About one in three people with a credit file in Midland County, Texas, has unpaid debt sent to a collector
In Midland County, 34.3% of people with a credit file had unpaid debt sent to a collector. That is higher than in 84% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 53% of U.S. counties.
What drives Midland County's score
In Midland County, late payments on loans weigh most: the score for late payments on loans is 75.7. People with a car or retail loan behind: 8.1%, August 2025, higher than in 83% of U.S. counties. Housing costs come next, at 72.9.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Midland 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.
Midland County does better than most counties on two measures: median household income ($97,719, 2024) and people with a disability (11.1%, 2020 to 2024).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 75.7 of 100
Late payments
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind6.7% · August 202569th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind8.1% · August 202583rd percentile
- People with a subprime credit score47.7% · second quarter of 202673rd percentile
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- 72.9 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 rent24.0% · 2020 to 202482nd percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income22.0% · fiscal year 202763rd percentile
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- 48.0 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector34.3% · August 202584th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people55.3 · 202511th percentile
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- 34.1 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line11.2% · 202432nd percentile
- Children below the poverty line14.3% · 202435th percentile
- People with a disability11.1% · 2020 to 20248th percentile
- People without health insurance14.5% · 2020 to 202487th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$97,719 · 20246th percentile
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- 29.8 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment 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 working19.0% · 2020 to 202439th 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 Midland 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 Midland County, 10.7% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Midland County
Texas
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
Benefit checks' share of income in Midland County had its largest drop, from 8.5% in 2009 to 4.5% in 2014.
In Midland County, benefit checks' share of income has risen by about half since 1969, reaching 5.6% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in more than ten times as much as benefit checks
In Midland County, Texas, benefit checks' share of income rose by about half from 1969 to 2024, reaching 5.6%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Midland County getting SNAP food aid had its largest drop, from 8.5% in 2014 to 7.4% in 2015.
The share of households in Midland County getting SNAP food aid fell by about a quarter from 2009 to 2024, reaching 7.0%, with its low point on the chart in 2020
Low on the chart: 5.7% in 2020. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Midland County, Texas.
How Midland County has changed
Midland County's population tripled to 183,587, the highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 1979 to 1984, reaching 106,493. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Midland County, Texas.
The number of jobs located in Midland County had its largest rise in the last span, from 93,679 in 2020 to 119,775 in 2025.
The number of jobs located in Midland County more than doubled from 1990 to 2025, reaching 119,775, with no dip in any year shown
Smallest rise: 1990 to 1995, reaching 47,796. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Midland County, Texas.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 5.4% | 2025 3.1% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 12.3% | 2024 11.2% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $30,068 | 2024 $97,719 |
The table uses 3.1% for 2025; the score uses 3.2% 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 Midland County's history
1923
Oil discovered in Permian Basin in 1923 with Santa Rita No. 1 well in Reagan County. Wikipedia
1999
Hail in April 1999 did $8 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2009
Hail in April 2009 did $161.2 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2010
A flash flood in May 2010 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2017
Lightning in July 2017 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2020
The county's largest recorded population was the 2020 Census count of 169,983, which is also its most recent census. Census Bureau
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Since 1992
14 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Midland County. FEMA
Midland County beside its neighbors
Of the five counties that border Midland County, one scores higher. Of the group, Midland County gets the smallest share of its income from benefit checks; Ector County gets the largest, at 15.2%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ector County, TX | 78 | 14.8% | 15.2% |
| Midland County, TX | 53 | 11.2% | 5.6% |
| Andrews County, TX | 48 | 10.5% | 14.9% |
| Martin County, TX | 43 | 12.1% | 11.0% |
| Upton County, TX | 34 | 13.4% | 15.1% |
| Glasscock County, TX | 26 | 8.2% | 5.7% |
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 Midland County the poorest county in Texas?
No, Midland 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, Midland County ranks 173rd of 254 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Midland 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 Midland 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 Midland County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.