About one in three people with a credit file in Richland County, South Carolina, has unpaid debt sent to a collector
In Richland County, 35.6% of people with a credit file had unpaid debt sent to a collector. That is higher than in 86% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 85% of U.S. counties.
What drives Richland County's score
In Richland County, late payments on loans weigh most: the score for late payments on loans is 85.5. People with a car or retail loan behind: 10.4%, August 2025, higher than in 93% of U.S. counties. Housing costs come next, at 80.3.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Richland 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.
Richland County does better than most counties on two measures: people with a disability (14.3%, 2020 to 2024) and adults 25 to 54 not working (20.0%, 2020 to 2024).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 85.6 of 100
Late payments
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind8.3% · August 202586th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind10.4% · August 202593rd percentile
- People with a subprime credit score48.8% · second quarter of 202676th percentile
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- 80.4 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 rent30.1% · 2020 to 202497th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income22.1% · fiscal year 202763rd percentile
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- 77.2 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector35.6% · August 202587th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people170.8 · 202567th percentile
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- 58.3 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year4.6% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202670th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working20.0% · 2020 to 202445th percentile
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- 55.0 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line15.8% · 202469th percentile
- Children below the poverty line20.0% · 202464th percentile
- People with a disability14.3% · 2020 to 202433rd percentile
- People without health insurance8.7% · 2020 to 202457th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$66,644 · 202450th 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 Richland 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 Richland County, 14.1% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Richland County
South Carolina
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Richland County, benefit checks' share of income has grown to about four times its 1969 level, reaching 22.0% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in about three times as much as benefit checks
In Richland County, South Carolina, benefit checks' share of income grew to about four times its 1969 level by 2024, reaching 22.0%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Richland County getting SNAP food aid had its largest drop, from 12.9% in 2019 to 11.4% in 2020.
The share of households in Richland County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2015 and has since fallen by about a quarter
Low on the chart: 9.6% in 2009. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Richland County, South Carolina.
How Richland County has changed
Richland County's population had its largest rise, from 345,750 in 2004 to 380,245 in 2009.
Richland County's population doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 430,651, with no dip in any year shown
Smallest rise: 1984 to 1989, reaching 284,032. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Richland County, South Carolina.
The jobs count covers work located in the county; the population count covers residents.
The number of jobs located in Richland County rose 29% from 1990 to 2025, reaching its highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 1995 to 2000, reaching 207,326. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Richland County, South Carolina.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 3.7% | 2025 4.6% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 15.4% | 2024 15.8% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $26,387 | 2024 $66,644 |
Figures are as each agency published them, not adjusted for prices.
Dated events in Richland County's history
1865
General William T. Sherman captured Columbia during Civil War and troops burned town and parts of county on February 17, 1865. Wikipedia
1917
Fort Jackson established in 1917, became largest and most active Initial Entry Training Center in U.S. Army. Wikipedia
1976
A tornado in May 1976 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2015
A flash flood in October 2015 did $10 million in property damage and killed two people. NOAA Storm Events Database
2015
A flash flood in October 2015 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2015
A flash flood in October 2015 killed two people. NOAA Storm Events Database
2020
The county's largest recorded population was the 2020 Census count of 416,147, which is also its most recent census. Census Bureau
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Since 1977
26 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Richland County, 2 of them for flooding. FEMA
Richland County beside its neighbors
Of the six counties that border Richland County, three score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Richland County ranks 6th of the seven; Fairfield County is highest, at 34.0%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sumter County, SC | 93 | 16.7% | 31.3% |
| Fairfield County, SC | 91 | 16.9% | 34.0% |
| Calhoun County, SC | 88 | 14.8% | 28.0% |
| Richland County, SC | 85 | 15.8% | 22.0% |
| Newberry County, SC | 67 | 17.3% | 29.9% |
| Kershaw County, SC | 64 | 12.2% | 27.4% |
| Lexington County, SC | 47 | 11.3% | 20.5% |
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 Richland County the poorest county in South Carolina?
No, Richland County's poverty rate was 15.8% in 2024, 28th 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, Richland County ranks 20th of 46 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Richland 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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NSC (NACA Counseling Subsidiary) - Columbia, SC
HUD-approved housing counselor
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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 Richland 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 Richland County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.