In Union County, Tennessee, rent on a two-bedroom takes about three in ten dollars of the typical household's income
In Union County, 31.0% of the typical household's income would go to rent on a two-bedroom. That is higher than in 97% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 76% of U.S. counties.
What drives Union County's score
In Union County, collections and bankruptcy weighs most: the score for collections and bankruptcy is 79.5. Bankruptcy filings ran at 260.4 per 100,000 people (2025), higher than in 86% of U.S. counties. Income and the safety net comes next, at 73.5.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Union 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.
Union 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 (4.4%, August 2025).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 79.5 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector29.5% · August 202572nd percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people260.4 · 202586th percentile
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- 73.5 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line17.4% · 202477th percentile
- Children below the poverty line22.1% · 202472nd percentile
- People with a disability21.6% · 2020 to 202487th percentile
- People without health insurance8.1% · 2020 to 202452nd percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$57,039 · 202478th percentile
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- 72.9 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 rent17.8% · 2020 to 202447th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income31.0% · fiscal year 202797th percentile
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- 54.9 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind6.4% · August 202564th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind4.4% · August 202537th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score43.6% · second quarter of 202662nd percentile
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- 47.6 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 202631st percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working22.9% · 2020 to 202463rd 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 Union 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 Union County, 18.8% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Union County
Tennessee
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
Benefit checks' share of income in Union County had its largest rise, from 24.5% in 2004 to 33.1% in 2009.
In Union County, benefit checks' share of income has more than doubled since 1969, reaching 30.4% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in twice as much as benefit checks
In Union County, Tennessee, benefit checks' share of income more than doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 30.4%; 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 Union County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2018 and has since fallen to 14.8%
Biggest drop: 2018 to 2019, reaching 22.6%. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Union County, Tennessee.
How Union County has changed
Union County's population more than doubled to 21,064, the highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 1994 to 1999, reaching 17,524. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Union County, Tennessee.
The jobs count covers work located in the county; the population count covers residents.
The number of jobs located in Union County rose 38% from 1990 to 2025, reaching its highest on the chart, with most of the change between 1990 and 1995
Biggest rise: 1990 to 1995, reaching 2,579. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Union County, Tennessee.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 5.3% | 2025 3.7% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 19.8% | 2024 17.4% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $18,837 | 2024 $57,039 |
The table uses 3.7% 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 Union County's history
1856
Formally created January 23, 1856 from portions of Grainger, Claiborne, Campbell, Anderson, and Knox counties, though legislation was initially passed January 3, 1850. Wikipedia
2011
A flood in February 2011 did $1.53 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2020
The county's largest recorded population was the 2020 Census count of 19,802, which is also its most recent census. Census Bureau
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Since 1973
15 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Union County, 9 of them for flooding. FEMA
Union County beside its neighbors
Of the five counties that border Union County, two score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Union County ranks 4th of the six; Claiborne County is highest, at 36.9%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Campbell County, TN | 83 | 18.9% | 34.5% |
| Claiborne County, TN | 78 | 16.4% | 36.9% |
| Union County, TN | 76 | 17.4% | 30.4% |
| Grainger County, TN | 69 | 14.2% | 31.6% |
| Anderson County, TN | 62 | 11.5% | 24.4% |
| Knox County, TN | 44 | 12.8% | 16.6% |
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 Union County the poorest county in Tennessee?
No, Union County's poverty rate was 17.4% in 2024, 19th 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, Union County ranks 28th of 95 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Union 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.
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 Union County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.