Benefit checks make up 39 cents of every dollar of income in Houston County, Tennessee
In Houston County, 39.0% of all the income people there received came from benefit checks. That is higher than in 91% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 54% of U.S. counties.
What drives Houston County's score
In Houston County, income and the safety net weighs most: the score for income and the safety net is 73.7. About one in five people (19.9%, 2020 to 2024) has a disability, a higher share than in 79% of U.S. counties. Collections and bankruptcy comes next, at 60.6.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Houston 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.
Houston County does better than most counties on two measures: people with a car or retail loan behind (1.6%, August 2025) and renters paying half their income or more in rent (10.2%, 2020 to 2024).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 73.7 of 100
Income and safety net
Biggest factorPoverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line15.6% · 202468th percentile
- Children below the poverty line22.3% · 202473rd percentile
- People with a disability19.9% · 2020 to 202479th percentile
- People without health insurance11.6% · 2020 to 202476th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$60,114 · 202470th percentile
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- 60.6 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector23.5% · August 202551st percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people178.7 · 202569th percentile
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- 53.6 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 202643rd percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working23.0% · 2020 to 202463rd percentile
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- 49.5 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 behind1.6% · August 20255th or lower percentile
- People with a subprime credit score46.6% · second quarter of 202671st percentile
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- 26.7 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 rent10.2% · 2020 to 202412th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income19.9% · fiscal year 202740th 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 Houston 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 Houston County, 20.1% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Houston County
Tennessee
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Houston County, benefit checks' share of income has grown to about four times its 1969 level, reaching 39.0% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in about a quarter more than benefit checks
In Houston County, Tennessee, benefit checks' share of income grew to about four times its 1969 level by 2024, reaching 39.0%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Houston County getting SNAP food aid fell most sharply on the way to its 2017 low, from 16.9% in 2016 to 12.7% in 2017.
The share of households in Houston County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2013 and has since fallen by about a quarter
Low on the chart: 12.7% in 2017. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Houston County, Tennessee.
How Houston County has changed
Houston County's population rose by about half to 8,538, the highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 1994 to 1999, reaching 8,200. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Houston County, Tennessee.
The number of jobs located in Houston County rose most sharply from its first year (1,365 in 1990) to 1,606 in 1995.
The number of jobs located in Houston County was at its highest on the chart in 1995 and is down 8% since
High on the chart: 1,606 in 1995. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Houston County, Tennessee.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 10.2% | 2025 4.1% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 13.8% | 2024 15.6% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $19,390 | 2024 $60,114 |
The table uses 4.1% 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 Houston County's history
1871
Founded in 1871. Wikipedia
1997
A thunderstorm in January 1997 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2000
A tornado in May 2000 did $1.3 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2010
The county's largest recorded population was the 2010 Census count of 8,426. The 2020 Census counted 8,283, 98% of the peak. Census Bureau
2013
A flash flood in April 2013 did $4 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1975
28 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Houston County, 18 of them for flooding. FEMA
Houston County beside its neighbors
Of the five counties that border Houston County, two score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Houston County ranks 2nd of the six; Benton County is highest, at 39.7%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Benton County, TN | 77 | 17.0% | 39.7% |
| Montgomery County, TN | 62 | 10.2% | 22.4% |
| Houston County, TN | 54 | 15.6% | 39.0% |
| Humphreys County, TN | 53 | 12.2% | 31.3% |
| Stewart County, TN | 41 | 17.1% | 33.5% |
| Dickson County, TN | 41 | 10.1% | 23.0% |
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 Houston County the poorest county in Tennessee?
No, Houston County's poverty rate was 15.6% in 2024, 35th 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, Houston County ranks 71st of 95 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Houston 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 Houston 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 Houston County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.