About one in nine people in Trousdale County, Tennessee, has a disability
In Trousdale County, 11.8% of people reported a disability. That is lower than in 86% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 57% of U.S. counties.
What drives Trousdale County's score
In Trousdale County, collections and bankruptcy is the highest-scoring part, at 70.4. Jobs are the lowest part, at 17.5. Unemployment averaged 3.0%, Oct 2025 to Sep 2026, lower than in 84% of U.S. counties.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Trousdale 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.
Even so, Trousdale County is worse off than most counties on rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income (30.6%, fiscal year 2027).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 70.4 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector28.3% · August 202569th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people187.4 · 202571st percentile
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- 61.7 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 rent14.4% · 2020 to 202428th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income30.6% · fiscal year 2027top 5%
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- 42.9 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind2.9% · August 20259th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind5.6% · August 202555th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score43.9% · second quarter of 202663rd percentile
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- 35.6 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line14.5% · 202460th percentile
- Children below the poverty line14.9% · 202438th percentile
- People with a disability11.8% · 2020 to 202413th percentile
- People without health insurance5.5% · 2020 to 202425th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$70,518 · 202439th percentile
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- 17.5 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year3.0% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202615th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working15.7% · 2020 to 202419th 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 Trousdale 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 Trousdale County, 12.3% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Trousdale County
Tennessee
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
Benefit checks' share of income in Trousdale County had its largest rise, from 9.7% in 1979 to 17.2% in 1984.
In Trousdale County, benefit checks' share of income has tripled since 1969, reaching 24.6% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in about three times as much as benefit checks
In Trousdale County, Tennessee, benefit checks' share of income tripled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 24.6%; 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 Trousdale County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2013 and has since fallen by about half
Biggest drop: 2015 to 2016, 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, Trousdale County, Tennessee.
How Trousdale County has changed
Trousdale County's population more than doubled to 12,159, the highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 2014 to 2019, reaching 11,474. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Trousdale County, Tennessee.
The number of jobs located in Trousdale County had its largest rise in the last span, from 1,793 in 2020 to 2,672 in 2025.
The number of jobs located in Trousdale County fell to its lowest on the chart in 2005, then climbed past the 1990 level
Low on the chart: 1,455 in 2005. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Trousdale County, Tennessee.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 6.1% | 2025 3.2% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 10.5% | 2024 14.5% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $20,840 | 2024 $70,518 |
The table uses 3.2% for 2025; the score uses 3.0% 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 Trousdale County's history
1977
Hartsville Nuclear Plant construction began and cancelled. Wikipedia
2008
A tornado in February 2008 killed two people. NOAA Storm Events Database
2016
A flash flood in May 2016 did $2 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2020
The county's largest recorded population was the 2020 Census count of 11,615, which is also its most recent census. Census Bureau
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Since 1974
13 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Trousdale County, 6 of them for flooding. FEMA
Trousdale County beside its neighbors
Of the four counties that border Trousdale County, one scores higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Trousdale County ranks 2nd of the five; Macon County is highest, at 27.9%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Macon County, TN | 66 | 16.0% | 27.9% |
| Trousdale County, TN | 42 | 14.5% | 24.6% |
| Smith County, TN | 38 | 11.6% | 24.1% |
| Sumner County, TN | 32 | 8.3% | 15.7% |
| Wilson County, TN | 22 | 7.3% | 15.2% |
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 Trousdale County the poorest county in Tennessee?
No, Trousdale County's poverty rate was 14.5% in 2024, 44th 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, Trousdale County ranks 85th of 95 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Trousdale 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 Trousdale 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 Trousdale County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.