In Hickman County, Tennessee, rent on a two-bedroom takes about one in six dollars of the typical household's income
In Hickman County, 17.9% of the typical household's income would go to rent on a two-bedroom. That is lower than in 79% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 57% of U.S. counties.
What drives Hickman County's score
In Hickman County, collections and bankruptcy is the highest-scoring part, at 70.1. Housing costs are the lowest part, at 16.1. About one in 10 renters (9.8%, 2020 to 2024) pays half their income or more in rent, a lower share than in 88% of U.S. counties.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Hickman 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.
Hickman 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.
- 70.1 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector27.6% · August 202566th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people197.5 · 202574th percentile
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- 55.3 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line13.2% · 202449th percentile
- Children below the poverty line18.1% · 202455th percentile
- People with a disability18.7% · 2020 to 202472nd percentile
- People without health insurance8.4% · 2020 to 202454th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$68,886 · 202443rd percentile
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- 45.4 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind5.0% · August 202541st percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind3.5% · August 202523rd percentile
- People with a subprime credit score46.5% · second quarter of 202671st percentile
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- 41.6 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year3.5% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202629th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working21.3% · 2020 to 202453rd percentile
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- 16.2 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 rent9.8% · 2020 to 202411th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income17.9% · fiscal year 202720th 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 Hickman 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 Hickman County, 17.8% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Hickman County
Tennessee
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
Benefit checks' share of income in Hickman County had its largest rise, from 24.7% in 2004 to 32.1% in 2009.
In Hickman County, benefit checks' share of income has more than doubled since 1969, reaching 27.7% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in twice as much as benefit checks
In Hickman County, Tennessee, benefit checks' share of income more than doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 27.7%; 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 Hickman County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2015 and has since fallen to 10.1%
Biggest drop: 2017 to 2018, reaching 16.1%. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Hickman County, Tennessee.
How Hickman County has changed
Hickman County's population doubled to 25,859, the highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 1994 to 1999, reaching 21,803. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Hickman County, Tennessee.
The jobs count covers work located in the county; the population count covers residents.
The number of jobs located in Hickman County rose 44% from 1990 to 2025, reaching its highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 2010 to 2015, reaching 3,726. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Hickman County, Tennessee.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 7.7% | 2025 3.3% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 13.1% | 2024 13.2% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $21,765 | 2024 $68,886 |
The table uses 3.3% for 2025; the score uses 3.5% 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 Hickman County's history
1800
Iron furnaces throughout 19th century including Napier's furnace near Aetna. Wikipedia
1807
Established in 1807. Wikipedia
1952
A tornado in March 1952 killed three people. NOAA Storm Events Database
2010
A flood in May 2010 did $3.6 million in property damage and killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2014
A flash flood in June 2014 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2020
The county's largest recorded population was the 2020 Census count of 24,925, which is also its most recent census. Census Bureau
2025
Accurate Energetic Systems explosives facility explosion October 10, 2025 left sixteen people dead and at least four injured. Wikipedia
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Since 1973
25 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Hickman County, 18 of them for flooding. FEMA
Hickman County beside its neighbors
Of the six counties that border Hickman County, four score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Hickman County ranks 4th of the seven; Perry County is highest, at 35.5%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Perry County, TN | 75 | 15.9% | 35.5% |
| Lewis County, TN | 69 | 14.1% | 29.2% |
| Humphreys County, TN | 53 | 12.2% | 31.3% |
| Maury County, TN | 52 | 8.7% | 21.4% |
| Hickman County, TN | 42 | 13.2% | 27.7% |
| Dickson County, TN | 41 | 10.1% | 23.0% |
| Williamson County, TN | 1 | 4.5% | 6.5% |
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 Hickman County the poorest county in Tennessee?
No, Hickman County's poverty rate was 13.2% in 2024, 64th 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, Hickman County ranks 84th of 95 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Hickman 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 Hickman 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 Hickman County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.