In Crosby County, Texas, rent on a two-bedroom takes about three in ten dollars of the typical household's income
In Crosby County, 30.3% 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 87% of U.S. counties.
What drives Crosby County's score
In Crosby County, late payments on loans weigh most: the score for late payments on loans is 93.1. People with a credit card behind: 12.9%, August 2025, higher than in 95% of U.S. counties. Income and the safety net comes next, at 91.8.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Crosby 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.
Crosby County does better than most counties on two measures: bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people (61, 2025) and renters paying half their income or more in rent (14.6%, 2020 to 2024).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 93.1 of 100
Late payments
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind12.9% · August 2025top 5%
- People with a car or retail loan behind10.1% · August 202592nd percentile
- People with a subprime credit score56.5% · second quarter of 202691st percentile
-
- 91.8 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line21.2% · 202490th percentile
- Children below the poverty line34.8% · 2024top 5%
- People with a disability21.2% · 2020 to 202485th percentile
- People without health insurance20.2% · 2020 to 2024top 5%
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$49,096 · 202492nd percentile
-
- 62.7 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year4.0% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202651st percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working25.0% · 2020 to 202473rd percentile
-
- 62.1 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 rent14.6% · 2020 to 202429th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income30.3% · fiscal year 2027top 5%
-
- 54.1 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector39.1% · August 202592nd percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people61 · 202515th 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 Crosby 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 Crosby County, 19.2% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Crosby County
Texas
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Crosby County, benefit checks' share of income has grown to about five times its 1969 level, reaching 42.1% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in only a little more than benefit checks
In Crosby County, Texas, benefit checks' share of income grew to about five times its 1969 level by 2024, reaching 42.1%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Crosby County getting SNAP food aid had its largest rise, from 19.9% in 2011 to 23.1% in 2012.
The share of households in Crosby County getting SNAP food aid fell to its lowest on the chart in 2010, then climbed past the 2009 level
Low on the chart: 18.6% in 2010. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Crosby County, Texas.
How Crosby County has changed
Crosby County's population had its largest drop, from 10,016 in 1969 to 9,005 in 1974.
Crosby County's population fell by about half from 1969 to 2024, reaching 5,030, with no rise in any year shown
Smallest drop: 1989 to 1994, reaching 7,298. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Crosby County, Texas.
The number of jobs located in Crosby County had its largest drop, from 1,491 in 2015 to 1,210 in 2020.
The number of jobs located in Crosby County fell by about half to 1,060, the lowest on the chart
High on the chart: 2,039 in 1995. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Crosby County, Texas.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 4.4% | 2025 4.2% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 33.5% | 2024 21.2% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $19,967 | 2024 $49,096 |
The table uses 4.2% for 2025; the score uses 4.0% 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 Crosby County's history
1930
The county's largest recorded population was the 1930 Census count of 11,023. The 2020 Census counted 5,133, 47% of the peak. Census Bureau
1997
A tornado in April 1997 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2017
A thunderstorm in September 2017 did $1.5 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2018
A thunderstorm in June 2018 did $3.5 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
-
Since 1992
16 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Crosby County, 1 of them for flooding. FEMA
Crosby County beside its neighbors
Crosby County scores higher than all four counties that border it. Of the group, Crosby County gets the largest share of its income from benefit checks (42.1%).
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Crosby County, TX | 87 | 21.2% | 42.1% |
| Dickens County, TX | 83 | 17.8% | 39.1% |
| Floyd County, TX | 77 | 17.3% | 35.8% |
| Lubbock County, TX | 72 | 15.7% | 20.4% |
| Garza County, TX | 70 | 17.2% | 29.4% |
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 Crosby County the poorest county in Texas?
No, Crosby County's poverty rate was 21.2% in 2024, 29th 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, Crosby County ranks 25th of 254 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Crosby 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.
-
Legal Aid of NorthWest Texas
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 Crosby 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 Crosby County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.