About one in three people with a credit file in Tarrant County, Texas, has unpaid debt sent to a collector
In Tarrant 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 71% of U.S. counties.
What drives Tarrant County's score
In Tarrant County, housing costs weigh most: the score for housing costs is 83.9. About one in four renters (24.9%, 2020 to 2024) pays half their income or more in rent, a higher share than in 86% of U.S. counties. Collections and bankruptcy comes next, at 76.9.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Tarrant 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.
Tarrant County does better than most counties on two measures: people with a disability (10.5%, 2020 to 2024) and median household income ($85,208, 2024).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 83.9 of 100
Housing costs
Biggest factorRenters, 2020–24 Census survey; HUD's fair market rents, fiscal year 2027
- Renters paying half their income or more in rent24.9% · 2020 to 202486th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income24.6% · fiscal year 202781st percentile
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- 76.9 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 people178.4 · 202569th percentile
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- 69.7 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind6.9% · August 202571st percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind7.2% · August 202576th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score43.5% · second quarter of 202661st percentile
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- 44.1 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year4.1% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202655th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working17.9% · 2020 to 202432nd percentile
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- 37.3 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line11.5% · 202435th percentile
- Children below the poverty line15.0% · 202438th percentile
- People with a disability10.5% · 2020 to 20245th percentile
- People without health insurance16.7% · 2020 to 202492nd percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$85,208 · 202414th 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 Tarrant 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 Tarrant County, 12.3% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Tarrant County
Texas
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Tarrant County, benefit checks' share of income has more than doubled since 1969, reaching 13.4% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in about five times as much as benefit checks
In Tarrant County, Texas, benefit checks' share of income more than doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 13.4%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Tarrant County getting SNAP food aid had its largest rise, from 8.6% in 2011 to 9.9% in 2012.
The share of households in Tarrant County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2016 and has since fallen by about a fifth
Low on the chart: 7.2% in 2009. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Tarrant County, Texas.
How Tarrant County has changed
Tarrant County's population had its largest rise, from 1,580,595 in 2004 to 1,784,078 in 2009.
Tarrant County's population tripled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 2,230,708, with no dip in any year shown
Smallest rise: 1969 to 1974, reaching 746,197. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Tarrant County, Texas.
The number of jobs located in Tarrant County had its largest rise in the last span, from 887,573 in 2020 to 1,017,941 in 2025.
The number of jobs located in Tarrant County doubled from 1990 to 2025, reaching 1,017,941, with no dip in any year shown
Smallest rise: 2000 to 2005, reaching 714,342. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Tarrant County, Texas.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 5.3% | 2025 3.9% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 10.0% | 2024 11.5% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $32,247 | 2024 $85,208 |
The table uses 3.9% for 2025; the score uses 4.1% 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 Tarrant County's history
1873
Economic disaster and hard winter decimated Fort Worth population, 1873. Wikipedia
1995
Hail in April 1995 did $220 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2012
A tornado in April 2012 did $200 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2016
Hail in March 2016 did $200 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2016
Hail in March 2016 did $150 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2020
The county's largest recorded population was the 2020 Census count of 2,110,640, which is also its most recent census. Census Bureau
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Since 1966
27 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Tarrant County, 8 of them for flooding. FEMA
Tarrant County beside its neighbors
Of the six counties that border Tarrant County, one scores higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Tarrant County ranks 5th of the seven; Johnson County is highest, at 20.0%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dallas County, TX | 79 | 12.5% | 11.1% |
| Tarrant County, TX | 71 | 11.5% | 13.4% |
| Johnson County, TX | 66 | 7.9% | 20.0% |
| Ellis County, TX | 59 | 7.5% | 16.8% |
| Parker County, TX | 42 | 8.0% | 14.1% |
| Wise County, TX | 38 | 8.1% | 18.6% |
| Denton County, TX | 31 | 6.2% | 9.5% |
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 Tarrant County the poorest county in Texas?
No, Tarrant County's poverty rate was 11.5% in 2024, 194th 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, Tarrant County ranks 103rd of 254 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Tarrant 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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Credit.org - Arlington, TX Branch
HUD-approved housing counselor
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Housing Channel
HUD-approved housing counselor
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Housing Opportunities of Fort Worth
HUD-approved housing counselor
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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 Tarrant 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 Tarrant County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.