About one in three adults aged 25 to 54 in San Augustine County, Texas, is not working
In San Augustine County, 33.3% of adults aged 25 to 54 were not working. That is higher than in 94% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 92% of U.S. counties.
What drives San Augustine County's score
In San Augustine County, income and the safety net weighs most: the score for income and the safety net is 91.5. About one in five people (19.4%, 2020 to 2024) has no health insurance, a higher share than in 95% of U.S. counties. Jobs come next, at 91.5.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in San Augustine 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.
San Augustine County does better than most counties on one measure: renters paying half their income or more in rent (16.1%, 2020 to 2024).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 91.5 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line20.4% · 202488th percentile
- Children below the poverty line31.6% · 202493rd percentile
- People with a disability22.4% · 2020 to 202489th percentile
- People without health insurance19.4% · 2020 to 2024top 5%
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$50,976 · 202490th percentile
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- 91.5 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year5.4% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202688th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working33.3% · 2020 to 202494th percentile
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- 76.9 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind7.0% · August 202574th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind6.3% · August 202565th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score55.9% · second quarter of 202690th percentile
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- 69.4 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector31.4% · August 202577th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people153.2 · 202560th percentile
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- 57.5 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 rent16.1% · 2020 to 202437th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income23.9% · fiscal year 202777th 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 San Augustine 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 San Augustine County, 26.8% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
San Augustine County
Texas
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
Benefit checks' share of income in San Augustine County had its largest rise, from 37.6% in 2004 to 44.6% in 2009.
In San Augustine County, benefit checks brought in more than pay in one of the bars shown, but pay leads in 2024
In San Augustine County, Texas, benefit checks' share of income more than doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 39.7%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in San Augustine County getting SNAP food aid had its largest rise, from 15.9% in 2019 to 19.3% in 2020.
The share of households in San Augustine County getting SNAP food aid fell to its lowest on the chart in 2010, then climbed past the 2009 level
Low on the chart: 12.7% 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, San Augustine County, Texas.
How San Augustine County has changed
San Augustine County's population had its largest drop, from 8,938 in 2009 to 8,344 in 2014.
San Augustine County's population was at its highest on the chart in 2004 and is down 15% since
High on the chart: 9,085 in 2004. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, San Augustine County, Texas.
The jobs count covers work located in the county; the population count covers residents.
The number of jobs located in San Augustine County rose by about a quarter to 1,979, the highest on the chart, with most of the change between 1990 and 1995
Biggest rise: 1990 to 1995, reaching 1,774. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, San Augustine County, Texas.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 5.0% | 2025 5.6% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 26.0% | 2024 20.4% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $15,474 | 2024 $50,976 |
The table uses 5.6% for 2025; the score uses 5.4% 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 San Augustine County's history
1837
San Augustine County formed in 1837. Wikipedia
1920
The county's largest recorded population was the 1920 Census count of 13,737. The 2020 Census counted 7,918, 58% of the peak. Census Bureau
1929
Lumber industry largely left during the Great Depression. Wikipedia
1998
A thunderstorm in February 1998 did $15 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2008
A flash flood in March 2008 did $3 million in property damage and killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2008
A flash flood in March 2008 did $5 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2019
A tornado in April 2019 did $5 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1989
26 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered San Augustine County, 5 of them for flooding. FEMA
San Augustine County beside its neighbors
San Augustine County scores higher than all five counties that border it. For the share of income from benefit checks, San Augustine County ranks 2nd of the six; Sabine County is highest, at 47.7%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| San Augustine County, TX | 92 | 20.4% | 39.7% |
| Nacogdoches County, TX | 90 | 21.9% | 26.7% |
| Angelina County, TX | 83 | 12.7% | 29.1% |
| Shelby County, TX | 83 | 16.2% | 23.9% |
| Jasper County, TX | 79 | 15.9% | 34.0% |
| Sabine County, TX | 67 | 15.9% | 47.7% |
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 San Augustine County the poorest county in Texas?
No, San Augustine County's poverty rate was 20.4% in 2024, 34th 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, San Augustine County ranks 10th of 254 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in San Augustine 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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Lone Star 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.
Download the CSV for San Augustine 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 San Augustine County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.