In Real County, Texas, benefit checks have brought in more money than paychecks since 2006
In 2024, 44 cents of every dollar of income here came from benefit checks, including Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid and veterans' benefits. That was a larger share than across the country.
More distressed than 68% of U.S. counties.
What drives Real County's score
In Real County, income and the safety net weighs most: the score for income and the safety net is 84.0. About one in three people (35.0%, 2020 to 2024) has a disability, a higher share than in 95% of U.S. counties. Late payments on loans come next, at 69.6.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Real 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.
Real County does better than most counties on two measures: bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people (35, 2025) and adults 25 to 54 not working (15.9%, 2020 to 2024).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 84.0 of 100
Income and safety net
Biggest factorPoverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line15.1% · 202465th percentile
- Children below the poverty line28.7% · 202489th percentile
- People with a disability35.0% · 2020 to 2024top 5%
- People without health insurance16.2% · 2020 to 202491st percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$57,066 · 202477th percentile
-
- 69.6 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind6.9% · August 202572nd 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 score43.8% · second quarter of 202662nd percentile
-
- 60.1 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 rent17.8% · 2020 to 202447th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income23.1% · fiscal year 202772nd percentile
-
- 48.1 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year4.8% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202675th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working15.9% · 2020 to 202420th percentile
-
- 42.5 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector32.2% · August 202580th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people35 · 20255th or lower 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 Real 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 Real County, 37.9% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Real County
Texas
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
Benefit checks' share of income in Real County had its largest rise, from 34.8% in 2004 to 43.1% in 2009.
In Real County, benefit checks brought in more than pay from work in 2024, a bigger share of income than across Texas
In Real County, Texas, benefit checks' share of income more than doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 43.9%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Real County getting SNAP food aid rose most sharply after its 2018 low, from 6.8% in 2018 to 11.2% in 2019.
The share of households in Real County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2023 and has since fallen by about a fifth
Low on the chart: 6.8% in 2018. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Real County, Texas.
How Real County has changed
Real County's population had its largest rise, from 2,564 in 1994 to 2,981 in 1999.
Real County's population was at its highest on the chart in 2009 and is down 15% since
High on the chart: 3,274 in 2009. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Real County, Texas.
The jobs count covers work located in the county; the population count covers residents.
The number of jobs located in Real County doubled to 840, the highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 1990 to 1995, reaching 602. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Real County, Texas.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 7.1% | 2025 4.3% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 29.7% | 2024 15.1% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $13,534 | 2024 $57,066 |
The table uses 4.3% for 2025; the score uses 4.8% 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 Real County's history
1910
Crop farming declines, livestock ranching gains prominence with angora goats. Wikipedia
1997
A flash flood in June 1997 did $1 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
1998
A flash flood in August 1998 killed four people. NOAA Storm Events Database
2010
The county's largest recorded population was the 2010 Census count of 3,309. The 2020 Census counted 2,758, 83% of the peak. Census Bureau
-
Since 1993
19 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Real County, 7 of them for flooding. FEMA
Real County beside its neighbors
Of the four counties that border Real County, one scores higher. Of the group, Real County gets the largest share of its income from benefit checks (43.9%).
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Uvalde County, TX | 86 | 19.5% | 30.5% |
| Real County, TX | 68 | 15.1% | 43.9% |
| Edwards County, TX | 53 | 19.2% | 32.9% |
| Bandera County, TX | 49 | 11.0% | 27.7% |
| Kerr County, TX | 40 | 11.2% | 23.6% |
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 Real County the poorest county in Texas?
No, Real County's poverty rate was 15.1% in 2024, 112th 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, Real County ranks 113th of 254 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Real 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.
-
Texas RioGrande 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.
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 Real County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.