About three in five people with a credit file in Jim Hogg County, Texas, have unpaid debt sent to a collector
In Jim Hogg County, 57.1% of people with a credit file had unpaid debt sent to a collector. That is higher than in 99% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 87% of U.S. counties.
What drives Jim Hogg County's score
In Jim Hogg County, late payments on loans weigh most: the score for late payments on loans is 91.0. People with a car or retail loan behind: 14.8%, August 2025, higher than in 95% of U.S. counties. Jobs come next, at 81.4.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Jim Hogg 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.
Jim Hogg County does better than most counties on two measures: bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people (42.4, 2025) and people with a disability (12.8%, 2020 to 2024).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 91.0 of 100
Late payments
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind7.8% · August 202582nd percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind14.8% · August 2025top 5%
- People with a subprime credit score72.1% · second quarter of 2026top 5%
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- 81.4 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year4.4% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202667th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working39.5% · 2020 to 2024top 5%
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- 79.2 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line22.1% · 202492nd percentile
- Children below the poverty line33.3% · 2024top 5%
- People with a disability12.8% · 2020 to 202420th percentile
- People without health insurance29.0% · 2020 to 2024top 5%
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$48,943 · 202492nd percentile
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- 60.4 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 rent15.6% · 2020 to 202434th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income25.6% · fiscal year 202785th percentile
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- 50.8 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector57.1% · August 2025top 5%
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people42.4 · 20256th 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 Jim Hogg 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 Jim Hogg County, 9.6% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Jim Hogg County
Texas
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
Benefit checks' share of income in Jim Hogg County had its largest rise, from 22.5% in 2004 to 36.8% in 2009.
In Jim Hogg County, benefit checks' share of income has tripled since 1969, reaching 39.7% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in about a quarter more than benefit checks
In Jim Hogg County, Texas, benefit checks' share of income tripled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 39.7%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Jim Hogg County getting SNAP food aid had its largest rise, from 24.8% in 2012 to 32.4% in 2013.
The share of households in Jim Hogg County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2019 and has since fallen to 30.8%
Low on the chart: 20.9% 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, Jim Hogg County, Texas.
How Jim Hogg County has changed
Jim Hogg County's population had its largest rise, from 4,951 in 1979 to 5,385 in 1984.
Jim Hogg County's population was at its highest on the chart in 1984 and is down 15% since
High on the chart: 5,385 in 1984. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Jim Hogg County, Texas.
The number of jobs located in Jim Hogg County had its largest rise, from 1,734 in 2005 to 2,005 in 2010.
The number of jobs located in Jim Hogg County was at its highest on the chart in 2010 and is down 16% since
High on the chart: 2,005 in 2010. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Jim Hogg County, Texas.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 11.1% | 2025 4.9% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 31.2% | 2024 22.1% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $16,677 | 2024 $48,943 |
The table uses 4.9% for 2025; the score uses 4.4% 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 Jim Hogg County's history
1913
Jim Hogg County was formed in 1913 from portions of Brooks and Duval counties. Wikipedia
1940
The county's largest recorded population was the 1940 Census count of 5,449. The 2020 Census counted 4,838, 89% of the peak. Census Bureau
2010
A tornado in July 2010 did $1.5 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1967
22 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Jim Hogg County, 2 of them for flooding. FEMA
Jim Hogg County beside its neighbors
Of the five counties that border Jim Hogg County, four score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Jim Hogg County ranks 5th of the six; Brooks County is highest, at 46.9%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Starr County, TX | 97 | 35.4% | 44.1% |
| Zapata County, TX | 92 | 30.9% | 40.0% |
| Duval County, TX | 92 | 24.8% | 45.8% |
| Brooks County, TX | 90 | 30.6% | 46.9% |
| Webb County, TX | 87 | 20.6% | 24.6% |
| Jim Hogg County, TX | 87 | 22.1% | 39.7% |
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 Jim Hogg County the poorest county in Texas?
No, Jim Hogg County's poverty rate was 22.1% in 2024, 20th 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, Jim Hogg County ranks 28th of 254 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Jim Hogg 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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Texas RioGrande 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 Jim Hogg 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 Jim Hogg County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.