About two in five people with a credit file in Webb County, Texas, have unpaid debt sent to a collector
In Webb County, 44.3% of people with a credit file had unpaid debt sent to a collector. That is higher than in 98% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 87% of U.S. counties.
What drives Webb County's score
In Webb County, late payments on loans weigh most: the score for late payments on loans is 83.5. About three in five people (55.3%, Q2 2026) have a subprime credit score, a higher share than in 89% of U.S. counties. Housing costs come next, at 82.5.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Webb 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.
Webb County does better than most counties on two measures: bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people (53.1, 2025) and people with a disability (13.5%, 2020 to 2024).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 83.5 of 100
Late payments
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind7.2% · August 202576th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind8.2% · August 202584th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score55.3% · second quarter of 202689th percentile
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- 82.5 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 rent25.9% · 2020 to 202489th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income23.6% · fiscal year 202775th percentile
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- 76.1 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line20.6% · 202488th percentile
- Children below the poverty line29.9% · 202491st percentile
- People with a disability13.5% · 2020 to 202426th percentile
- People without health insurance27.3% · 2020 to 202499th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$58,736 · 202474th percentile
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- 67.2 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year4.5% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202668th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working23.4% · 2020 to 202465th percentile
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- 54.5 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector44.3% · August 202598th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people53.1 · 202510th 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 Webb 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 Webb County, 10.3% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Webb County
Texas
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Webb County, benefit checks' share of income has more than doubled since 1969, reaching 24.6% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in more than twice as much as benefit checks
In Webb County, Texas, benefit checks' share of income more than doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 24.6%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Webb County getting SNAP food aid had its largest rise, from 25.0% in 2009 to 27.4% in 2010.
The share of households in Webb County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2014 and has since fallen by about a quarter
Biggest drop: 2018 to 2019, reaching 26.0%. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Webb County, Texas.
How Webb County has changed
Webb County's population had its largest rise, from 129,943 in 1989 to 161,107 in 1994.
Webb County's population grew to about four times its 1969 size in 2024, reaching 272,823, with no dip in any year shown
Smallest rise: 1969 to 1974, reaching 77,327. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Webb County, Texas.
The number of jobs located in Webb County had its largest rise, from 55,541 in 1995 to 69,021 in 2000.
The number of jobs located in Webb County more than doubled from 1990 to 2025, reaching 108,931, with no dip in any year shown
Smallest rise: 2015 to 2020, reaching 97,524. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Webb County, Texas.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 12.1% | 2025 4.6% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 40.5% | 2024 20.6% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $15,992 | 2024 $58,736 |
The table uses 4.6% for 2025; the score uses 4.5% 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 Webb County's history
1846
After failed petition to return to Mexico, many Laredo residents moved across Rio Grande to found Nuevo Laredo. Wikipedia
1848
County created January 28, 1848 and organized March 16, 1848. Wikipedia
1996
Hail in September 1996 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2003
A thunderstorm in June 2003 did $33 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2007
A flash flood in June 2007 did $1 million in property damage and killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2017
A thunderstorm in May 2017 did $20 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2020
The county's largest recorded population was the 2020 Census count of 267,114, which is also its most recent census. Census Bureau
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Since 1972
22 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Webb County, 3 of them for flooding. FEMA
Webb County beside its neighbors
Of the six counties that border Webb County, four score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Webb County ranks 6th of the seven; Duval County is highest, at 45.8%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dimmit County, TX | 95 | 28.5% | 32.8% |
| Zapata County, TX | 92 | 30.9% | 40.0% |
| Duval County, TX | 92 | 24.8% | 45.8% |
| Maverick County, TX | 89 | 21.8% | 34.4% |
| Webb County, TX | 87 | 20.6% | 24.6% |
| Jim Hogg County, TX | 87 | 22.1% | 39.7% |
| La Salle County, TX | 76 | 27.3% | 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 Webb County the poorest county in Texas?
No, Webb County's poverty rate was 20.6% in 2024, 33rd 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, Webb County ranks 26th of 254 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Webb 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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Laredo-webb Neighborhood Housing Services
HUD-approved housing counselor
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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.
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 Webb County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.