#496 Top 500 Most Distressed Counties · 2026

Victoria County, Texas

69.9 · moderate-high county distress 496th of 3,144 counties nationally · 91,664 residents How this is calculated →
The headline number
9% Victoria residents
vs.
5% U.S. median

Above the national median for credit card delinquency.

Urban Institute Debt in America (2025)

Main Findings

Wire lede · 40 words · paste-ready

Victoria County, Texas ranks 496th most distressed in the United States on the County Distress Index. The driver: 9% of credit card accounts are 60+ days past due — above the national median of 5%. Its highest-scoring domain is Delinquency.

Key Findings
  • 496th of 3,144 counties on the County Distress Index — 69.9 · moderate-high county distress, 56th in Texas.
  • 9% of credit card accounts are 60+ days past due (U.S. median 5%). Credit card delinquency at the 88th percentile nationally. Source: Urban Institute Debt in America (2025).
  • Severe rent burden (50%+) at 24% — national median 18%, ranked at the 83rd percentile. Source: U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-year (2023).
  • Unemployment at 4% — national median 4%, ranked at the 67th percentile. Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, LAUS (May 2026).
  • Uninsured rate at 17% — national median 8%, ranked at the 92nd percentile. Source: U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-year (2023).
Distinctive Signals
Boundary Signal

Neighbors span five CDI score labels. The 44-point drop to Lavaca County marks where the Texas distress corridor ends.

County Distress Index cluster map. Victoria County, Texas and its neighbors colored by county distress score label.
Victoria and its 6 geographic neighbors, graded by County Distress Index score. Victoria County ranks 496th of 3,144. American Default Research
Wire summary — paste-ready, any angle 21 words

Victoria County has a moderate-high county distress score. The domain mix shows whether pressure is concentrated or spread across the profile.

— American Default Research
Index note — for feature use 31 words

The CDI gives this county a moderate-high county distress label. The domain table shows whether the score comes from debt, labor, safety-net pressure, or a mix. Its highest-scoring domain is Delinquency.

— American Default Research

Indicator History

Period-correct raw indicators from the county-history panel. The CDI composite is excluded because it is a current cross-sectional score.

Updated Jul 1, 2026
BLS 1990 to 2025

Unemployment rate

4.1% -0.5 pp since 1990
Census 1989 to 2024

Poverty rate

14.3% -1.7 pp since 1989
BEA 1969 to 2024

Transfer income share

24.0% +17.2 pp since 1969
FRED/Equifax 2014 Q2 to 2025 Q4

Subprime credit population

34.5% -6.1 pp since 2014 Q2

The Indicators Behind Victoria County's CDI Score

Every number traces to a public source. Victoria County's value shown alongside TX's median and the U.S. median. Full CSV available for download.

How to read the table. A domain score is a 0–100 composite of the indicators in that domain; higher values represent a higher mean of distress-oriented indicator percentiles. A county's domain rank is computed separately against all counties. Percentile is Victoria County's national rank among all 3,144 U.S. counties for that indicator, always oriented so higher = more distressed.
Indicator Victoria TX median U.S. median Pctile Source
Delinquency — domain score 87 · Rank 314 of 3,144
Auto loan delinquency Share of auto loan accounts 60+ days past due 9% 7% 5% 88th Urban Institute Debt in America (2025)
Credit card delinquency Share of credit card accounts 60+ days past due 9% 7% 5% 88th Urban Institute Debt in America (2025)
Subprime credit share Share of residents with a credit score below 660 34% 32% 23% 87th Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis, Equifax (2025)
Default & Legal — domain score 56 · Rank 1,277 of 3,144
Debt in collections Share of residents with a credit file who have debt in collections 38% 35% 23% 91st Urban Institute Debt in America (2025)
Bankruptcy filing rate Personal bankruptcy filings per 100,000 residents 72 78 126 20th Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts, F-5A (2025)
Debt Burden (housing basis) — domain score 81 · Rank 364 of 3,144
Rent-to-income ratio Fair Market Rent (2BR) as share of median household income 25% 22% 21% 79th HUD FMR (FY2026); U.S. Census Bureau, SAIPE (2023)
Severe rent burden (50%+) Share of renter households paying 50%+ of income on rent 24% 17% 18% 83rd U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-year (2023)
Labor — domain score 67 · Rank 990 of 3,144
Unemployment Share of labor force unemployed 4% 4% 4% 67th U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, LAUS (May 2026)
Safety Net & Buffer — domain score 58 · Rank 1,247 of 3,144
Child poverty rate Share of children under 18 below the federal poverty line 20% 22% 18% 61st U.S. Census Bureau, SAIPE (2023)
Disability rate Share of residents reporting a disability 16% 16% 16% 50th U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-year (2023)
Poverty rate Share of population below the federal poverty line 14% 15% 14% 55th U.S. Census Bureau, SAIPE (2023)
Uninsured rate Share of residents without health insurance coverage 17% 17% 8% 92nd U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-year (2023)
Data compiled May 2026 from Urban Institute Debt in America (2025 panel), U.S. Census Bureau (ACS 5-yr 2023, SAIPE 2023, Business Formation Statistics 2024), U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (LAUS May 2026, QCEW 2024), Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts (F-5A bankruptcy filings 2025), and HUD Fair Market Rents (FY2026).

