About one in five people in Overton County, Tennessee, has a disability
In Overton County, 19.0% of people reported a disability. That is higher than in 74% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 57% of U.S. counties.
What drives Overton County's score
In Overton County, collections and bankruptcy weighs most: the score for collections and bankruptcy is 68.2. Bankruptcy filings ran at 227.2 per 100,000 people (2025), higher than in 81% of U.S. counties. Income and the safety net comes next, at 61.3.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Overton 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.
Overton County does better than most counties on two measures: unemployment rate, average over the latest year (3.5%, Oct 2025 to Sep 2026) and people with a car or retail loan behind (4.7%, August 2025).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 68.2 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector24.4% · August 202554th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people227.2 · 202581st percentile
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- 61.3 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line13.5% · 202452nd percentile
- Children below the poverty line17.0% · 202449th percentile
- People with a disability19.0% · 2020 to 202474th percentile
- People without health insurance7.9% · 2020 to 202450th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$56,460 · 202479th percentile
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- 55.3 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind6.3% · August 202564th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind4.7% · August 202543rd percentile
- People with a subprime credit score42.6% · second quarter of 202658th percentile
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- 50.7 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 rent17.5% · 2020 to 202446th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income21.2% · fiscal year 202754th percentile
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- 37.7 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 202631st percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working19.6% · 2020 to 202443rd 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 Overton 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 Overton County, 20.5% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Overton County
Tennessee
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
Benefit checks' share of income in Overton County made its largest gain on the way to its 2009 high, from 26.8% in 2004 to 34.0% in 2009.
In Overton County, benefit checks' share of income has doubled since 1969, reaching 32.3% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in nearly twice as much as benefit checks
In Overton County, Tennessee, benefit checks' share of income doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 32.3%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Overton County getting SNAP food aid had its largest drop, from 15.8% in 2014 to 13.5% in 2015.
The share of households in Overton 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: 9.9% 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, Overton County, Tennessee.
How Overton County has changed
Overton County's population rose by more than half to 23,551, the highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 1974 to 1979, reaching 17,405. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Overton County, Tennessee.
The jobs count covers work located in the county; the population count covers residents.
The number of jobs located in Overton County rose 37% from 1990 to 2025, reaching its highest on the chart, with most of the change between 2020 and 2025
Biggest rise: 2020 to 2025, reaching 5,760. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Overton County, Tennessee.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 9.0% | 2025 3.5% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 19.2% | 2024 13.5% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $18,271 | 2024 $56,460 |
Figures are as each agency published them, not adjusted for prices.
Dated events in Overton County's history
1933
F4 tornado destroyed Beatty Swamps, 33 of 35 deaths. Wikipedia
1974
A tornado in April 1974 did $2.5 million in property damage and killed three people. NOAA Storm Events Database
1998
Lightning in August 1998 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2007
Lightning in June 2007 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2010
A flood in August 2010 did $10 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2020
The county's largest recorded population was the 2020 Census count of 22,511, which is also its most recent census. Census Bureau
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Since 1969
21 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Overton County, 12 of them for flooding. FEMA
Overton County beside its neighbors
All five counties that border Overton County score higher than it does. For the share of income from benefit checks, Overton County ranks 5th of the six; Fentress County is highest, at 39.7%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Clay County, TN | 84 | 19.7% | 34.5% |
| Jackson County, TN | 69 | 16.3% | 35.9% |
| Fentress County, TN | 68 | 19.0% | 39.7% |
| Putnam County, TN | 60 | 18.4% | 27.3% |
| Pickett County, TN | 60 | 15.8% | 37.0% |
| Overton County, TN | 57 | 13.5% | 32.3% |
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 Overton County the poorest county in Tennessee?
No, Overton County's poverty rate was 13.5% in 2024, 62nd 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, Overton County ranks 66th of 95 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Overton 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 Overton 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 Overton County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.