About one in four people in Bledsoe County, Tennessee, has a disability
In Bledsoe County, 23.0% of people reported a disability. That is higher than in 91% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 62% of U.S. counties.
What drives Bledsoe County's score
In Bledsoe County, income and the safety net weighs most: the score for income and the safety net is 84.1. About one in six people (17.3%, 2020 to 2024) has no health insurance, a higher share than in 93% of U.S. counties. Collections and bankruptcy comes next, at 76.1.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Bledsoe 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.
Bledsoe County does better than most counties on two measures: adults 25 to 54 not working (8.2%, 2020 to 2024) and people with a credit card behind (2.9%, August 2025).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 84.1 of 100
Income and safety net
Biggest factorPoverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line19.4% · 202485th percentile
- Children below the poverty line21.9% · 202471st percentile
- People with a disability23.0% · 2020 to 202492nd percentile
- People without health insurance17.3% · 2020 to 202493rd percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$57,188 · 202477th percentile
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- 76.1 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector28.5% · August 202569th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people232.4 · 202582nd percentile
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- 67.4 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 rent20.6% · 2020 to 202464th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income22.8% · fiscal year 202769th percentile
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- 51.7 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind2.9% · August 202510th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind7.6% · August 202579th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score44.6% · second quarter of 202665th percentile
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- 11.2 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year3.1% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202617th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working8.2% · 2020 to 20245th or lower 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 Bledsoe 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 Bledsoe County, 20.8% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Bledsoe County
Tennessee
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
Benefit checks' share of income in Bledsoe County had its largest rise, from 27.3% in 2004 to 37.9% in 2009.
In Bledsoe County, benefit checks' share of income has more than doubled since 1969, reaching 32.4% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in nearly twice as much as benefit checks
In Bledsoe County, Tennessee, benefit checks' share of income more than doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 32.4%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
SNAP food aid is one of the benefit checks counted in the income totals above.
The share of households in Bledsoe County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2018 and has since fallen by about a third
Biggest drop: 2018 to 2019, reaching 23.7%. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Bledsoe County, Tennessee.
How Bledsoe County has changed
Bledsoe County's population doubled to 15,591, the highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 1994 to 1999, reaching 12,142. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Bledsoe County, Tennessee.
The number of jobs located in Bledsoe County had its largest rise, from 1,377 in 2010 to 2,169 in 2015.
The number of jobs located in Bledsoe County fell to its lowest on the chart in 2010, then climbed past the 1990 level
Low on the chart: 1,377 in 2010. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Bledsoe County, Tennessee.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 6.3% | 2025 3.3% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 22.3% | 2024 19.4% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $19,372 | 2024 $57,188 |
The table uses 3.3% for 2025; the score uses 3.1% 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 Bledsoe County's history
1807
Created 1807. Wikipedia
2003
A flash flood in May 2003 did $3.92 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2011
A tornado in April 2011 did $15 million in property damage and killed four people. NOAA Storm Events Database
2020
The county's largest recorded population was the 2020 Census count of 14,913, which is also its most recent census. Census Bureau
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Since 1973
23 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Bledsoe County, 13 of them for flooding. FEMA
Bledsoe County beside its neighbors
Of the five counties that border Bledsoe County, two score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Bledsoe County ranks 4th of the six; Van Buren County is highest, at 39.2%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sequatchie County, TN | 92 | 15.4% | 31.2% |
| Rhea County, TN | 85 | 14.0% | 32.9% |
| Bledsoe County, TN | 62 | 19.4% | 32.4% |
| Van Buren County, TN | 58 | 14.9% | 39.2% |
| Hamilton County, TN | 54 | 14.5% | 19.6% |
| Cumberland County, TN | 54 | 13.2% | 37.5% |
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 Bledsoe County the poorest county in Tennessee?
No, Bledsoe County's poverty rate was 19.4% in 2024, 10th highest of 95 in Tennessee (U.S. Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates). By that measure the poorest county in the state is Lake County, at 31.2%. On our distress index, which counts more than poverty, Bledsoe County ranks 57th of 95 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Bledsoe 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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Legal Aid of East Tennessee
Legal aid
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Tennessee Justice Center
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 Bledsoe 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 Bledsoe County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.