About one in 10 people in Oldham County, Texas, has a disability
In Oldham County, 9.9% of people reported a disability. That is lower than in 96% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 52% of U.S. counties.
What drives Oldham County's score
In Oldham County, late payments on loans are the highest-scoring part, at 59.9. Housing costs are the lowest part, at 31.2. Rent on a two-bedroom takes 16.5% of the typical household's income (fiscal year 2027), lower than in 89% of U.S. counties.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Oldham 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, Oldham County is worse off than most counties on people without health insurance (18.9%, 2020 to 2024) and adults 25 to 54 not working (31.5%, 2020 to 2024).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 59.9 of 100
Late payments
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behindnot published for this county; scored at the state median · August 202573rd 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 score35.9% · second quarter of 202632nd percentile
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- 58.3 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year3.4% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202624th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working31.5% · 2020 to 202491st percentile
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- 50.9 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line12.7% · 202446th percentile
- Children below the poverty line25.6% · 202483rd percentile
- People with a disability9.9% · 2020 to 20245th or lower percentile
- People without health insurance18.9% · 2020 to 2024top 5%
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$77,346 · 202424th percentile
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- 43.5 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector21.7% · August 202544th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people112.2 · 202542nd percentile
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- 31.2 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 rent18.5% · 2020 to 202452nd percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income16.5% · fiscal year 202710th 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 Oldham 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 Oldham County, 11.7% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Oldham County
Texas
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
Benefit checks' share of income in Oldham County had its largest rise, from 6.0% in 1969 to 10.2% in 1974.
In Oldham County, benefit checks' share of income has more than doubled since 1969, reaching 14.0% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in about five times as much as benefit checks
In Oldham County, Texas, benefit checks' share of income more than doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 14.0%; 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 Oldham County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2018 and has since fallen to 1.3%
Biggest drop: 2010 to 2011, reaching 1.7%. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Oldham County, Texas.
How Oldham County has changed
Oldham County's population had its largest rise, from 2,208 in 1969 to 2,482 in 1974.
Oldham County's population was at its highest on the chart in 1974 and has since fallen by about a quarter
High on the chart: 2,482 in 1974. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Oldham County, Texas.
The number of jobs located in Oldham County had its largest rise, from 744 in 2010 to 1,135 in 2015.
The number of jobs located in Oldham County was at its highest on the chart in 2015 and has since fallen by about a fifth
High on the chart: 1,135 in 2015. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Oldham County, Texas.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 4.9% | 2025 3.3% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 9.4% | 2024 12.7% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $30,935 | 2024 $77,346 |
The table uses 3.3% for 2025; the score uses 3.4% 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 Oldham County's history
1876
Formed in 1876, organized in 1881. Wikipedia
1931
Two fires destroyed buildings in Vega: May 3, 1931 destroyed six buildings west of courthouse square, second fire burned two buildings north of square. Wikipedia
1980
The county's largest recorded population was the 1980 Census count of 2,283. The 2020 Census counted 1,758, 77% of the peak. Census Bureau
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Since 1998
13 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Oldham County. FEMA
Oldham County beside its neighbors
Of the five counties that border Oldham County, in Texas and New Mexico, four score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Oldham County ranks 4th of the six; Quay County is highest, at 45.7%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Potter County, TX | 86 | 22.5% | 23.0% |
| Deaf Smith County, TX | 70 | 16.8% | 15.5% |
| Quay County, NM | 67 | 20.6% | 45.7% |
| Moore County, TX | 49 | 13.7% | 13.6% |
| Oldham County, TX | 47 | 12.7% | 14.0% |
| Hartley County, TX | 22 | 9.2% | 3.8% |
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 Oldham County the poorest county in Texas?
No, Oldham County's poverty rate was 12.7% in 2024, 175th 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, Oldham County ranks 188th of 254 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Oldham 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 Oldham 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 Oldham County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.