In Lipscomb County, Texas, benefit checks make up only 9 cents of every dollar of income
In Lipscomb County, 9.1% of all the income people there received came from benefit checks. That is lower than in 98% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 79% of U.S. counties.
What drives Lipscomb County's score
In Lipscomb County, jobs are the highest-scoring part, at 50.0. Housing costs are the lowest part, at 5.0. Rent on a two-bedroom takes 15.3% of the typical household's income (fiscal year 2027), lower than in 95% of U.S. counties.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Lipscomb 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.
Even so, Lipscomb County is worse off than most counties on people without health insurance (18.1%, 2020 to 2024) and adults 25 to 54 not working (26.3%, 2020 to 2024).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 50.0 of 100
Jobs
Biggest factorUnemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year3.2% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202620th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working26.3% · 2020 to 202478th percentile
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- 49.4 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line13.4% · 202451st percentile
- Children below the poverty line19.9% · 202464th percentile
- People with a disability12.1% · 2020 to 202415th percentile
- People without health insurance18.1% · 2020 to 202494th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$79,554 · 202421st percentile
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- 44.2 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind2.0% · August 20255th or lower 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 score41.3% · second quarter of 202653rd percentile
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- 15.8 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector17.0% · August 202526th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people34.4 · 20255th or lower percentile
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- 5.0 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 rent6.1% · 2020 to 20245th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income15.3% · fiscal year 20275th 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 Lipscomb 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 Lipscomb County, 18.6% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Lipscomb County
Texas
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
Benefit checks' share of income in Lipscomb County rose most sharply after its 1984 low, from 6.6% in 1984 to 11.3% in 1989.
In Lipscomb County, pay from work still brings in about nine times as much as benefit checks, with little change in benefit checks' share since 1969
In Lipscomb County, Texas, benefit checks' share of income rose by about a third from 1969 to 2024, reaching 9.1%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Lipscomb County getting SNAP food aid rose most sharply after its 2010 low, from 5.3% in 2010 to 8.5% in 2011.
The share of households in Lipscomb County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2019 and has since fallen to 6.0%
Low on the chart: 5.3% 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, Lipscomb County, Texas.
How Lipscomb County has changed
Lipscomb County's population had its largest drop, from 4,388 in 1984 to 3,222 in 1989.
Lipscomb County's population was at its highest on the chart in 1984 and has since fallen by about a third
High on the chart: 4,388 in 1984. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Lipscomb County, Texas.
The number of jobs located in Lipscomb County had its largest rise, from 967 in 2000 to 1,178 in 2005.
The number of jobs located in Lipscomb County was at its highest on the chart in 2015 and is down 9% since
High on the chart: 1,299 in 2015. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Lipscomb County, Texas.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 2.4% | 2025 3.2% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 8.9% | 2024 13.4% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $25,463 | 2024 $79,554 |
Figures are as each agency published them, not adjusted for prices.
Dated events in Lipscomb County's history
1876
The county was created in 1876 and organized in 1887. Wikipedia
1930
The county's largest recorded population was the 1930 Census count of 4,512. The 2020 Census counted 3,059, 68% of the peak. Census Bureau
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Since 1998
11 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Lipscomb County. FEMA
Lipscomb County beside its neighbors
Of the five counties that border Lipscomb County, in Texas and Oklahoma, four score higher. Of the group, Lipscomb County gets the smallest share of its income from benefit checks; Ellis County gets the largest, at 21.8%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ellis County, OK | 55 | 12.8% | 21.8% |
| Roberts County, TX | 33 | 8.6% | 15.8% |
| Hemphill County, TX | 31 | 10.2% | 13.6% |
| Ochiltree County, TX | 29 | 11.4% | 14.1% |
| Lipscomb County, TX | 20 | 13.4% | 9.1% |
| Beaver County, OK | 15 | 12.5% | 15.5% |
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 Lipscomb County the poorest county in Texas?
No, Lipscomb County's poverty rate was 13.4% in 2024, 165th 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, Lipscomb County ranks 248th of 254 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Lipscomb 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.
Download the CSV for Lipscomb 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 Lipscomb County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.