In Carter County, Tennessee, rent on a two-bedroom takes about three in ten dollars of the typical household's income
In Carter County, 28.3% of the typical household's income would go to rent on a two-bedroom. That is higher than in 94% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 85% of U.S. counties.
What drives Carter County's score
In Carter County, collections and bankruptcy weighs most: the score for collections and bankruptcy is 81.7. Bankruptcy filings ran at 245.5 per 100,000 people (2025), higher than in 84% of U.S. counties. Income and the safety net comes next, at 78.9.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Carter 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.
Carter County does better than most counties on two measures: renters paying half their income or more in rent (14.2%, 2020 to 2024) and unemployment rate, average over the latest year (3.7%, Oct 2025 to Sep 2026).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 81.7 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector31.8% · August 202578th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people245.5 · 202584th percentile
-
- 78.9 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line16.1% · 202471st percentile
- Children below the poverty line20.8% · 202467th percentile
- People with a disability22.3% · 2020 to 202489th percentile
- People without health insurance11.7% · 2020 to 202476th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$51,256 · 202489th percentile
-
- 69.5 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind6.3% · August 202563rd percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind6.5% · August 202567th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score49.1% · second quarter of 202677th percentile
-
- 65.9 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year3.7% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202640th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working31.2% · 2020 to 202491st percentile
-
- 61.1 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 rent14.2% · 2020 to 202427th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income28.4% · fiscal year 202794th percentile
-
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 Carter 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 Carter County, 22.8% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Carter County
Tennessee
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Carter County, benefit checks' share of income has more than tripled since 1969, reaching 34.5% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in about one and a half times as much as benefit checks
In Carter County, Tennessee, benefit checks' share of income more than tripled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 34.5%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Carter County getting SNAP food aid had its largest rise, from 17.8% in 2011 to 19.8% in 2012.
The share of households in Carter County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2014 and has since fallen by about a third
Biggest drop: 2019 to 2020, reaching 15.7%. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Carter County, Tennessee.
How Carter County has changed
Carter County's population had its largest rise, from 43,202 in 1969 to 47,012 in 1974.
Carter County's population rose by about a third from 1969 to 2024, reaching 57,434
High on the chart: 57,639 in 2009. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Carter County, Tennessee.
The jobs count covers work located in the county; the population count covers residents.
The number of jobs located in Carter County rose by about a quarter to 12,639, the highest on the chart, with most of the change between 1990 and 1995
High on the chart: 12,639 in 2025. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Carter County, Tennessee.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 5.1% | 2025 3.9% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 19.1% | 2024 16.1% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $19,649 | 2024 $51,256 |
The table uses 3.9% for 2025; the score uses 3.7% 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 Carter County's history
1861
East Tennessee bridge burnings conspiracy November 1861, railroad bridge at Carter's Depot targeted. Wikipedia
1998
A flash flood in January 1998 did $20 million in property damage and killed seven people. NOAA Storm Events Database
2010
The county's largest recorded population was the 2010 Census count of 57,424. The 2020 Census counted 56,356, 98% of the peak. Census Bureau
2016
A thunderstorm in July 2016 killed two people. NOAA Storm Events Database
2019
A flood in February 2019 did $1.5 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2024
A flash flood in September 2024 did $62.5 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
-
Since 1973
17 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Carter County, 9 of them for flooding. FEMA
Carter County beside its neighbors
Carter County scores higher than all six counties that border it, in Tennessee and North Carolina. For the share of income from benefit checks, Carter County ranks 3rd of the seven; Johnson County is highest, at 39.0%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Carter County, TN | 85 | 16.1% | 34.5% |
| Johnson County, TN | 78 | 20.9% | 39.0% |
| Unicoi County, TN | 71 | 14.4% | 37.8% |
| Sullivan County, TN | 64 | 15.7% | 27.8% |
| Washington County, TN | 56 | 13.0% | 25.0% |
| Mitchell County, NC | 39 | 13.5% | 34.3% |
| Avery County, NC | 36 | 15.8% | 28.0% |
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 Carter County the poorest county in Tennessee?
No, Carter County's poverty rate was 16.1% in 2024, 30th 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, Carter County ranks 11th of 95 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Carter 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.
-
Legal Aid of East Tennessee
Legal aid
-
Tennessee Justice Center
Legal aid
-
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 Carter 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 Carter County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.