DeKalb County, Tennessee
Above the national median for bankruptcy filing rate — and 25.2× the rate of the healthiest U.S. county (Glacier County, MT — 7).
Main Findings
DeKalb County, Tennessee ranks 962nd most distressed in the United States on the County Distress Index. The driver: a bankruptcy filing rate of 184 — above the national median of 126.
- 962nd of 3,144 counties on the County Distress Index — 60.8 · moderate-high county distress, 40th in Tennessee.
- A bankruptcy filing rate of 184 (U.S. median 126). Bankruptcy filing rate at the 71st percentile nationally.
- Disability rate at 22% — national median 16%, ranked at the 88th percentile.
- Auto loan delinquency at 6% — national median 5%, ranked at the 65th percentile.
- Unemployment at 4% — national median 4%, ranked at the 58th percentile.
Neighbors span three CDI score labels. The 25-point drop to Wilson County marks where the Tennessee distress corridor ends.
"DeKalb County has a moderate-high county distress score. The domain mix shows whether pressure is concentrated or spread across the profile."
"The CDI gives this county a moderate-high county distress label. The domain table shows whether the score comes from debt, labor, safety-net pressure, or a mix."
Indicator History
Period-correct raw indicators from the county-history panel. The CDI composite is excluded because it is a current cross-sectional score.
Unemployment rate
Poverty rate
Transfer income share
Subprime credit population
The Indicators Behind DeKalb County's CDI Score
Every number traces to a public source. DeKalb County's value shown alongside TN's median and the U.S. median. Full CSV available for download.
| Indicator | DeKalb | TN median | U.S. median | Pctile | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Delinquency — domain score 61 · Rank 1,183 of 3,144 | |||||
| Auto loan delinquency Share of auto loan accounts 60+ days past due | 6% | 6% | 5% | 65th | Urban Institute (2024) |
| Credit card delinquency Share of credit card accounts 60+ days past due | 6% | 6% | 5% | 56th | Urban Institute (2024) |
| Subprime credit share Share of residents with a credit score below 660 | 26% | 26% | 23% | 62nd | Urban Institute (2024) |
| Default & Legal — domain score 68 · Rank 790 of 3,144 | |||||
| Debt in collections Share of residents with a credit file who have debt in collections | 27% | 28% | 23% | 66th | Urban Institute (2024) |
| Bankruptcy filing rate Personal bankruptcy filings per 100,000 residents | 184 | 216 | 126 | 71st | US Courts F-5A (2025) |
| Debt Burden (housing basis) — domain score 49 · Rank 1,589 of 3,144 | |||||
| Rent-to-income ratio Fair Market Rent (2BR) as share of median household income | 20% | 22% | 21% | 36th | HUD FMR × Census ACS (2024) |
| Severe rent burden (50%+) Share of renter households paying 50%+ of income on rent | 20% | 17% | 18% | 62nd | Census ACS 5-yr (2023) |
| Labor — domain score 58 · Rank 1,329 of 3,144 | |||||
| Unemployment Share of labor force unemployed | 4% | 4% | 4% | 58th | BLS LAUS (Dec 2025) |
| Safety Net & Buffer — domain score 67 · Rank 901 of 3,144 | |||||
| Child poverty rate Share of children under 18 below the federal poverty line | 22% | 21% | 18% | 70th | Census SAIPE (2023) |
| Disability rate Share of residents reporting a disability | 22% | 19% | 16% | 88th | Census ACS 5-yr (2023) |
| Poverty rate Share of population below the federal poverty line | 16% | 16% | 14% | 69th | Census SAIPE (2023) |
| Transfer-income dependency Share of personal income from government transfers | 28% | 30% | 27% | 57th | BEA Regional Personal Income (2023) |
| Uninsured rate Share of residents without health insurance coverage | 8% | 10% | 8% | 53rd | Census ACS 5-yr (2023) |
Five-Domain Breakdown
The CDI is an equal-weight composite of five family-v1 distress domains. Each domain contributes 20% of the county score.
Methodology
The County Distress Index is a 0–100 composite score of household financial distress, computed for all 3,144 U.S. counties. Higher scores indicate greater distress. The index is built from five equal-weighted domains: Delinquency, Default & Legal, Debt Burden, Labor, and Safety Net & Buffer. Each domain is the mean of distress-oriented indicator percentiles; the CDI score is the equal-weight mean of those domain scores.
Data sources include the Urban Institute Debt in America (Equifax consumer credit panel), U.S. Census Bureau (American Community Survey 5-year, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates, Business Formation Statistics), Bureau of Labor Statistics (Local Area Unemployment Statistics, Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages), U.S. Courts Administrative Office (F-5A bankruptcy filings), and HUD Fair Market Rents. Data vintages range from 2023 to 2025 depending on source; full indicator-level vintage detail is in the methodology document.
For Press & Research
Everything you need to cite DeKalb County data — in under 60 seconds.
Draft wire copy 144-word AP-style article — use freely with attribution
SMITHVILLE, Tenn. — DeKalb County ranks 962nd among the nation's most financially distressed counties, according to the County Distress Index released this month by American Default Research.
The composite score of 60.8 out of 100 gives DeKalb a moderate-high county distress label. Among 3,144 U.S. counties scored, 961 counties rank more distressed. Within Tennessee, DeKalb ranks 40th of 95 counties.
The index, which draws on 16 source indicators from the U.S. Census Bureau, Bureau of Labor Statistics, Urban Institute and federal court filings, identifies default & legal as the primary driver in DeKalb. A bankruptcy filing rate of 184 — above the national median of 126.
"DeKalb County has a moderate-high county distress score. The domain mix shows whether pressure is concentrated or spread across the profile," said Ross Kilburn, founder of American Default Research.
Full methodology and county-by-county data are available at americandefault.org/methodology/cdi.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is DeKalb County's CDI score, and what does it mean?
What drives DeKalb County's distress score?
How does DeKalb County compare to its neighbors?
How is the County Distress Index calculated?
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