Unemployment in Val Verde County, Texas, is higher than in 88% of U.S. counties
In Val Verde County, 5.6% of the labor force was out of work, on average. That is higher than in 88% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 74% of U.S. counties.
What drives Val Verde County's score
In Val Verde County, late payments on loans weigh most: the score for late payments on loans is 77.0. About half of people (51.1%, Q2 2026) have a subprime credit score, a higher share than in 82% of U.S. counties. Income and the safety net comes next, at 72.0.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Val Verde 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.
Val Verde County does better than most counties on two measures: bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people (48.2, 2025) and adults 25 to 54 not working (18.4%, 2020 to 2024).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 77.0 of 100
Late payments
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind7.3% · August 202577th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind6.9% · August 202571st percentile
- People with a subprime credit score51.1% · second quarter of 202682nd percentile
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- 72.0 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line18.1% · 202480th percentile
- Children below the poverty line21.5% · 202470th percentile
- People with a disability16.0% · 2020 to 202450th percentile
- People without health insurance17.5% · 2020 to 202493rd percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$61,751 · 202465th percentile
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- 64.9 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 rent21.4% · 2020 to 202469th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income21.8% · fiscal year 202760th percentile
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- 62.4 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year5.6% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202689th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working18.4% · 2020 to 202435th percentile
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- 48.0 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector35.6% · August 202587th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people48.2 · 20258th 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 Val Verde 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 Val Verde County, 13.9% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Val Verde County
Texas
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Val Verde County, benefit checks' share of income has grown to about five times its 1969 level, reaching 26.7% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in twice as much as benefit checks
In Val Verde County, Texas, benefit checks' share of income grew to about five times its 1969 level by 2024, reaching 26.7%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Val Verde County getting SNAP food aid had its largest rise, from 19.7% in 2014 to 21.6% in 2015.
The share of households in Val Verde County getting SNAP food aid fell to its lowest on the chart in 2010, then climbed past the 2009 level
Low on the chart: 17.2% 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, Val Verde County, Texas.
How Val Verde County has changed
Val Verde County's population had its largest rise, from 26,801 in 1969 to 31,318 in 1974.
Val Verde County's population nearly doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 47,999
High on the chart: 48,463 in 2009. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Val Verde County, Texas.
The number of jobs located in Val Verde County had its largest rise, from 13,925 in 2000 to 16,561 in 2005.
The number of jobs located in Val Verde County doubled from 1990 to 2025, reaching 18,355, with no dip in any year shown
Smallest rise: 2010 to 2015, reaching 17,038. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Val Verde County, Texas.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 13.1% | 2025 5.2% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 34.8% | 2024 18.1% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $18,235 | 2024 $61,751 |
The table uses 5.2% for 2025; the score uses 5.6% 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 Val Verde County's history
1982
A tornado in May 1982 did $2.5 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
1995
Hail in May 1995 did $6.6 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
1998
A flash flood in August 1998 did $40 million in property damage and killed nine people. NOAA Storm Events Database
2010
The county's largest recorded population was the 2010 Census count of 48,879. The 2020 Census counted 47,586, 97% of the peak. Census Bureau
2020
Hail in April 2020 did $10 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1993
16 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Val Verde County, 2 of them for flooding. FEMA
Val Verde County beside its neighbors
Val Verde County scores higher than all five counties that border it. For the share of income from benefit checks, Val Verde County ranks 4th of the six; Kinney County is highest, at 35.5%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Val Verde County, TX | 74 | 18.1% | 26.7% |
| Terrell County, TX | 67 | 18.7% | 26.9% |
| Sutton County, TX | 54 | 12.3% | 24.2% |
| Edwards County, TX | 53 | 19.2% | 32.9% |
| Kinney County, TX | 53 | 20.7% | 35.5% |
| Crockett County, TX | 33 | 14.7% | 23.8% |
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 Val Verde County the poorest county in Texas?
No, Val Verde County's poverty rate was 18.1% in 2024, 58th 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, Val Verde County ranks 89th of 254 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Val Verde 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 Val Verde 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 Val Verde County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.