Wheeler County, Oregon

County Distress Index: Elevated · 62.5 | 1,436 people · 7th most distressed in Oregon
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Wheeler County, OR registers elevated household financial distress with a score of 62.5 — 652nd nationally out of 3144 counties. The primary driver is Income & Poverty, where poverty rates are high and household incomes lag well behind state and national medians. Within Oregon, it ranks 7th of 36 counties. It scores higher than all 6 of its neighboring counties.

The Numbers Behind the Score

The CDI measures five domains of financial distress. Wheeler County's primary driver is Income & Poverty at 88.9 — worse than roughly 89% of U.S. counties.

Income & Poverty Primary driver 88.9
Poverty Rate 80
Income vs. State Median 95
Child Poverty Rate 92
Employment & Wages 82.8
Unemployment Rate 80
Wage-to-Rent Ratio 73
Business Formation Rate 95
Housing Cost Burden 54.5
Rent-Burdened (30%+) 8
Severely Rent-Burdened (50%+) 10
Mortgage-Burdened (30%+) 95
Homeownership Rate 73
Rent-to-Income Ratio 86
Community Vulnerability 50.7
Uninsured Rate 6
Disability Rate 95
Debt & Delinquency 35.7
Debt in Collections 22
Medical Debt 7
Student Loan Delinquency 44
Auto Loan Delinquency 30
Credit Card Delinquency 35
Bankruptcy Filing Rate 77

Scores are percentile-based: 50 = national median, higher = more distressed. The median line is shown on each bar.

Neighbors and Peers

How Wheeler County compares to its 6 neighboring counties and population peers.

Neighboring Counties

County Score Zone vs. Wheeler County
Wheeler County, OR 62.5 Elevated —
Wasco County, OR 61.6 Elevated -1.0
Jefferson County, OR 60.3 Elevated -2.2
Grant County, OR 57.6 Elevated -4.9
Crook County, OR 47.9 Normal -14.6
Morrow County, OR 41.4 Normal -21.1
Gilliam County, OR 35.8 Normal -26.8

Population Peers

County Score Zone vs. Wheeler County
Hoonah-Angoon Census Area, AK 62.5 Elevated 0.0
Delta County, TX 62.5 Elevated +0.0
Luce County, MI 62.6 Elevated +0.0
Iron County, MO 62.6 Elevated +0.0
Wilkinson County, GA 62.4 Elevated -0.1

Download Data

Export all distress indicators for Wheeler County as a CSV file.

Find Help in Wheeler County

Find an Attorney

Oregon State Bar — Lawyer Referral Service offers a lawyer referral service for bankruptcy, foreclosure defense, and consumer rights.

Oregon State Bar — Lawyer Referral Service 503-684-3763 (Portland); 1-800-452-7636 (statewide)

Free Legal Aid

Legal aid organizations serving Wheeler County residents at no cost.

Legal Aid Services of Oregon 503-684-1032 (Portland); 1-800-684-1032 (statewide hotline)
Oregon Law Center 541-672-3429 (Roseburg); 541-485-1017 (Eugene)
Willamette Law Online — Oregon Foreclosure Avoidance Project 503-370-6051

American Default Research does not endorse, rate, or rank any provider. Verify attorney credentials with your state bar.

Need legal help? Find a foreclosure defense attorney in Oregon →

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Frequently Asked Questions

  • What is the distress score for Wheeler County, Oregon?

    Wheeler County has a County Distress Index score of 62.5 out of 100, placing it in the Elevated zone. It ranks 652nd nationally out of 3,144 counties and 7th in Oregon out of 36 counties.

  • What drives financial distress in Wheeler County?

    The primary driver of distress in Wheeler County is Income & Poverty, where the county scores 88.9 out of 100. This domain is measured by indicators including Poverty Rate, Income vs. State Median, Child Poverty Rate.

  • How does Wheeler County compare to neighboring counties?

    Wheeler County (62.5) can be compared to its 6 neighboring counties: Wasco County, OR (61.6); Jefferson County, OR (60.3); Grant County, OR (57.6).

  • How is the County Distress Index calculated?

    The County Distress Index uses percentile-rank averaging across five domains: Debt & Delinquency, Income & Poverty, Housing Cost Burden, Employment & Wages, and Community Vulnerability. Each county's indicators are ranked against all 3,144 U.S. counties. A score of 50 means the county is at the national median; higher scores indicate greater distress.

  • What is the population of Wheeler County?

    Wheeler County, Oregon has a population of approximately 1,436 (2023 Census estimate), classified as a tiny county.