About half people with a credit file in Dillon County, South Carolina, have unpaid debt sent to a collector
In Dillon County, 49.9% of people with a credit file had unpaid debt sent to a collector. That is higher than in 99% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 92% of U.S. counties.
What drives Dillon County's score
In Dillon County, late payments on loans weigh most: the score for late payments on loans is 98.9. Jobs come next, at 85.5.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Dillon 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.
Dillon County does better than most counties on two measures: bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people (75.8, 2025) and renters paying half their income or more in rent (17.2%, 2020 to 2024).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 98.9 of 100
Late payments
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind13.6% · August 202599th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind14.5% · August 202598th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score64.0% · second quarter of 202698th percentile
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- 85.5 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year5.8% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202691st percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working26.5% · 2020 to 202479th percentile
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- 85.4 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line23.8% · 202494th percentile
- Children below the poverty line31.9% · 202493rd percentile
- People with a disability17.4% · 2020 to 202462nd percentile
- People without health insurance12.5% · 2020 to 202480th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$47,478 · 202494th percentile
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- 61.2 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector49.9% · August 202599th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people75.8 · 202522nd percentile
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- 55.3 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 rent17.2% · 2020 to 202444th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income22.4% · fiscal year 202766th 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 Dillon 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 Dillon County, 18.0% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Dillon County
South Carolina
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Dillon County, benefit checks' share of income has grown to about four times its 1969 level, but pay from work still brings in 18% more than benefit checks in 2024
In Dillon County, South Carolina, benefit checks' share of income grew to about four times its 1969 level by 2024, reaching 40.5%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Dillon County getting SNAP food aid had its largest drop, from 30.3% in 2018 to 24.3% in 2019.
The share of households in Dillon County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2017 and has since fallen by about a fifth
Low on the chart: 21.6% in 2020. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Dillon County, South Carolina.
How Dillon County has changed
Dillon County's population had its largest drop, from 30,397 in 2014 to 28,408 in 2019.
Dillon County's population was at its highest on the chart in 2009 and is down 13% since
High on the chart: 31,817 in 2009. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Dillon County, South Carolina.
The jobs count covers work located in the county; the population count covers residents.
The number of jobs located in Dillon County rose 6% from 1990 to 2025, with most of the change between 1990 and 1995
High on the chart: 9,736 in 2000. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Dillon County, South Carolina.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 7.5% | 2025 6.0% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 30.4% | 2024 23.8% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $17,167 | 2024 $47,478 |
The table uses 6.0% for 2025; the score uses 5.8% 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 Dillon County's history
1910
Founded in 1910 from a portion of Marion County. Wikipedia
1963
A tornado in September 1963 did $2.5 million in property damage and killed three people. NOAA Storm Events Database
1965
A tornado in March 1965 did $2.5 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
1980
A tornado in May 1980 did $2.5 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2010
The county's largest recorded population was the 2010 Census count of 32,062. The 2020 Census counted 28,292, 88% of the peak. Census Bureau
2016
A flash flood in October 2016 did $1 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1989
29 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Dillon County, 3 of them for flooding. FEMA
Dillon County beside its neighbors
Of the five counties that border Dillon County, in South Carolina and North Carolina, three score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Dillon County ranks 3rd of the six; Robeson County is highest, at 41.0%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Marlboro County, SC | 98 | 30.2% | 40.5% |
| Robeson County, NC | 97 | 23.7% | 41.0% |
| Marion County, SC | 94 | 30.8% | 39.9% |
| Dillon County, SC | 92 | 23.8% | 40.5% |
| Florence County, SC | 89 | 17.5% | 27.7% |
| Horry County, SC | 74 | 14.0% | 32.6% |
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 Dillon County the poorest county in South Carolina?
No, Dillon County's poverty rate was 23.8% in 2024, 7th 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, Dillon County ranks 11th of 46 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Dillon 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 Dillon 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 Dillon County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.