In Chester County, Tennessee, rent on a two-bedroom takes about one in four dollars of the typical household's income
In Chester County, 25.5% of the typical household's income would go to rent on a two-bedroom. That is higher than in 85% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 66% of U.S. counties.
What drives Chester County's score
In Chester County, collections and bankruptcy weighs most: the score for collections and bankruptcy is 75.6. Bankruptcy filings ran at 380.6 per 100,000 people (2025), higher than in 95% of U.S. counties. Late payments on loans come next, at 71.1.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Chester 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.
Chester County does better than most counties on two measures: people with a disability (10.6%, 2020 to 2024) and renters paying half their income or more in rent (13.4%, 2020 to 2024).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 75.6 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector24.8% · August 202556th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people380.6 · 2025top 5%
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- 71.1 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind6.0% · August 202559th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind9.0% · August 202588th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score44.3% · second quarter of 202664th percentile
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- 56.5 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year4.1% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202652nd percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working22.4% · 2020 to 202460th percentile
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- 54.9 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 rent13.4% · 2020 to 202424th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income25.5% · fiscal year 202785th percentile
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- 40.5 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line12.5% · 202444th percentile
- Children below the poverty line16.6% · 202447th percentile
- People with a disability10.6% · 2020 to 20246th percentile
- People without health insurance7.7% · 2020 to 202448th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$64,789 · 202455th 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 Chester 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 Chester County, 18.4% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Chester County
Tennessee
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
Benefit checks' share of income in Chester County had its largest rise, from 18.3% in 1999 to 24.6% in 2004.
In Chester County, benefit checks' share of income has more than doubled since 1969, reaching 27.9% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in twice as much as benefit checks
In Chester County, Tennessee, benefit checks' share of income more than doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 27.9%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Chester County getting SNAP food aid had its largest drop, from 20.6% in 2017 to 15.8% in 2018.
The share of households in Chester County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2014 and has since fallen to 13.3%
Low on the chart: 11.1% in 2022. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Chester County, Tennessee.
How Chester County has changed
Chester County's population doubled to 17,876, the highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 1994 to 1999, reaching 15,407. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Chester County, Tennessee.
The jobs count covers work located in the county; the population count covers residents.
The number of jobs located in Chester County rose by about a third to 3,876, the highest on the chart, with most of the change between 1990 and 1995
Biggest rise: 1990 to 1995, reaching 3,416. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Chester County, Tennessee.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 6.0% | 2025 4.1% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 21.2% | 2024 12.5% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $20,208 | 2024 $64,789 |
Figures are as each agency published them, not adjusted for prices.
Dated events in Chester County's history
1952
A tornado in March 1952 did $2.5 million in property damage and killed 23 people. NOAA Storm Events Database
2020
The county's largest recorded population was the 2020 Census count of 17,341, which is also its most recent census. Census Bureau
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Since 1975
16 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Chester County, 11 of them for flooding. FEMA
Chester County beside its neighbors
All five counties that border Chester County score higher than it does. For the share of income from benefit checks, Chester County ranks 5th of the six; Hardeman County is highest, at 40.0%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hardeman County, TN | 98 | 21.5% | 40.0% |
| Madison County, TN | 90 | 17.5% | 25.7% |
| Hardin County, TN | 85 | 18.0% | 33.8% |
| McNairy County, TN | 77 | 16.7% | 39.8% |
| Henderson County, TN | 71 | 14.4% | 29.3% |
| Chester County, TN | 66 | 12.5% | 27.9% |
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 Chester County the poorest county in Tennessee?
No, Chester County's poverty rate was 12.5% in 2024, 70th 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, Chester County ranks 48th of 95 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Chester 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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West Tennessee Legal Services
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 Chester 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 Chester County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.