About one in three people with a credit file in Van Zandt County, Texas, has unpaid debt sent to a collector
In Van Zandt County, 34.9% of people with a credit file had unpaid debt sent to a collector. That is higher than in 85% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 66% of U.S. counties.
What drives Van Zandt County's score
In Van Zandt County, late payments on loans weigh most: the score for late payments on loans is 67.8. People with a car or retail loan behind: 7.2%, August 2025, higher than in 76% of U.S. counties. Jobs come next, at 61.6.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Van Zandt 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.
Van Zandt County does better than most counties on two measures: bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people (100, 2025) and people with a disability (14.7%, 2020 to 2024).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 67.8 of 100
Late payments
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind6.2% · August 202561st percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind7.2% · August 202576th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score44.4% · second quarter of 202665th percentile
-
- 61.6 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year4.2% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202658th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working23.2% · 2020 to 202464th percentile
-
- 61.3 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector34.9% · August 202586th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people100 · 202536th percentile
-
- 55.9 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line13.0% · 202448th percentile
- Children below the poverty line17.4% · 202451st percentile
- People with a disability14.7% · 2020 to 202437th percentile
- People without health insurance18.4% · 2020 to 202494th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$67,538 · 202447th percentile
-
- 52.8 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 rent18.4% · 2020 to 202451st percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income21.0% · fiscal year 202754th percentile
-
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 Van Zandt 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 Van Zandt County, 20.4% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Van Zandt County
Texas
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Van Zandt County, benefit checks' share of income has doubled since 1969, reaching 27.6% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in twice as much as benefit checks
In Van Zandt County, Texas, benefit checks' share of income doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 27.6%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Van Zandt County getting SNAP food aid rose most sharply from its first year (6.3% in 2009) to 8.5% in 2010.
The share of households in Van Zandt County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2014 and has since fallen to 11.0%
Low on the chart: 6.3% 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, Van Zandt County, Texas.
How Van Zandt County has changed
Van Zandt County's population had its largest rise in the last span, from 58,793 in 2019 to 65,304 in 2024.
Van Zandt County's population tripled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 65,304, with no dip in any year shown
Smallest rise: 2004 to 2009, reaching 52,359. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Van Zandt County, Texas.
The jobs count covers work located in the county; the population count covers residents.
The number of jobs located in Van Zandt County doubled to 12,908, the highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 2020 to 2025, reaching 12,908. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Van Zandt County, Texas.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 5.7% | 2025 4.1% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 14.5% | 2024 13.0% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $21,206 | 2024 $67,538 |
The table uses 4.1% for 2025; the score uses 4.2% 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 Van Zandt County's history
1848
In 1848, Henderson County was split into three counties: Kaufman, Van Zandt, and what remained as Henderson County. Henderson County had been deeply in debt, yet the new Van Zandt County was founded without any obligations. Wikipedia
2007
A flash flood in March 2007 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2015
A tornado in May 2015 did $40 million in property damage and killed two people. NOAA Storm Events Database
2017
Four tornadoes including one rated EF4 caused severe damage and deaths, April 29, 2017. Wikipedia
2017
A tornado in April 2017 killed two people. NOAA Storm Events Database
2017
A tornado in April 2017 killed two people. NOAA Storm Events Database
2019
Tornado struck downtown area near First Monday Trade Days causing extensive damage, May 29, 2019. Wikipedia
2020
The county's largest recorded population was the 2020 Census count of 59,541, which is also its most recent census. Census Bureau
-
Since 1989
20 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Van Zandt County, 7 of them for flooding. FEMA
Van Zandt County beside its neighbors
Of the six counties that border Van Zandt County, four score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Van Zandt County ranks 4th of the seven; Wood County is highest, at 36.4%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Henderson County, TX | 90 | 15.9% | 30.4% |
| Wood County, TX | 78 | 13.7% | 36.4% |
| Hunt County, TX | 78 | 11.1% | 22.7% |
| Kaufman County, TX | 77 | 8.5% | 16.5% |
| Van Zandt County, TX | 66 | 13.0% | 27.6% |
| Smith County, TX | 63 | 12.1% | 18.8% |
| Rains County, TX | 51 | 11.2% | 33.9% |
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 Van Zandt County the poorest county in Texas?
No, Van Zandt County's poverty rate was 13.0% in 2024, 172nd 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, Van Zandt County ranks 124th of 254 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Van Zandt 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.
-
Lone Star Legal Aid
Legal aid
-
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 Van Zandt 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 Van Zandt County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.