In Wasco County, Oregon, rent on a two-bedroom takes about three in ten dollars of the typical household's income
In Wasco County, 30.1% of the typical household's income would go to rent on a two-bedroom. That is higher than in 96% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 67% of U.S. counties.
What drives Wasco County's score
In Wasco County, housing costs weigh most: the score for housing costs is 88.0. Jobs come next, at 78.5.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Wasco 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.
Wasco County does better than most counties on two measures: people with a car or retail loan behind (3.6%, August 2025) and people with unpaid debt sent to a collector (17.1%, August 2025).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 88.0 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 rent23.3% · 2020 to 202479th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income30.1% · fiscal year 202796th percentile
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- 78.5 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year5.2% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202685th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working24.6% · 2020 to 202471st percentile
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- 54.0 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line12.8% · 202446th percentile
- Children below the poverty line16.3% · 202445th percentile
- People with a disability17.5% · 2020 to 202463rd percentile
- People without health insurance8.5% · 2020 to 202455th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$63,941 · 202458th percentile
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- 42.5 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector17.1% · August 202527th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people144.3 · 202557th percentile
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- 37.9 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind5.8% · August 202555th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind3.6% · August 202526th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score35.7% · second quarter of 202632nd 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 Wasco 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 Wasco County, 21.4% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Wasco County
Oregon
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Wasco County, benefit checks' share of income has more than tripled since 1969, reaching 29.2% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in twice as much as benefit checks
In Wasco County, Oregon, benefit checks' share of income more than tripled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 29.2%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Wasco County getting SNAP food aid made its largest gain on the way to its 2022 high, from 20.0% in 2021 to 22.4% in 2022.
The share of households in Wasco County getting SNAP food aid rose by about half from 2009 to 2024, reaching 21.8%
High on the chart: 22.4% in 2022. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Wasco County, Oregon.
How Wasco County has changed
Wasco County's population had its largest rise, from 21,186 in 1979 to 22,595 in 1984.
Wasco County's population rose by about a third from 1969 to 2024, reaching 26,507
High on the chart: 26,736 in 2019. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Wasco County, Oregon.
The jobs count covers work located in the county; the population count covers residents.
The number of jobs located in Wasco County rose 43% from 1990 to 2025, reaching its highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 1995 to 2000, reaching 10,197. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Wasco County, Oregon.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 6.9% | 2025 5.1% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 13.4% | 2024 12.8% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $23,458 | 2024 $63,941 |
The table uses 5.1% for 2025; the score uses 5.2% 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 Wasco County's history
1957
Celilo Falls submerged when The Dalles Dam constructed in 1957. Wikipedia
2020
The county's largest recorded population was the 2020 Census count of 26,670, which is also its most recent census. Census Bureau
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Since 1964
14 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Wasco County, 6 of them for flooding. FEMA
Wasco County beside its neighbors
Of the eight counties that border Wasco County, in Oregon and Washington, one scores higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Wasco County ranks 4th of the nine; Wheeler County is highest, at 39.0%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jefferson County, OR | 72 | 13.7% | 38.0% |
| Wasco County, OR | 67 | 12.8% | 29.2% |
| Sherman County, OR | 63 | 14.1% | 30.2% |
| Marion County, OR | 63 | 11.9% | 27.2% |
| Wheeler County, OR | 51 | 17.1% | 39.0% |
| Klickitat County, WA | 46 | 12.2% | 29.1% |
| Gilliam County, OR | 36 | 11.5% | 24.7% |
| Clackamas County, OR | 31 | 8.1% | 14.3% |
| 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 Wasco County the poorest county in Oregon?
No, Wasco County's poverty rate was 12.8% in 2024, 20th 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, Wasco County ranks 9th of 36 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Wasco 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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Columbia Cascade Housing Corporations Housing Resource Center
HUD-approved housing counselor
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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.
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 Wasco County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.