefit checks' share of income grew to about four times its 1969 level by 2024, reaching 30.5%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Seneca County getting SNAP food aid had its largest rise, from 10.0% in 2010 to 12.2% in 2011.
The share of households in Seneca County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2015 and has since fallen to 13.5%
Low on the chart: 8.9% 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, Seneca County, Ohio.
How Seneca County has changed
Seneca County's population moved most in two steps: 60,561 in 1969 to 62,458 in 1974; 62,659 in 1979 to 60,762 in 1984.
Seneca County's population fell 10% from 1969 to 2024, reaching its lowest on the chart
High on the chart: 62,659 in 1979. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Seneca County, Ohio.
The jobs count covers work located in the county; the population count covers residents.
The number of jobs located in Seneca County fell 14% from 1990 to 2025, with most of the change between 2005 and 2010
High on the chart: 22,668 in 2000. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Seneca County, Ohio.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 8.1% | 2025 5.0% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 10.7% | 2024 13.0% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $26,261 | 2024 $65,260 |
The table uses 5.0% 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 Seneca County's history
1850
Large-scale deforestation in early-mid 19th century altered wildlife and replaced woodland fauna. Wikipedia
1888
Natural gas discovered in vicinity in 1888. Wikipedia
1889
900 Luxembourgers settled in Seneca County in 1889. Wikipedia
1913
Great Flood of 1913 devastated Tiffin, over $1 million property loss, 19 deaths. Wikipedia
1965
A tornado in April 1965 killed four people. NOAA Storm Events Database
1973
A tornado in May 1973 did $2.5 million in property damage and killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
1980
The county's largest recorded population was the 1980 Census count of 61,901. The 2020 Census counted 55,069, 89% of the peak. Census Bureau
2002
A tornado in November 2002 did $12.8 million in property damage and killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2013
A flood in December 2013 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1965
13 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Seneca County, 4 of them for flooding. FEMA
Seneca County beside its neighbors
Of the six counties that border Seneca County, three score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Seneca County ranks 2nd of the seven; Crawford County is highest, at 32.4%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Crawford County, OH | 55 | 11.2% | 32.4% |
| Huron County, OH | 54 | 11.7% | 26.9% |
| Sandusky County, OH | 48 | 13.3% | 27.3% |
| Seneca County, OH | 47 | 13.0% | 30.5% |
| Hancock County, OH | 25 | 9.0% | 17.5% |
| Wood County, OH | 23 | 11.0% | 18.2% |
| Wyandot County, OH | 16 | 9.4% | 23.0% |
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 Seneca County the poorest county in Ohio?
No, Seneca County's poverty rate was 13.0% in 2024, 40th 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, Seneca County ranks 45th of 88 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Seneca 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 Seneca 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 Seneca County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.