About one in three people with a credit file in Tom Green County, Texas, has unpaid debt sent to a collector
In Tom Green County, 33.5% of people with a credit file had unpaid debt sent to a collector. That is higher than in 83% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 66% of U.S. counties.
What drives Tom Green County's score
In Tom Green County, late payments on loans weigh most: the score for late payments on loans is 77.2. People with a credit card behind: 7.7%, August 2025, higher than in 81% of U.S. counties. Housing costs come next, at 70.0.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Tom Green 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.
Tom Green County does better than most counties on two measures: unemployment rate, average over the latest year (3.5%, Oct 2025 to Sep 2026) and people below the poverty line (11.5%, 2024).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 77.2 of 100
Late payments
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind7.7% · August 202581st percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind7.1% · August 202574th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score48.2% · second quarter of 202675th percentile
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- 70.0 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 rent20.7% · 2020 to 202465th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income23.4% · fiscal year 202774th percentile
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- 65.4 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector33.5% · August 202583rd percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people121.8 · 202547th percentile
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- 50.8 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 line15.2% · 202439th percentile
- People with a disability15.5% · 2020 to 202445th percentile
- People without health insurance15.5% · 2020 to 202490th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$69,148 · 202442nd percentile
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- 34.9 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year3.5% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202628th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working19.3% · 2020 to 202441st 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 Tom Green 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 Tom Green County, 17.0% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Tom Green County
Texas
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
Benefit checks' share of income in Tom Green County rose most in two steps: 10.2% in 1984 to 12.9% in 1989; 17.0% in 2004 to 19.7% in 2009.
In Tom Green County, benefit checks' share of income has more than doubled since 1969, reaching 20.5% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in about three times as much as benefit checks
In Tom Green County, Texas, benefit checks' share of income more than doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 20.5%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Tom Green County getting SNAP food aid moved most in two steps: 10.6% in 2011 to 12.6% in 2012; 11.5% in 2016 to 9.5% in 2017.
The share of households in Tom Green County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2013 and has since fallen by about a quarter
Low on the chart: 8.7% in 2021. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Tom Green County, Texas.
How Tom Green County has changed
Tom Green County's population had its largest rise, from 82,913 in 1979 to 96,152 in 1984.
Tom Green County's population nearly doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 120,103, with no dip in any year shown
Smallest rise: 2019 to 2024, reaching 120,103. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Tom Green County, Texas.
The jobs count covers work located in the county; the population count covers residents.
The number of jobs located in Tom Green County rose by about a third to 49,935, the highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 1990 to 1995, reaching 41,436. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Tom Green County, Texas.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 6.0% | 2025 3.3% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 16.0% | 2024 11.5% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $24,043 | 2024 $69,148 |
The table uses 3.3% for 2025; the score uses 3.5% 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 Tom Green County's history
1882
Ben Ficklin destroyed by Concho River flood, 65 people drowned, county seat moved, 1882. Wikipedia
1953
A tornado in May 1953 did $2.5 million in property damage and killed 13 people. NOAA Storm Events Database
1993
Hail in May 1993 did $50 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
1995
A thunderstorm in May 1995 did $60 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
1995
Hail in May 1995 did $25 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2020
The county's largest recorded population was the 2020 Census count of 120,003, which is also its most recent census. Census Bureau
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Since 1990
20 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Tom Green County, 4 of them for flooding. FEMA
Tom Green County beside its neighbors
Of the seven counties that border Tom Green County, one scores higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Tom Green County ranks 5th of the eight; Concho County is highest, at 34.6%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Schleicher County, TX | 67 | 15.4% | 27.1% |
| Tom Green County, TX | 66 | 11.5% | 20.5% |
| Runnels County, TX | 55 | 17.8% | 32.5% |
| Concho County, TX | 54 | 22.0% | 34.6% |
| Coke County, TX | 50 | 15.0% | 33.1% |
| Sterling County, TX | 49 | 10.8% | 16.4% |
| Reagan County, TX | 47 | 10.1% | 15.0% |
| Irion County, TX | 27 | 8.9% | 15.2% |
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 Tom Green County the poorest county in Texas?
No, Tom Green 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, Tom Green County ranks 127th of 254 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Tom Green 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 Tom Green 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 Tom Green County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.