About four in five adults aged 25 to 54 in Lavaca County, Texas, have a job
In Lavaca County, 17.5% of adults aged 25 to 54 were not working. That is lower than in 70% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 80% of U.S. counties.
What drives Lavaca County's score
In Lavaca County, income and the safety net is the highest-scoring part, at 45.3. Housing costs are the lowest part, at 26.5. About one in eight renters (13.0%, 2020 to 2024) pays half their income or more in rent, a lower share than in 77% of U.S. counties.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Lavaca 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.
Lavaca County isn't among the worst-off quarter of U.S. counties on any measure.
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 45.3 of 100
Income and safety net
Biggest factorPoverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line12.4% · 202443rd percentile
- Children below the poverty line14.7% · 202437th percentile
- People with a disability14.2% · 2020 to 202432nd percentile
- People without health insurance10.5% · 2020 to 202469th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$68,916 · 202443rd percentile
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- 30.6 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year3.5% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202630th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working17.5% · 2020 to 202430th percentile
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- 30.1 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector23.5% · August 202551st percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people48.6 · 20258th percentile
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- 27.3 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind3.7% · August 202521st percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind3.0% · August 202513th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score39.1% · second quarter of 202646th percentile
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- 26.5 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 rent13.0% · 2020 to 202422nd percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income18.9% · fiscal year 202730th 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 Lavaca 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 Lavaca County, 24.1% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Lavaca County
Texas
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
Benefit checks' share of income in Lavaca County fell most sharply after its 2009 high, from 25.6% in 2009 to 19.4% in 2014.
In Lavaca County, benefit checks' share of income has risen by about half since 1969, reaching 25.6% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in nearly twice as much as benefit checks
In Lavaca County, Texas, benefit checks' share of income rose by about half from 1969 to 2024, reaching 25.6%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Lavaca County getting SNAP food aid had its largest drop, from 9.7% in 2014 to 7.7% in 2015.
The share of households in Lavaca County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2014 and has since fallen to 8.3%
Low on the chart: 7.0% in 2009. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Lavaca County, Texas.
How Lavaca County has changed
Lavaca County's population rose 16% from 1969 to 2024, reaching its highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 1974 to 1979, reaching 19,125. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Lavaca County, Texas.
The jobs count covers work located in the county; the population count covers residents.
The number of jobs located in Lavaca County rose by about a quarter from 1990 to 2025, reaching 5,987, with most of the change between 1990 and 1995
High on the chart: 6,246 in 2005. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Lavaca County, Texas.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 1.4% | 2025 3.3% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 14.1% | 2024 12.4% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $20,257 | 2024 $68,916 |
The table uses 3.3% for 2025; the score uses 3.5% 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 Lavaca County's history
1846
Created in 1846. Wikipedia
1920
The county's largest recorded population was the 1920 Census count of 28,964. The 2020 Census counted 20,337, 70% of the peak. Census Bureau
1967
A tornado in September 1967 did $2.5 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
1997
A flash flood in April 1997 did $1 million in property damage and killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
1997
Lightning in July 1997 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
1998
A flash flood in October 1998 did $3 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1967
19 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Lavaca County, 3 of them for flooding. FEMA
Lavaca County beside its neighbors
All six counties that border Lavaca County score higher than it does. For the share of income from benefit checks, Lavaca County ranks 3rd of the seven; Colorado County is highest, at 27.0%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Victoria County, TX | 82 | 14.3% | 24.0% |
| DeWitt County, TX | 73 | 18.5% | 21.8% |
| Jackson County, TX | 65 | 14.3% | 26.6% |
| Gonzales County, TX | 61 | 18.0% | 21.2% |
| Colorado County, TX | 50 | 13.4% | 27.0% |
| Fayette County, TX | 32 | 10.2% | 23.0% |
| Lavaca County, TX | 19 | 12.4% | 25.6% |
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 Lavaca County the poorest county in Texas?
No, Lavaca County's poverty rate was 12.4% in 2024, 182nd 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, Lavaca County ranks 249th of 254 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Lavaca 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 Lavaca 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 Lavaca County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.