About one in seven people with a credit file in Mason County, Texas, has unpaid debt sent to a collector
In Mason County, 14.2% of people with a credit file had unpaid debt sent to a collector. That is lower than in 84% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 74% of U.S. counties.
What drives Mason County's score
In Mason County, income and the safety net is the highest-scoring part, at 61.9. Housing costs are the lowest part, at 14.4. About one in 59 renters (1.7%, 2020 to 2024) pays half their income or more in rent, a lower share than in 95% of U.S. counties.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Mason 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, Mason County is worse off than most counties on people with a disability (24.9%, 2020 to 2024) and people without health insurance (13.5%, 2020 to 2024).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 61.9 of 100
Income and safety net
Biggest factorPoverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line11.2% · 202432nd percentile
- Children below the poverty line18.7% · 202458th percentile
- People with a disability24.9% · 2020 to 2024top 5%
- People without health insurance13.5% · 2020 to 202484th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$71,056 · 202438th percentile
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- 44.4 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year3.8% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202640th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working20.5% · 2020 to 202448th percentile
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- 33.2 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind2.5% · August 20256th 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 score31.9% · second quarter of 202619th percentile
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- 26.3 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector14.2% · August 202515th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people101.8 · 202537th percentile
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- 14.5 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 rent1.7% · 2020 to 20245th or lower percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income18.2% · fiscal year 202723rd 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 Mason 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 Mason County, 35.2% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Mason County
Texas
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
Benefit checks' share of income in Mason County fell most sharply after its 2009 high, from 28.8% in 2009 to 20.9% in 2014.
In Mason County, benefit checks' share of income has doubled since 1969, but pay from work still brings in 37% more than benefit checks in 2024
In Mason County, Texas, benefit checks' share of income doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 28.4%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Mason County getting SNAP food aid moved most in two steps: 7.9% in 2009 to 10.9% in 2010; 11.9% in 2013 to 8.9% in 2014.
The share of households in Mason County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2013 and has since fallen to 4.7%
Biggest drop: 2013 to 2014, reaching 8.9%. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Mason County, Texas.
How Mason County has changed
Mason County's population had its largest rise, from 3,478 in 1979 to 3,677 in 1984.
Mason County's population rose 12% from 1969 to 2024, reaching its highest on the chart
High on the chart: 3,987 in 2024. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Mason County, Texas.
The jobs count covers work located in the county; the population count covers residents.
The number of jobs located in Mason County rose 39% from 1990 to 2025, reaching its highest on the chart, with most of the change between 2000 and 2005
Biggest rise: 2000 to 2005, reaching 1,070. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Mason County, Texas.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 2.7% | 2025 3.6% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 21.8% | 2024 11.2% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $17,297 | 2024 $71,056 |
The table uses 3.6% for 2025; the score uses 3.8% 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 Mason County's history
1910
The county's largest recorded population was the 1910 Census count of 5,683. The 2020 Census counted 3,953, 70% of the peak. Census Bureau
1979
A tornado in March 1979 did $2.5 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
1999
A tornado in May 1999 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2000
A flash flood in November 2000 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2018
A flood in October 2018 did $8.5 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2021
Mason County Courthouse burned down 2021 as result of arson. Wikipedia
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Since 1989
20 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Mason County, 7 of them for flooding. FEMA
Mason County beside its neighbors
Of the six counties that border Mason County, five score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Mason County ranks 5th of the seven; McCulloch County is highest, at 38.8%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| McCulloch County, TX | 80 | 18.2% | 38.8% |
| Menard County, TX | 56 | 20.0% | 38.6% |
| San Saba County, TX | 47 | 15.0% | 34.3% |
| Kimble County, TX | 45 | 15.4% | 31.3% |
| Llano County, TX | 32 | 11.8% | 27.1% |
| Mason County, TX | 25 | 11.2% | 28.4% |
| Gillespie County, TX | 18 | 8.2% | 18.5% |
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 Mason County the poorest county in Texas?
No, Mason County's poverty rate was 11.2% in 2024, 199th 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, Mason County ranks 242nd of 254 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Mason 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.
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 Mason County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.