In Brazoria County, Texas, rent on a two-bedroom takes about one in six dollars of the typical household's income
In Brazoria County, 15.8% of the typical household's income would go to rent on a two-bedroom. That is lower than in 93% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 52% of U.S. counties.
What drives Brazoria County's score
In Brazoria County, late payments on loans are the highest-scoring part, at 63.3. Income and the safety net is the lowest part, at 27.1. The typical household earns $100,255 a year (2024), more than in 94% of U.S. counties.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Brazoria 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, Brazoria County is worse off than most counties on people without health insurance (12.7%, 2020 to 2024) and unemployment rate, average over the latest year (4.9%, Oct 2025 to Sep 2026).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 63.3 of 100
Late payments
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind6.6% · August 202567th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind6.6% · August 202568th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score41.1% · second quarter of 202653rd percentile
-
- 61.9 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year4.9% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202678th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working19.9% · 2020 to 202445th percentile
-
- 59.7 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector30.3% · August 202574th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people116.8 · 202544th percentile
-
- 31.8 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 rent19.4% · 2020 to 202457th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income15.8% · fiscal year 20276th percentile
-
- 27.1 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line9.1% · 202415th percentile
- Children below the poverty line11.4% · 202419th percentile
- People with a disability11.7% · 2020 to 202412th percentile
- People without health insurance12.7% · 2020 to 202481st percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$100,255 · 20245th percentile
-
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 Brazoria 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 Brazoria County, 12.8% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Brazoria County
Texas
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Brazoria County, benefit checks' share of income has tripled since 1969, reaching 16.9% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in about four times as much as benefit checks
In Brazoria County, Texas, benefit checks' share of income tripled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 16.9%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Brazoria County getting SNAP food aid had its largest rise, from 6.6% in 2010 to 8.0% in 2011.
The share of households in Brazoria County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2013 and has since fallen to 8.1%
Low on the chart: 6.6% in 2009. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Brazoria County, Texas.
How Brazoria County has changed
Brazoria County's population had its largest rise in the last span, from 367,958 in 2019 to 413,224 in 2024.
Brazoria County's population grew to about four times its 1969 size in 2024, reaching 413,224, with no dip in any year shown
Smallest rise: 1984 to 1989, reaching 188,099. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Brazoria County, Texas.
The number of jobs located in Brazoria County had its largest rise, from 85,904 in 2010 to 103,631 in 2015.
The number of jobs located in Brazoria County doubled from 1990 to 2025, reaching 124,808, with no dip in any year shown
Smallest rise: 1990 to 1995, reaching 69,483. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Brazoria County, Texas.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 4.6% | 2025 4.6% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 9.9% | 2024 9.1% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $33,662 | 2024 $100,255 |
The table uses 4.6% for 2025; the score uses 4.9% 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 Brazoria County's history
1821
Anglo-Texas began in Brazoria County when first of Stephen F. Austin's settlers arrived 1821. Wikipedia
1836
Organized as a separate municipal district by Mexican government in 1832; became one of Texas's original counties at independence in 1836. Wikipedia
1934
Hastings Oil Field discovered 1934 by Stanolind Oil, 242 million barrels by 1954. Wikipedia
2000
Lightning in August 2000 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2007
Lightning in October 2007 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2017
A flash flood in August 2017 did $2 billion in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2020
The county's largest recorded population was the 2020 Census count of 372,031, which is also its most recent census. Census Bureau
2024
A tornado in December 2024 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
-
Since 1973
34 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Brazoria County, 11 of them for flooding. FEMA
Brazoria County beside its neighbors
Of the five counties that border Brazoria County, four score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Brazoria County ranks 4th of the six; Matagorda County is highest, at 28.6%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Matagorda County, TX | 85 | 14.8% | 28.6% |
| Harris County, TX | 83 | 16.7% | 12.1% |
| Galveston County, TX | 65 | 12.6% | 18.3% |
| Wharton County, TX | 64 | 14.6% | 27.0% |
| Brazoria County, TX | 47 | 9.1% | 16.9% |
| Fort Bend County, TX | 38 | 7.7% | 11.1% |
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 Brazoria County the poorest county in Texas?
No, Brazoria County's poverty rate was 9.1% in 2024, 232nd highest of 254 in Texas (U.S. Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates). By that measure the poorest county in the state is Starr County, at 35.4%. On our distress index, which counts more than poverty, Brazoria County ranks 187th of 254 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Brazoria 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.
-
Lone Star Legal Aid
Legal aid
-
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 Brazoria 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 Brazoria County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.