About three in ten people with a credit file in Kershaw County, South Carolina, have unpaid debt sent to a collector
In Kershaw County, 31.6% of people with a credit file had unpaid debt sent to a collector. That is higher than in 78% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 64% of U.S. counties.
What drives Kershaw County's score
In Kershaw County, collections and bankruptcy weighs most: the score for collections and bankruptcy is 77.4. Late payments on loans come next, at 75.6.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Kershaw 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.
Kershaw County does better than most counties on two measures: rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income (15.6%, fiscal year 2027) and median household income ($73,494, 2024).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 77.4 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector31.6% · August 202578th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people207.4 · 202576th percentile
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- 75.6 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind7.6% · August 202580th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind7.1% · August 202574th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score46.6% · second quarter of 202671st percentile
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- 59.7 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year4.5% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202667th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working21.1% · 2020 to 202452nd percentile
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- 46.3 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line12.2% · 202441st percentile
- Children below the poverty line16.4% · 202446th percentile
- People with a disability16.5% · 2020 to 202454th percentile
- People without health insurance8.6% · 2020 to 202456th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$73,494 · 202432nd percentile
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- 35.4 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 rent20.7% · 2020 to 202465th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income15.6% · fiscal year 20275th 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 Kershaw 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 Kershaw County, 18.9% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Kershaw County
South Carolina
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Kershaw County, benefit checks' share of income has grown to about four times its 1969 level, reaching 27.4% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in twice as much as benefit checks
In Kershaw County, South Carolina, benefit checks' share of income grew to about four times its 1969 level by 2024, reaching 27.4%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Kershaw County getting SNAP food aid moved most in two steps: 11.9% in 2010 to 13.6% in 2011; 14.1% in 2015 to 12.4% in 2016.
The share of households in Kershaw County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2013 and has since fallen by about a quarter
Low on the chart: 10.1% in 2021. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Kershaw County, South Carolina.
How Kershaw County has changed
Kershaw County's population had its largest rise in the last span, from 64,968 in 2019 to 71,698 in 2024.
Kershaw County's population doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 71,698, with no dip in any year shown
Smallest rise: 1974 to 1979, reaching 38,273. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Kershaw County, South Carolina.
The jobs count covers work located in the county; the population count covers residents.
The number of jobs located in Kershaw County rose 13% from 1990 to 2025, reaching its highest on the chart, with most of the change between 2010 and 2015
High on the chart: 18,585 in 2025. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Kershaw County, South Carolina.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 6.2% | 2025 4.4% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 12.3% | 2024 12.2% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $25,149 | 2024 $73,494 |
The table uses 4.4% for 2025; the score uses 4.5% 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 Kershaw County's history
1791
Formed in 1791 from parts of Claremont, Lancaster, Fairfield, and Richland counties. Wikipedia
1977
DuPont 1977 study at Camden Orlon plant showed excessive cancer mortality rate among workers exposed to acrylonitrile 1950-1955. Wikipedia
1984
A tornado in March 1984 did $25 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
1995
A thunderstorm in January 1995 did $1.5 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
1996
A thunderstorm in June 1996 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2015
A flash flood in October 2015 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2020
The county's largest recorded population was the 2020 Census count of 65,403, which is also its most recent census. Census Bureau
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Since 1977
28 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Kershaw County, 3 of them for flooding. FEMA
Kershaw County beside its neighbors
Of the seven counties that border Kershaw County, six score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Kershaw County ranks 6th of the eight; Lee County is highest, at 39.4%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Darlington County, SC | 97 | 24.6% | 32.0% |
| Lee County, SC | 96 | 22.8% | 39.4% |
| Sumter County, SC | 93 | 16.7% | 31.3% |
| Fairfield County, SC | 91 | 16.9% | 34.0% |
| Chesterfield County, SC | 91 | 18.5% | 35.8% |
| Richland County, SC | 85 | 15.8% | 22.0% |
| Kershaw County, SC | 64 | 12.2% | 27.4% |
| Lancaster County, SC | 39 | 10.2% | 22.8% |
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 Kershaw County the poorest county in South Carolina?
No, Kershaw County's poverty rate was 12.2% in 2024, 38th 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, Kershaw County ranks 34th of 46 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Kershaw 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 Kershaw 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 Kershaw County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.