About three in ten people with a credit file in Hood County, Texas, have unpaid debt sent to a collector
In Hood County, 29.2% of people with a credit file had unpaid debt sent to a collector. That is higher than in 71% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 50% of U.S. counties.
What drives Hood County's score
In Hood County, collections and bankruptcy weighs most: the score for collections and bankruptcy is 66.8. Jobs come next, at 58.1.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Hood 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.
Hood County does better than most counties on two measures: people below the poverty line (8.0%, 2024) and median household income ($88,438, 2024).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 66.8 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector29.2% · August 202571st percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people156.4 · 202562nd percentile
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- 58.1 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year4.5% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202665th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working20.9% · 2020 to 202450th percentile
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- 48.7 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 rent19.3% · 2020 to 202456th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income19.9% · fiscal year 202740th percentile
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- 46.1 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind4.5% · August 202533rd percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind5.6% · August 202556th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score39.9% · second quarter of 202648th percentile
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- 32.4 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line8.0% · 20248th percentile
- Children below the poverty line11.7% · 202421st percentile
- People with a disability14.3% · 2020 to 202433rd percentile
- People without health insurance14.2% · 2020 to 202486th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$88,438 · 202412th 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 Hood 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 Hood County, 25.6% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Hood County
Texas
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Hood County, benefit checks' share of income has doubled since 1969, reaching 23.4% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in more than twice as much as benefit checks
In Hood County, Texas, benefit checks' share of income doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 23.4%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
SNAP food aid is one of the benefit checks counted in the income totals above.
The share of households in Hood County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2017 and has since fallen by about half
Biggest drop: 2018 to 2019, reaching 6.5%. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Hood County, Texas.
How Hood County has changed
Hood County's population had its largest rise in the last span, from 60,335 in 2019 to 69,126 in 2024.
Hood County's population grew to more than ten times its 1969 size in 2024, reaching 69,126, with no dip in any year shown
Smallest rise: 2009 to 2014, reaching 53,171. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Hood County, Texas.
The jobs count covers work located in the county; the population count covers residents.
The number of jobs located in Hood County more than tripled to 18,782, the highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 2010 to 2015, reaching 16,254. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Hood County, Texas.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 10.7% | 2025 4.3% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 7.4% | 2024 8.0% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $31,425 | 2024 $88,438 |
The table uses 4.3% for 2025; the score uses 4.5% 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 Hood County's history
1866
Formed in 1866 from portions of Johnson and Erath Counties. Wikipedia
1999
Hail in May 1999 did $5 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2002
Lightning in May 2002 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2013
EF4 tornado struck Granbury killing six with over 100 homes damaged. Wikipedia
2013
A tornado in May 2013 did $143 million in property damage and killed six people. NOAA Storm Events Database
2020
The county's largest recorded population was the 2020 Census count of 61,598, which is also its most recent census. Census Bureau
2024
Bitcoin mining facility caused health complaints and noise issues. Wikipedia
2025
A tornado in April 2025 did $3 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1989
20 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Hood County, 7 of them for flooding. FEMA
Hood County beside its neighbors
Of the five counties that border Hood County, three score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Hood County ranks 2nd of the six; Palo Pinto County is highest, at 26.4%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Palo Pinto County, TX | 80 | 16.0% | 26.4% |
| Erath County, TX | 68 | 14.9% | 21.3% |
| Johnson County, TX | 66 | 7.9% | 20.0% |
| Hood County, TX | 50 | 8.0% | 23.4% |
| Parker County, TX | 42 | 8.0% | 14.1% |
| Somervell County, TX | 12 | 9.7% | 21.5% |
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 Hood County the poorest county in Texas?
No, Hood County's poverty rate was 8.0% in 2024, 240th 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, Hood County ranks 178th of 254 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Hood 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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Legal Aid of NorthWest Texas
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.
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 Hood County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.