#2,209 Texas · 2026

Coke County, Texas

38.9 · low-moderate county distress 2,209th of 3,144 counties nationally · 3,352 residents How this is calculated →
The headline number
12% Coke residents
vs.
8% U.S. median

Above the national median for uninsured rate.

U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-year (2023)

Main Findings

Wire lede · 34 words · paste-ready

Coke County, Texas ranks 2,209th most distressed in the United States on the County Distress Index. Coke sits near the national median across major distress indicators. Its highest-scoring domain is Safety Net & Buffer.

Key Findings
  • 2,209th of 3,144 counties on the County Distress Index — 38.9 · low-moderate county distress, 238th in Texas.
  • 12% of residents lack health insurance (U.S. median 8%). Uninsured rate at the 80th percentile nationally. Source: U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-year (2023).
  • Credit card delinquency at 10% — national median 5%, ranked at the 95th percentile. Source: Urban Institute Debt in America (2025).
  • Default & Legal domain score 29 — weight 20.0% of the CDI composite. Source: American Default Research.
  • Debt Burden (housing basis) domain score 26 — weight 20.0% of the CDI composite. Source: American Default Research.
Distinctive Signals
Labor–Credit Divergence

Unemployment is 3%, near the national median of 4%, while credit card delinquency runs at the 95th percentile. Jobs exist; wages don't close the gap.

Boundary Signal

Neighbors span three CDI score labels. The 25-point drop to Sterling County marks where the Texas distress corridor ends.

County Distress Index cluster map. Coke County, Texas and its neighbors colored by county distress score label.
Coke and its 5 geographic neighbors, graded by County Distress Index score. Coke County ranks 2,209th of 3,144. American Default Research
Wire summary — paste-ready, any angle 20 words

Coke County has a low-moderate county distress score. The CDI reading is a county comparison, separate from national ADI bands.

— American Default Research
Index note — for feature use 35 words

The CDI gives this county a low-moderate county distress label. The label comes from the score, while the rank compares the county with the current national cross-section. Its highest-scoring domain is Safety Net & Buffer.

— American Default Research

Indicator History

Period-correct raw indicators from the county-history panel. The CDI composite is excluded because it is a current cross-sectional score.

Updated Jul 1, 2026
BLS 1990 to 2025

Unemployment rate

3.3% +1.7 pp since 1990
Census 1989 to 2024

Poverty rate

15.0% +1.9 pp since 1989
BEA 1969 to 2024

Transfer income share

33.1% +20.4 pp since 1969
FRED/Equifax 2014 Q2 to 2025 Q4

Subprime credit population

24.7% -3.6 pp since 2014 Q2

The Indicators Behind Coke County's CDI Score

Every number traces to a public source. Coke County's value shown alongside TX's median and the U.S. median. Full CSV available for download.

How to read the table. A domain score is a 0–100 composite of the indicators in that domain; higher values represent a higher mean of distress-oriented indicator percentiles. A county's domain rank is computed separately against all counties. Percentile is Coke County's national rank among all 3,144 U.S. counties for that indicator, always oriented so higher = more distressed.
Indicator Coke TX median U.S. median Pctile Source
Delinquency — domain score 59 · Rank 1,235 of 3,144
Auto loan delinquency Share of auto loan accounts 60+ days past due 4% 7% 5% 28th Urban Institute Debt in America (2025)
Credit card delinquency Share of credit card accounts 60+ days past due 10% 7% 5% 95th Urban Institute Debt in America (2025)
Subprime credit share Share of residents with a credit score below 660 25% 32% 23% 55th Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis, Equifax (2025)
Default & Legal — domain score 29 · Rank 2,442 of 3,144
Debt in collections Share of residents with a credit file who have debt in collections 19% 35% 23% 33rd Urban Institute Debt in America (2025)
Bankruptcy filing rate Personal bankruptcy filings per 100,000 residents 78 78 126 25th Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts, F-5A (2025)
Debt Burden (housing basis) — domain score 26 · Rank 2,567 of 3,144
Rent-to-income ratio Fair Market Rent (2BR) as share of median household income 21% 22% 21% 45th HUD FMR (FY2026); U.S. Census Bureau, SAIPE (2023)
Severe rent burden (50%+) Share of renter households paying 50%+ of income on rent 7% 17% 18% 7th U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-year (2023)
Labor — domain score 16 · Rank 2,606 of 3,144
Unemployment Share of labor force unemployed 3% 4% 4% 16th U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, LAUS (May 2026)
Safety Net & Buffer — domain score 64 · Rank 1,018 of 3,144
Child poverty rate Share of children under 18 below the federal poverty line 19% 22% 18% 56th U.S. Census Bureau, SAIPE (2023)
Disability rate Share of residents reporting a disability 18% 16% 16% 71st U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-year (2023)
Poverty rate Share of population below the federal poverty line 13% 15% 14% 46th U.S. Census Bureau, SAIPE (2023)
Uninsured rate Share of residents without health insurance coverage 12% 17% 8% 80th U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-year (2023)
Data compiled May 2026 from Urban Institute Debt in America (2025 panel), U.S. Census Bureau (ACS 5-yr 2023, SAIPE 2023, Business Formation Statistics 2024), U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (LAUS May 2026, QCEW 2024), Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts (F-5A bankruptcy filings 2025), and HUD Fair Market Rents (FY2026).

