In Franklin County, Tennessee, rent on a two-bedroom takes about one in five dollars of the typical household's income
In Franklin County, 19.0% of the typical household's income would go to rent on a two-bedroom. That is lower than in 68% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 53% of U.S. counties.
What drives Franklin County's score
In Franklin County, collections and bankruptcy is the highest-scoring part, at 59.8. Housing costs are the lowest part, at 25.9. About one in eight renters (12.3%, 2020 to 2024) pays half their income or more in rent, a lower share than in 80% of U.S. counties.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Franklin 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.
Franklin County isn't among the worst-off quarter of U.S. counties on any measure.
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 59.8 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector26.5% · August 202562nd percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people143.3 · 202557th percentile
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- 58.1 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind6.9% · August 202572nd percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind5.1% · August 202548th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score41.0% · second quarter of 202653rd percentile
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- 51.3 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line12.0% · 202440th percentile
- Children below the poverty line16.1% · 202445th percentile
- People with a disability18.6% · 2020 to 202471st percentile
- People without health insurance7.8% · 2020 to 202449th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$66,904 · 202449th percentile
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- 43.5 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year3.8% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202644th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working19.5% · 2020 to 202442nd percentile
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- 25.9 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 rent12.3% · 2020 to 202419th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income19.0% · fiscal year 202731st 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 Franklin 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 Franklin County, 20.9% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Franklin County
Tennessee
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
Benefit checks' share of income in Franklin County made its largest gain on the way to its 2009 high, from 21.7% in 2004 to 28.6% in 2009.
In Franklin County, benefit checks' share of income has tripled since 1969, reaching 27.4% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in twice as much as benefit checks
In Franklin County, Tennessee, benefit checks' share of income tripled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 27.4%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Franklin County getting SNAP food aid had its largest rise, from 12.4% in 2011 to 14.7% in 2012.
The share of households in Franklin County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2014 and has since fallen by about half
Biggest drop: 2018 to 2019, reaching 11.7%. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Franklin County, Tennessee.
How Franklin County has changed
Franklin County's population had its largest rise, from 28,673 in 1974 to 31,350 in 1979.
Franklin County's population nearly doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 45,137, with no dip in any year shown
Smallest rise: 2009 to 2014, reaching 41,451. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Franklin County, Tennessee.
The jobs count covers work located in the county; the population count covers residents.
The number of jobs located in Franklin County rose by more than half from 1990 to 2025, reaching 11,323, with most of the change between 2010 and 2015
High on the chart: 11,752 in 2015. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Franklin County, Tennessee.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 5.2% | 2025 3.9% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 14.5% | 2024 12.0% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $23,891 | 2024 $66,904 |
The table uses 3.9% for 2025; the score uses 3.8% 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 Franklin County's history
1807
White settlement began around 1800; formally organized 1807. Wikipedia
1952
A tornado in February 1952 killed three people. NOAA Storm Events Database
1974
A tornado in April 1974 killed five people. NOAA Storm Events Database
2011
A tornado in February 2011 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2020
The county's largest recorded population was the 2020 Census count of 42,774, which is also its most recent census. Census Bureau
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Since 1973
14 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Franklin County, 6 of them for flooding. FEMA
Franklin County beside its neighbors
Of the seven counties that border Franklin County, in Tennessee and Alabama, five score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Franklin County ranks 5th of the eight; Grundy County is highest, at 39.6%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Grundy County, TN | 84 | 20.2% | 39.6% |
| Marion County, TN | 82 | 13.8% | 29.0% |
| Jackson County, AL | 67 | 17.0% | 30.7% |
| Coffee County, TN | 65 | 15.5% | 28.5% |
| Lincoln County, TN | 52 | 12.1% | 26.8% |
| Franklin County, TN | 46 | 12.0% | 27.4% |
| Madison County, AL | 36 | 9.6% | 17.3% |
| Moore County, TN | 25 | 8.9% | 24.7% |
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 Franklin County the poorest county in Tennessee?
No, Franklin County's poverty rate was 12.0% in 2024, 77th 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, Franklin County ranks 79th of 95 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Franklin 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 Society of Middle Tennessee and the Cumberlands
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 Franklin 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 Franklin County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.