Benefit checks make up 38 cents of every dollar of income in Unicoi County, Tennessee
In Unicoi County, 37.8% of all the income people there received came from benefit checks. That is higher than in 89% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 71% of U.S. counties.
What drives Unicoi County's score
In Unicoi County, collections and bankruptcy weighs most: the score for collections and bankruptcy is 67.8. Bankruptcy filings ran at 202.7 per 100,000 people (2025), higher than in 75% of U.S. counties. Income and the safety net comes next, at 67.7.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Unicoi 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.
Unicoi County does better than most counties on two measures: renters paying half their income or more in rent (15.4%, 2020 to 2024) 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.
- 67.8 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector25.9% · August 202560th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people202.7 · 202575th percentile
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- 67.7 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line14.4% · 202460th percentile
- Children below the poverty line20.0% · 202464th percentile
- People with a disability20.4% · 2020 to 202482nd percentile
- People without health insurance8.2% · 2020 to 202453rd percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$56,931 · 202478th percentile
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- 60.4 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind6.8% · August 202569th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind4.7% · August 202542nd percentile
- People with a subprime credit score45.5% · second quarter of 202668th percentile
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- 59.8 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 rent15.4% · 2020 to 202433rd percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income25.5% · fiscal year 202785th percentile
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- 58.4 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 working24.8% · 2020 to 202473rd 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 Unicoi 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 Unicoi County, 23.7% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Unicoi County
Tennessee
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Unicoi County, benefit checks' share of income has tripled since 1969, reaching 37.8% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in about a third more than benefit checks
In Unicoi County, Tennessee, benefit checks' share of income tripled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 37.8%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Unicoi County getting SNAP food aid had its largest rise, from 18.9% in 2017 to 21.5% in 2018.
The share of households in Unicoi County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2015 and has since fallen to 13.6%
Biggest drop: 2018 to 2019, reaching 19.1%. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Unicoi County, Tennessee.
How Unicoi County has changed
Unicoi County's population had its largest rise, from 15,631 in 1974 to 16,466 in 1979.
Unicoi County's population rose 17% from 1969 to 2024
High on the chart: 18,367 in 2009. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Unicoi County, Tennessee.
The number of jobs located in Unicoi County had its largest rise, from 4,030 in 1995 to 4,483 in 2000.
The number of jobs located in Unicoi County fell to its lowest on the chart in 1995, then climbed past the 1990 level
Low on the chart: 4,030 in 1995. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Unicoi County, Tennessee.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 7.8% | 2025 4.6% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 14.9% | 2024 14.4% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $20,878 | 2024 $56,931 |
The table uses 4.6% 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 Unicoi County's history
2010
The county's largest recorded population was the 2010 Census count of 18,313. The 2020 Census counted 17,928, 98% of the peak. Census Bureau
2024
A flash flood in September 2024 did $9.8 million in property damage and killed nine people. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1973
18 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Unicoi County, 10 of them for flooding. FEMA
Unicoi County beside its neighbors
Of the six counties that border Unicoi County, in Tennessee and North Carolina, two score higher. Of the group, Unicoi County gets the largest share of its income from benefit checks (37.8%).
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Carter County, TN | 85 | 16.1% | 34.5% |
| Greene County, TN | 72 | 16.3% | 36.1% |
| Unicoi County, TN | 71 | 14.4% | 37.8% |
| Madison County, NC | 56 | 14.9% | 33.4% |
| Washington County, TN | 56 | 13.0% | 25.0% |
| Yancey County, NC | 45 | 14.5% | 35.9% |
| Mitchell County, NC | 39 | 13.5% | 34.3% |
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 Unicoi County the poorest county in Tennessee?
No, Unicoi County's poverty rate was 14.4% in 2024, 47th 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, Unicoi County ranks 36th of 95 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Unicoi 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 of East Tennessee
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 Unicoi 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 Unicoi County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.