Five-Domain Breakdown

The CDI is an equal-weight composite of five family-v1 distress domains. Each domain contributes 20% of the county score.

Delinquency Primary driver 87
Weight 20% · Rank 314 of 3,144
Debt Burden (housing basis) 81
Weight 20% · Rank 364 of 3,144
Labor 67
Weight 20% · Rank 990 of 3,144
Safety Net & Buffer 58
Weight 20% · Rank 1,247 of 3,144
Default & Legal 56
Weight 20% · Rank 1,277 of 3,144

Methodology

The County Distress Index is a 0–100 composite score of household financial distress, computed for all 3,144 U.S. counties. Higher scores indicate greater distress. The index is built from five equal-weighted domains: Delinquency, Default & Legal, Debt Burden, Labor, and Safety Net & Buffer. Each domain is the mean of distress-oriented indicator percentiles; the CDI score is the equal-weight mean of those domain scores.

Data sources include the Urban Institute Debt in America (Equifax consumer credit panel), FRED/Equifax (subprime credit share), U.S. Census Bureau (American Community Survey 5-year, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates), Bureau of Labor Statistics (Local Area Unemployment Statistics), U.S. Courts Administrative Office (F-5A bankruptcy filings), and HUD Fair Market Rents. Data vintages range from 2022 to 2026 depending on source; full indicator-level vintage detail is in the methodology document.

For Press & Research

Everything you need to cite Victoria County data — in under 60 seconds.

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Press contact: Ross Kilburn · press@americandefault.org · (307) 264-2992 · same-day response, 9am–6pm ET
Draft wire copy 129-word AP-style article — use freely with attribution
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VICTORIA, Texas — Victoria County ranks 496th among the nation's most financially distressed counties, according to the County Distress Index released this month by American Default Research.

The composite score of 69.9 out of 100 gives Victoria a moderate-high county distress label. Among 3,144 U.S. counties scored, 495 counties rank more distressed. Within Texas, Victoria ranks 56th of 254 counties.

The index, which draws on 13 source indicators from the U.S. Census Bureau, Bureau of Labor Statistics, Urban Institute and federal court filings, identifies delinquency as the primary driver in Victoria. 9% of credit card accounts are 60+ days past due — above the national median of 5%.

American Default Research founder Ross Kilburn is available for interview at press@americandefault.org.

Full methodology and county-by-county data are available at americandefault.org/methodology/cdi.

— 30 —

Frequently Asked Questions

What is Victoria County's CDI score, and what does it mean?

Victoria County scores 69.9 out of 100 on the County Distress Index, with the score label moderate-high county distress. It ranks 496th of 3,144 U.S. counties and 56th of 254 Texas counties. Higher county scores indicate more distress.

What drives Victoria County's distress score?

The highest-scoring domain is Delinquency, at a domain score of 87. Credit card delinquency ranks at the 88th percentile nationally.

How does Victoria County compare to its neighbors?

Victoria County's neighbors span 5 CDI score labels. Highest-distress neighbor: Refugio County (78.72, high county distress). Lowest: Lavaca County (35.17, low-moderate county distress).

How is the County Distress Index calculated?

The CDI is a 0–100 composite of 13 source indicators across five equal-weighted domains: Delinquency, Default & Legal, Debt Burden, Labor, and Safety Net & Buffer. Data comes from Urban Institute, Census Bureau, BLS, U.S. Courts, HUD, and related public sources. Full methodology →
Ross Kilburn
Written by

Ross Kilburn, Founder

Founder · American Default Research · Seattle, Washington

Two decades working directly with financially distressed American households — from property preservation in 2003, to negotiating over 1,000 short sales during the Great Recession, to foreclosure defense marketing today. Author, The Ark Law Group Complete Guide to Short Sales (Auroch Press, 2013). Founded American Default Research in 2026.

Read more
from Ross →