About two in five people with a credit file in Limestone County, Texas, have unpaid debt sent to a collector
In Limestone County, 36.8% of people with a credit file had unpaid debt sent to a collector. That is higher than in 89% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 80% of U.S. counties.
What drives Limestone County's score
In Limestone County, late payments on loans weigh most: the score for late payments on loans is 77.4. About one in two people (53.9%, Q2 2026) has a subprime credit score, a higher share than in 87% of U.S. counties. Income and the safety net comes next, at 75.0.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Limestone 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.
Limestone County does better than most counties on two measures: bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people (94.4, 2025) and rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income (20.5%, fiscal year 2027).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 77.4 of 100
Late payments
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind6.8% · August 202569th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind7.0% · August 202574th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score53.9% · second quarter of 202687th percentile
-
- 75.0 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line14.8% · 202463rd percentile
- Children below the poverty line22.2% · 202473rd percentile
- People with a disability18.7% · 2020 to 202472nd percentile
- People without health insurance17.7% · 2020 to 202494th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$59,502 · 202472nd percentile
-
- 68.0 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 202664th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working24.5% · 2020 to 202471st percentile
-
- 61.4 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector36.8% · August 202589th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people94.4 · 202533rd percentile
-
- 58.2 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 rent21.3% · 2020 to 202468th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income20.5% · fiscal year 202747th percentile
-
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 Limestone 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 Limestone County, 20.9% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Limestone County
Texas
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
Benefit checks' share of income in Limestone County had its largest rise, from 27.9% in 2004 to 32.7% in 2009.
In Limestone County, benefit checks' share of income has nearly doubled since 1969, reaching 32.4% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in about one and a half times as much as benefit checks
In Limestone County, Texas, benefit checks' share of income nearly doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 32.4%; 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 Limestone County getting SNAP food aid more than doubled to 16.6%, the highest on the chart
Biggest drop: 2018 to 2019, reaching 14.2%. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Limestone County, Texas.
How Limestone County has changed
Limestone County's population had its largest rise, from 19,967 in 1979 to 21,535 in 1984.
Limestone County's population rose 18% from 1969 to 2024
High on the chart: 23,173 in 2009. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Limestone County, Texas.
The jobs count covers work located in the county; the population count covers residents.
The number of jobs located in Limestone County rose by about a quarter from 1990 to 2025, reaching 8,650, with most of the change between 2005 and 2010
High on the chart: 8,825 in 2010. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Limestone County, Texas.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 4.4% | 2025 4.4% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 20.7% | 2024 14.8% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $18,025 | 2024 $59,502 |
Figures are as each agency published them, not adjusted for prices.
Dated events in Limestone County's history
1846
On April 11, 1846, Limestone County was formed from Robertson County. Wikipedia
1920
Oil and gas discovered between 1913-1920 in Mexia. Wikipedia
1930
The county's largest recorded population was the 1930 Census count of 39,497. The 2020 Census counted 22,146, 56% of the peak. Census Bureau
1990
A tornado in April 1990 did $25 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
1990
A tornado in April 1990 did $2.5 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2006
A tornado in December 2006 did $1 million in property damage and killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2009
A flash flood in April 2009 did $1 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
-
Since 1973
21 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Limestone County, 6 of them for flooding. FEMA
Limestone County beside its neighbors
Limestone County scores higher than all seven counties that border it. Of the group, Limestone County gets the largest share of its income from benefit checks (32.4%).
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Limestone County, TX | 80 | 14.8% | 32.4% |
| Hill County, TX | 79 | 15.7% | 28.5% |
| Robertson County, TX | 78 | 15.7% | 26.4% |
| McLennan County, TX | 73 | 16.2% | 21.9% |
| Navarro County, TX | 73 | 14.5% | 28.6% |
| Falls County, TX | 66 | 18.7% | 31.5% |
| 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 Limestone County the poorest county in Texas?
No, Limestone County's poverty rate was 14.8% in 2024, 123rd 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, Limestone County ranks 62nd of 254 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Limestone 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.
-
Lone Star Legal Aid
Legal aid
-
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 Limestone 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 Limestone County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.