Five-Domain Breakdown

The CDI is an equal-weight composite of five family-v1 distress domains. Each domain contributes 20% of the county score.

Safety Net & Buffer Primary driver 64
Weight 20% · Rank 1,018 of 3,144
Delinquency 59
Weight 20% · Rank 1,235 of 3,144
Default & Legal 29
Weight 20% · Rank 2,442 of 3,144
Debt Burden (housing basis) 26
Weight 20% · Rank 2,567 of 3,144
Labor 16
Weight 20% · Rank 2,606 of 3,144

Methodology

The County Distress Index is a 0–100 composite score of household financial distress, computed for all 3,144 U.S. counties. Higher scores indicate greater distress. The index is built from five equal-weighted domains: Delinquency, Default & Legal, Debt Burden, Labor, and Safety Net & Buffer. Each domain is the mean of distress-oriented indicator percentiles; the CDI score is the equal-weight mean of those domain scores.

Data sources include the Urban Institute Debt in America (Equifax consumer credit panel), FRED/Equifax (subprime credit share), U.S. Census Bureau (American Community Survey 5-year, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates), Bureau of Labor Statistics (Local Area Unemployment Statistics), U.S. Courts Administrative Office (F-5A bankruptcy filings), and HUD Fair Market Rents. Data vintages range from 2022 to 2026 depending on source; full indicator-level vintage detail is in the methodology document.

For Press & Research

Everything you need to cite Coke County data — in under 60 seconds.

Embed preview — paste into any CMS <iframe src="https://americandefault.org/embed/county/48081/" width="600" height="300" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" style="border:1px solid #e5e7eb;border-radius:8px;" title="Coke County, TX — County Distress Index"></iframe>
Press contact: Ross Kilburn · press@americandefault.org · (307) 264-2992 · same-day response, 9am–6pm ET
Draft wire copy 125-word AP-style article — use freely with attribution
DRAFT · 125 words · for immediate release · cleared for reuse with attribution to American Default Research

ROBERT LEE, Texas — Coke County ranks 2,209th among the nation's most financially distressed counties, according to the County Distress Index released this month by American Default Research.

The composite score of 38.9 out of 100 gives Coke a low-moderate county distress label. Among 3,144 U.S. counties scored, 2,208 counties rank more distressed. Within Texas, Coke ranks 238th of 254 counties.

The index, which draws on 13 source indicators from the U.S. Census Bureau, Bureau of Labor Statistics, Urban Institute and federal court filings, finds Coke sitting near the national median across major distress indicators, with no single domain emerging as a clear driver.

American Default Research founder Ross Kilburn is available for interview at press@americandefault.org.

Full methodology and county-by-county data are available at americandefault.org/methodology/cdi.

— 30 —

Frequently Asked Questions

What is Coke County's CDI score, and what does it mean?

Coke County scores 38.9 out of 100 on the County Distress Index, with the score label low-moderate county distress. It ranks 2,209th of 3,144 U.S. counties and 238th of 254 Texas counties. Higher county scores indicate more distress.

What drives Coke County's distress score?

The highest-scoring domain is Safety Net & Buffer, at a domain score of 64. Uninsured rate ranks at the 80th percentile nationally.

How does Coke County compare to its neighbors?

Coke County's neighbors span three CDI score labels. Highest-distress neighbor: Nolan County (68.72, moderate-high county distress). Lowest: Sterling County (43.77, moderate-low county distress).

How is the County Distress Index calculated?

The CDI is a 0–100 composite of 13 source indicators across five equal-weighted domains: Delinquency, Default & Legal, Debt Burden, Labor, and Safety Net & Buffer. Data comes from Urban Institute, Census Bureau, BLS, U.S. Courts, HUD, and related public sources. Full methodology →
Ross Kilburn
Written by

Ross Kilburn, Founder

Founder · American Default Research · Seattle, Washington

Two decades working directly with financially distressed American households — from property preservation in 2003, to negotiating over 1,000 short sales during the Great Recession, to foreclosure defense marketing today. Author, The Ark Law Group Complete Guide to Short Sales (Auroch Press, 2013). Founded American Default Research in 2026.

Read more
from Ross →