About two in five people with a credit file in Uvalde County, Texas, have unpaid debt sent to a collector
In Uvalde County, 39.2% of people with a credit file had unpaid debt sent to a collector. That is higher than in 92% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 86% of U.S. counties.
What drives Uvalde County's score
In Uvalde County, late payments on loans weigh most: the score for late payments on loans is 92.4. People with a car or retail loan behind: 14.8%, August 2025, higher than in 99% of U.S. counties. Income and the safety net comes next, at 85.5.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Uvalde 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.
Uvalde County does better than most counties on two measures: bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people (56.1, 2025) and renters paying half their income or more in rent (10.4%, 2020 to 2024).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 92.4 of 100
Late payments
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind8.5% · August 202587th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind14.8% · August 202599th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score55.7% · second quarter of 202690th percentile
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- 85.6 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line19.5% · 202485th percentile
- Children below the poverty line28.8% · 202490th percentile
- People with a disability18.6% · 2020 to 202471st percentile
- People without health insurance18.7% · 2020 to 202495th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$53,955 · 202484th percentile
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- 78.2 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year4.7% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202671st percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working27.9% · 2020 to 202484th percentile
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- 52.6 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector39.2% · August 202593rd percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people56.1 · 202512th percentile
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- 51.5 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 rent10.4% · 2020 to 202413th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income26.7% · fiscal year 202789th 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 Uvalde 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 Uvalde County, 16.5% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Uvalde County
Texas
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
Benefit checks' share of income in Uvalde County fell most sharply after its 2009 high, from 31.2% in 2009 to 24.8% in 2014.
In Uvalde County, benefit checks' share of income has tripled since 1969, reaching 30.5% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in nearly twice as much as benefit checks
In Uvalde County, Texas, benefit checks' share of income tripled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 30.5%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Uvalde County getting SNAP food aid had its largest rise, from 21.4% in 2021 to 26.9% in 2022.
The share of households in Uvalde County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2022 and has since fallen to 24.2%
Low on the chart: 17.4% in 2015. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Uvalde County, Texas.
How Uvalde County has changed
Uvalde County's population had its largest rise, from 19,418 in 1974 to 21,989 in 1979.
Uvalde County's population rose 40% from 1969 to 2024
High on the chart: 26,223 in 2009. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Uvalde County, Texas.
The jobs count covers work located in the county; the population count covers residents.
The number of jobs located in Uvalde County rose by about a fifth from 1990 to 2025, reaching 9,739, with most of the change between 1995 and 2000
High on the chart: 9,935 in 2015. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Uvalde County, Texas.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 12.5% | 2025 4.3% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 35.2% | 2024 19.5% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $17,389 | 2024 $53,955 |
The table uses 4.3% for 2025; the score uses 4.7% 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 Uvalde County's history
1850
1850 (created) 1856 (organized). Wikipedia
1998
A flash flood in October 1998 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2006
A thunderstorm in March 2006 did $2 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2006
A tornado in March 2006 did $1.5 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2010
The county's largest recorded population was the 2010 Census count of 26,405. The 2020 Census counted 24,564, 93% of the peak. Census Bureau
2018
A flood in October 2018 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1990
20 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Uvalde County, 7 of them for flooding. FEMA
Uvalde County beside its neighbors
Of the six counties that border Uvalde County, one scores higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Uvalde County ranks 5th of the seven; Real County is highest, at 43.9%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Zavala County, TX | 94 | 25.7% | 39.7% |
| Uvalde County, TX | 86 | 19.5% | 30.5% |
| Real County, TX | 68 | 15.1% | 43.9% |
| Medina County, TX | 54 | 11.2% | 25.1% |
| Edwards County, TX | 53 | 19.2% | 32.9% |
| Kinney County, TX | 53 | 20.7% | 35.5% |
| Bandera County, TX | 49 | 11.0% | 27.7% |
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 Uvalde County the poorest county in Texas?
No, Uvalde County's poverty rate was 19.5% in 2024, 42nd 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, Uvalde County ranks 32nd of 254 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Uvalde 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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Texas RioGrande 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 Uvalde 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 Uvalde County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.