About one in four people in Kinney County, Texas, has a disability
In Kinney County, 25.5% of people reported a disability. That is higher than in 96% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 53% of U.S. counties.
What drives Kinney County's score
In Kinney County, income and the safety net weighs most: the score for income and the safety net is 86.6. Late payments on loans come next, at 69.3.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Kinney 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.
Kinney County does better than most counties on two measures: bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people (31.8, 2025) and adults 25 to 54 not working (6.1%, 2020 to 2024).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 86.6 of 100
Income and safety net
Biggest factorPoverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line20.7% · 202489th percentile
- Children below the poverty line22.8% · 202475th percentile
- People with a disability25.5% · 2020 to 2024top 5%
- People without health insurance21.7% · 2020 to 2024top 5%
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$56,917 · 202478th percentile
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- 69.3 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behindnot published for this county; scored at the state median · August 202573rd percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behindnot published for this county; scored at the state median · August 202573rd percentile
- People with a subprime credit score43.2% · second quarter of 202661st percentile
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- 37.3 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 rent6.5% · 2020 to 20245th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income22.7% · fiscal year 202769th percentile
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- 34.6 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector27.1% · August 202564th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people31.8 · 20255th or lower percentile
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- 33.0 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year4.3% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202661st percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working6.1% · 2020 to 20245th or lower 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 Kinney 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 Kinney County, 26.5% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Kinney County
Texas
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Kinney County, benefit checks' share of income has more than doubled since 1969, reaching 35.5% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in about a quarter more than benefit checks
In Kinney County, Texas, benefit checks' share of income more than doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 35.5%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Kinney County getting SNAP food aid had its largest drop in the last span, from 23.1% in 2023 to 15.1% in 2024.
The share of households in Kinney County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2023 and has since fallen by about a third
Low on the chart: 8.3% in 2017. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Kinney County, Texas.
How Kinney County has changed
Kinney County's population had its largest rise, from 2,208 in 1979 to 2,669 in 1984.
Kinney County's population was at its highest on the chart in 2009 and is down 11% since
High on the chart: 3,568 in 2009. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Kinney County, Texas.
The number of jobs located in Kinney County had its largest rise, from 788 in 2015 to 976 in 2020.
The number of jobs located in Kinney County nearly doubled to 987, the highest on the chart
High on the chart: 987 in 2025. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Kinney County, Texas.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 3.6% | 2025 4.2% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 31.5% | 2024 20.7% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $15,548 | 2024 $56,917 |
The table uses 4.2% for 2025; the score uses 4.3% 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 Kinney County's history
1850
Created in 1850, organized in 1874. Wikipedia
1852
Fort Clark established 1852 by U.S. Army as supply depot. Wikipedia
1940
The county's largest recorded population was the 1940 Census count of 4,533. The 2020 Census counted 3,129, 69% of the peak. Census Bureau
1989
A tornado in May 1989 did $2.5 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
1993
Hail in April 1993 did $5 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1990
15 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Kinney County, 2 of them for flooding. FEMA
Kinney County beside its neighbors
Of the four counties that border Kinney County, three score higher. Of the group, Kinney County gets the largest share of its income from benefit checks (35.5%).
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Maverick County, TX | 89 | 21.8% | 34.4% |
| Uvalde County, TX | 86 | 19.5% | 30.5% |
| Val Verde County, TX | 74 | 18.1% | 26.7% |
| Edwards County, TX | 53 | 19.2% | 32.9% |
| Kinney County, TX | 53 | 20.7% | 35.5% |
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 Kinney County the poorest county in Texas?
No, Kinney County's poverty rate was 20.7% in 2024, 32nd 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, Kinney County ranks 172nd of 254 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Kinney 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 Kinney 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 Kinney County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.