About two in five people with a credit file in Freestone County, Texas, have unpaid debt sent to a collector
In Freestone County, 40.4% of people with a credit file had unpaid debt sent to a collector. That is higher than in 94% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 64% of U.S. counties.
What drives Freestone County's score
In Freestone County, late payments on loans weigh most: the score for late payments on loans is 77.6. People with a credit card behind: 7.5%, August 2025, higher than in 78% of U.S. counties. Jobs come next, at 67.1.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Freestone 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.
Freestone County does better than most counties on two measures: bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people (63.6, 2025) and rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income (17.6%, fiscal year 2027).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 77.6 of 100
Late payments
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind7.5% · August 202578th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind7.3% · August 202576th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score49.2% · second quarter of 202677th percentile
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- 67.1 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 202679th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working21.5% · 2020 to 202454th percentile
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- 59.1 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line12.7% · 202446th percentile
- Children below the poverty line17.4% · 202451st percentile
- People with a disability18.8% · 2020 to 202473rd percentile
- People without health insurance12.6% · 2020 to 202481st percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$69,048 · 202443rd percentile
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- 55.6 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector40.4% · August 202594th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people63.6 · 202516th percentile
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- 35.8 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 rent18.7% · 2020 to 202453rd percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income17.6% · fiscal year 202718th 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 Freestone 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 Freestone County, 20.1% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Freestone County
Texas
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Freestone County, benefit checks' share of income has nearly doubled since 1969, reaching 28.1% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in twice as much as benefit checks
In Freestone County, Texas, benefit checks' share of income nearly doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 28.1%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Freestone County getting SNAP food aid had its largest rise, from 8.4% in 2011 to 12.1% in 2012.
The share of households in Freestone County getting SNAP food aid doubled from 2009 to 2023, reaching 15.5%, then turned down in 2024
High on the chart: 15.5% in 2023. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Freestone County, Texas.
How Freestone County has changed
Freestone County's population doubled to 20,645, the highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 1979 to 1984, reaching 16,865. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Freestone County, Texas.
The number of jobs located in Freestone County had its largest rise, from 4,197 in 2000 to 5,764 in 2005.
The number of jobs located in Freestone County was at its highest on the chart in 2010 and is down 12% since
High on the chart: 5,772 in 2010. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Freestone County, Texas.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 5.5% | 2025 4.7% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 15.4% | 2024 12.7% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $21,589 | 2024 $69,048 |
The table uses 4.7% 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 Freestone County's history
1920
The county's largest recorded population was the 1920 Census count of 23,264. The 2020 Census counted 19,435, 84% of the peak. Census Bureau
2006
A flash flood in December 2006 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2009
A flash flood in April 2009 did $1.5 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1965
20 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Freestone County, 6 of them for flooding. FEMA
Freestone County beside its neighbors
Of the five counties that border Freestone County, four score higher. Of the group, Freestone County gets the smallest share of its income from benefit checks; Limestone County gets the largest, at 32.4%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Henderson County, TX | 90 | 15.9% | 30.4% |
| Anderson County, TX | 86 | 20.0% | 28.2% |
| Limestone County, TX | 80 | 14.8% | 32.4% |
| Navarro County, TX | 73 | 14.5% | 28.6% |
| Freestone County, TX | 64 | 12.7% | 28.1% |
| Leon County, TX | 57 | 14.2% | 29.0% |
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 Freestone County the poorest county in Texas?
No, Freestone County's poverty rate was 12.7% in 2024, 175th 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, Freestone County ranks 136th of 254 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Freestone 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 Freestone 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 Freestone County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.