About one in 11 people with a credit file in Hood River County, Oregon, has unpaid debt sent to a collector
In Hood River County, 9.1% of people with a credit file had unpaid debt sent to a collector. That is lower than in 97% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 78% of U.S. counties.
What drives Hood River County's score
In Hood River County, housing costs are the highest-scoring part, at 84.9. Late payments on loans are the lowest part, at 7.3. People with a credit card behind: 2.0%, August 2025, lower than in 96% of U.S. counties.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Hood River 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.
Even so, Hood River County is worse off than most counties on rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income (26.5%, fiscal year 2027) and renters paying half their income or more in rent (23.6%, 2020 to 2024).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 84.9 of 100
Housing costs
Biggest factorRenters, 2020–24 Census survey; HUD's fair market rents, fiscal year 2027
- Renters paying half their income or more in rent23.6% · 2020 to 202480th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income26.5% · fiscal year 202789th percentile
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- 30.0 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line10.8% · 202429th percentile
- Children below the poverty line13.3% · 202429th percentile
- People with a disability12.0% · 2020 to 202414th percentile
- People without health insurance9.5% · 2020 to 202462nd percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$85,628 · 202413th percentile
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- 27.1 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 202648th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working11.9% · 2020 to 20245th percentile
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- 17.4 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector9.1% · August 20252nd percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people92.7 · 202532nd percentile
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- 7.3 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind2.0% · August 20253rd percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind2.9% · August 202513th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score26.0% · second quarter of 20264th 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 Hood River 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 Hood River County, 18.1% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Hood River County
Oregon
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Hood River County, benefit checks' share of income has doubled since 1969, reaching 17.5% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in about three times as much as benefit checks
In Hood River County, Oregon, benefit checks' share of income doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 17.5%; 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 Hood River County getting SNAP food aid rose by about half from 2009 to 2024, reaching 13.4%, with most of the change between 2013 and 2014
High on the chart: 14.3% in 2014. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Hood River County, Oregon.
How Hood River County has changed
Hood River County's population had its largest rise, from 14,213 in 1974 to 16,347 in 1979.
Hood River County's population nearly doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 23,764
High on the chart: 23,954 in 2019. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Hood River County, Oregon.
The number of jobs located in Hood River County had its largest rise, from 11,237 in 2005 to 12,430 in 2010.
The number of jobs located in Hood River County nearly doubled from 1990 to 2025, reaching 13,859, with no dip in any year shown
Smallest rise: 2015 to 2020, reaching 13,262. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Hood River County, Oregon.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 8.0% | 2025 4.1% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 13.8% | 2024 10.8% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $23,126 | 2024 $85,628 |
The table uses 4.1% 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 Hood River County's history
2006
A flood in November 2006 did $30 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2020
The county's largest recorded population was the 2020 Census count of 23,977, which is also its most recent census. Census Bureau
1908
Established June 23, 1908. Wikipedia
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Since 1964
13 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Hood River County, 7 of them for flooding. FEMA
Hood River County beside its neighbors
All five counties that border Hood River County, in Oregon and Washington, score higher than it does. For the share of income from benefit checks, Hood River County ranks 4th of the six; Wasco County is highest, at 29.2%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Wasco County, OR | 67 | 12.8% | 29.2% |
| Multnomah County, OR | 49 | 12.7% | 16.1% |
| Klickitat County, WA | 46 | 12.2% | 29.1% |
| Clackamas County, OR | 31 | 8.1% | 14.3% |
| Skamania County, WA | 27 | 10.3% | 19.4% |
| Hood River County, OR | 21 | 10.8% | 17.5% |
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 Hood River County the poorest county in Oregon?
No, Hood River County's poverty rate was 10.8% in 2024, 30th highest of 36 in Oregon (U.S. Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates). By that measure the poorest county in the state is Malheur County, at 18.5%. On our distress index, which counts more than poverty, Hood River County ranks 36th of 36 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Hood River 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 Services of Oregon
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.
Download the CSV for Hood River 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 Hood River County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.