In Chambers County, Texas, benefit checks make up only 13 cents of every dollar of income
In Chambers County, 13.4% of all the income people there received came from benefit checks. That is lower than in 95% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 54% of U.S. counties.
What drives Chambers County's score
In Chambers County, jobs are the highest-scoring part, at 63.0. Income and the safety net is the lowest part, at 25.2. The typical household earns $106,175 a year (2024), more than in 96% of U.S. counties.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Chambers 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, Chambers County is worse off than most counties on people without health insurance (15.9%, 2020 to 2024) and unemployment rate, average over the latest year (5.2%, Oct 2025 to Sep 2026).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 63.0 of 100
Jobs
Biggest factorUnemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year5.2% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202683rd percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working19.4% · 2020 to 202442nd percentile
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- 54.0 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector29.3% · August 202571st percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people100.2 · 202536th percentile
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- 53.0 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind6.2% · August 202561st percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind5.1% · August 202548th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score39.8% · second quarter of 202648th percentile
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- 42.6 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 rent21.9% · 2020 to 202472nd percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income16.9% · fiscal year 202712th percentile
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- 25.2 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line7.9% · 20247th percentile
- Children below the poverty line9.9% · 202412th percentile
- People with a disability11.3% · 2020 to 20249th percentile
- People without health insurance15.9% · 2020 to 202491st percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$106,175 · 20243rd 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 Chambers 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 Chambers County, 12.6% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Chambers County
Texas
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
Benefit checks' share of income in Chambers County had its largest rise, from 9.9% in 1989 to 13.4% in 1994.
In Chambers County, benefit checks' share of income has doubled since 1969, reaching 13.4% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in about five times as much as benefit checks
In Chambers County, Texas, benefit checks' share of income doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 13.4%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Chambers County getting SNAP food aid had its largest drop, from 6.4% in 2009 to 4.7% in 2010.
The share of households in Chambers County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2019 and has since fallen to 5.8%
Low on the chart: 4.6% in 2011. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Chambers County, Texas.
How Chambers County has changed
Chambers County's population grew to about five times its 1969 size, reaching 56,179, the highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 2019 to 2024, reaching 56,179. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Chambers County, Texas.
The number of jobs located in Chambers County had its largest rise in the last span, from 16,909 in 2020 to 23,244 in 2025.
The number of jobs located in Chambers County grew to about four times its 1990 size in 2025, reaching 23,244, with no dip in any year shown
Smallest rise: 1995 to 2000, reaching 7,073. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Chambers County, Texas.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 3.8% | 2025 4.8% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 13.1% | 2024 7.9% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $28,587 | 2024 $106,175 |
The table uses 4.8% for 2025; the score uses 5.2% 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 Chambers County's history
1858
Founded in 1858. Wikipedia
1969
A tornado in May 1969 killed three people. NOAA Storm Events Database
1974
A tornado in October 1974 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2010
Lightning in June 2010 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2019
A flash flood in September 2019 did $80 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2020
The county's largest recorded population was the 2020 Census count of 46,571, which is also its most recent census. Census Bureau
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Since 1979
23 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Chambers County, 3 of them for flooding. FEMA
Chambers County beside its neighbors
All four counties that border Chambers County score higher than it does. For the share of income from benefit checks, Chambers County ranks 4th of the five; Jefferson County is highest, at 26.6%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Liberty County, TX | 95 | 17.8% | 24.2% |
| Jefferson County, TX | 94 | 21.3% | 26.6% |
| Harris County, TX | 83 | 16.7% | 12.1% |
| Galveston County, TX | 65 | 12.6% | 18.3% |
| Chambers County, TX | 45 | 7.9% | 13.4% |
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 Chambers County the poorest county in Texas?
No, Chambers County's poverty rate was 7.9% in 2024, 243rd 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, Chambers County ranks 197th of 254 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Chambers 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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Lone Star Legal Aid
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 Chambers 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 Chambers County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.