About two in five people with a credit file in Bamberg County, South Carolina, have unpaid debt sent to a collector
In Bamberg County, 44.4% of people with a credit file had unpaid debt sent to a collector. That is higher than in 98% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 97% of U.S. counties.
What drives Bamberg County's score
In Bamberg County, late payments on loans weigh most: the score for late payments on loans is 95.0. People with a credit card behind: 11.6%, August 2025, higher than in 95% of U.S. counties. Jobs come next, at 86.4.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Bamberg 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.
Bamberg County is worse off than the typical U.S. county on every measure in the score.
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 95.0 of 100
Late payments
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind11.6% · August 2025top 5%
- People with a car or retail loan behind13.8% · August 2025top 5%
- People with a subprime credit score62.4% · second quarter of 2026top 5%
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- 86.4 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year5.9% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202692nd percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working26.7% · 2020 to 202480th percentile
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- 85.9 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line24.2% · 2024top 5%
- Children below the poverty line33.4% · 2024top 5%
- People with a disability17.6% · 2020 to 202464th percentile
- People without health insurance12.4% · 2020 to 202480th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$45,231 · 2024top 5%
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- 79.4 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector44.4% · August 2025top 5%
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people161.9 · 202563rd percentile
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- 74.8 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 rent22.3% · 2020 to 202474th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income23.6% · fiscal year 202775th 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 Bamberg 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 Bamberg County, 23.9% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Bamberg County
South Carolina
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Bamberg County, benefit checks' share of income has more than tripled since 1969, reaching 38.5% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in about a fifth more than benefit checks
In Bamberg County, South Carolina, benefit checks' share of income more than tripled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 38.5%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Bamberg County getting SNAP food aid had its largest drop, from 23.8% in 2015 to 20.9% in 2016.
The share of households in Bamberg County getting SNAP food aid rose from 2009 to 2024, reaching 24.1%
High on the chart: 24.1% in 2013. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Bamberg County, South Carolina.
How Bamberg County has changed
Bamberg County's population had its largest drop, from 14,868 in 2014 to 13,498 in 2019.
Bamberg County's population was at its highest on the chart in 1979 and is down 29% since
High on the chart: 18,082 in 1979. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Bamberg County, South Carolina.
The number of jobs located in Bamberg County had its largest drop, from 4,531 in 2010 to 3,949 in 2015.
The number of jobs located in Bamberg County was at its highest on the chart in 2005 and is down 28% since
High on the chart: 4,979 in 2005. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Bamberg County, South Carolina.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 9.3% | 2025 5.9% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 29.2% | 2024 24.2% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $17,526 | 2024 $45,231 |
Figures are as each agency published them, not adjusted for prices.
Dated events in Bamberg County's history
1897
Created from the eastern portion of Barnwell County under the South Carolina Constitution of 1895; referendum held January 19, 1897. Wikipedia
1920
The county's largest recorded population was the 1920 Census count of 20,962. The 2020 Census counted 13,311, 64% of the peak. Census Bureau
1983
A tornado in April 1983 did $2.5 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2007
A thunderstorm in August 2007 did $2,500,000 in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2024
A tornado in January 2024 did $1.8 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1977
28 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Bamberg County, 4 of them for flooding. FEMA
Bamberg County beside its neighbors
Bamberg County scores higher than all four counties that border it. For the share of income from benefit checks, Bamberg County ranks 3rd of the five; Allendale County is highest, at 40.4%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bamberg County, SC | 97 | 24.2% | 38.5% |
| Orangeburg County, SC | 96 | 21.0% | 37.0% |
| Barnwell County, SC | 93 | 20.3% | 39.7% |
| Colleton County, SC | 92 | 21.0% | 35.4% |
| Allendale County, SC | 90 | 31.6% | 40.4% |
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 Bamberg County the poorest county in South Carolina?
No, Bamberg County's poverty rate was 24.2% in 2024, 6th highest of 46 in South Carolina (U.S. Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates). By that measure the poorest county in the state is Allendale County, at 31.6%. On our distress index, which counts more than poverty, Bamberg County ranks 3rd of 46 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Bamberg 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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South Carolina Legal Services
Legal aid
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Pro Bono Legal Services — SC Bar
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 Bamberg 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 Bamberg County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.