About one in nine people with a credit file in Centre County, Pennsylvania, has unpaid debt sent to a collector
In Centre County, 11.8% of people with a credit file had unpaid debt sent to a collector. That is lower than in 92% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 81% of U.S. counties.
What drives Centre County's score
In Centre County, housing costs are the highest-scoring part, at 88.6. Collections and bankruptcy is the lowest part, at 6.1. Bankruptcy filings ran at 36.1 per 100,000 people (2025), lower than in 95% of U.S. counties.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Centre 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, Centre County is worse off than most counties on renters paying half their income or more in rent (31.5%, 2020 to 2024) and rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income (24.1%, fiscal year 2027).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 88.6 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 rent31.5% · 2020 to 202498th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income24.1% · fiscal year 202778th percentile
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- 25.7 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line14.3% · 202459th percentile
- Children below the poverty line9.5% · 202410th percentile
- People with a disability11.3% · 2020 to 20249th percentile
- People without health insurance5.2% · 2020 to 202421st percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$76,524 · 202426th percentile
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- 21.0 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year3.0% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202614th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working17.0% · 2020 to 202427th percentile
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- 17.6 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind3.4% · August 202515th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind3.9% · August 202530th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score27.2% · second quarter of 20266th percentile
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- 6.1 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector11.8% · August 20257th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people36.1 · 20254th 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 Centre 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 Centre County, 15.9% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Centre County
Pennsylvania
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Centre County, benefit checks' share of income has more than doubled since 1969, reaching 17.5% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in more than three times as much as benefit checks
In Centre County, Pennsylvania, benefit checks' share of income more than 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
The share of households in Centre County getting SNAP food aid rose most in two steps: 6.6% in 2021 to 7.3% in 2022; 7.6% in 2023 to 8.3% in 2024.
The share of households in Centre County getting SNAP food aid nearly doubled to 8.3%, the highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 2023 to 2024, reaching 8.3%. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Centre County, Pennsylvania.
How Centre County has changed
Centre County's population had its largest rise, from 97,088 in 1969 to 107,957 in 1974.
Centre County's population nearly doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 159,805, with no dip in any year shown
Smallest rise: 2014 to 2019, reaching 158,783. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Centre County, Pennsylvania.
The jobs count covers work located in the county; the population count covers residents.
The number of jobs located in Centre County rose by about a third to 69,346, the highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 2020 to 2025, reaching 69,346. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Centre County, Pennsylvania.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 4.2% | 2025 3.3% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 10.2% | 2024 14.3% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $28,319 | 2024 $76,524 |
The table uses 3.3% for 2025; the score uses 3.0% 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 Centre County's history
1985
A tornado in May 1985 did $25 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2013
A flash flood in June 2013 did $1.5 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2016
A flash flood in October 2016 did $5 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2020
The county's largest recorded population was the 2020 Census count of 158,172, which is also its most recent census. Census Bureau
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Since 1972
15 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Centre County, 7 of them for flooding. FEMA
Centre County beside its neighbors
Of the six counties that border Centre County, five score higher. Of the group, Centre County gets the smallest share of its income from benefit checks; Huntingdon County gets the largest, at 30.7%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Clearfield County, PA | 46 | 14.9% | 27.2% |
| Clinton County, PA | 43 | 14.8% | 29.6% |
| Blair County, PA | 42 | 12.0% | 28.2% |
| Mifflin County, PA | 34 | 12.5% | 29.8% |
| Huntingdon County, PA | 28 | 10.7% | 30.7% |
| Centre County, PA | 18 | 14.3% | 17.5% |
| Union County, PA | 11 | 10.8% | 21.3% |
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 Centre County the poorest county in Pennsylvania?
No, Centre County's poverty rate was 14.3% in 2024, 13th highest of 67 in Pennsylvania (U.S. Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates). By that measure the poorest county in the state is Forest County, at 22.8%. On our distress index, which counts more than poverty, Centre County ranks 57th of 67 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Centre 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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The Home Foundation
HUD-approved housing counselor
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MidPenn Legal Services
Legal aid
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Pennsylvania Legal Aid Network (PLAN)
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 Centre 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 Centre County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.