About three in five people with a credit file in Zavala County, Texas, have unpaid debt sent to a collector
In Zavala County, 55.6% of people with a credit file had unpaid debt sent to a collector. That is higher than in 99% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 94% of U.S. counties.
What drives Zavala County's score
In Zavala County, late payments on loans weigh most: the score for late payments on loans is 95.0. People with a credit card behind: 13.3%, August 2025, higher than in 95% of U.S. counties. Income and the safety net comes next, at 89.7.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Zavala 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.
Zavala County does better than most counties on one measure: bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people (21.5, 2025).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 95.0 of 100
Late payments
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind13.3% · August 2025top 5%
- People with a car or retail loan behind18.3% · August 2025top 5%
- People with a subprime credit score67.9% · second quarter of 2026top 5%
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- 89.7 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line25.7% · 2024top 5%
- Children below the poverty line36.1% · 2024top 5%
- People with a disability19.0% · 2020 to 202474th percentile
- People without health insurance14.9% · 2020 to 202488th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$41,554 · 2024top 5%
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- 87.0 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year6.8% · Oct 2025 to Sep 2026top 5%
- Adults 25 to 54 not working26.3% · 2020 to 202478th percentile
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- 76.2 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 rent19.4% · 2020 to 202457th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income29.3% · fiscal year 2027top 5%
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- 50.0 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector55.6% · August 2025top 5%
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people21.5 · 20255th or lower 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 Zavala 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 Zavala County, 15.7% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Zavala County
Texas
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
Benefit checks' share of income in Zavala County had its largest rise, from 21.5% in 1974 to 33.7% in 1979.
In Zavala County, benefit checks brought in more than pay in one of the bars shown, but pay leads in 2024
In Zavala County, Texas, benefit checks' share of income tripled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 39.7%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Zavala County getting SNAP food aid had its largest rise, from 31.5% in 2022 to 40.9% in 2023.
The share of households in Zavala County getting SNAP food aid fell to its lowest on the chart in 2021, then climbed past the 2009 level
Low on the chart: 30.8% in 2021. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Zavala County, Texas.
How Zavala County has changed
Zavala County's population had its largest drop, from 11,343 in 2014 to 9,823 in 2019.
Zavala County's population was at its highest on the chart in 1984 and has since fallen by about a quarter
High on the chart: 12,332 in 1984. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Zavala County, Texas.
The number of jobs located in Zavala County had its largest drop, from 2,952 in 2010 to 2,601 in 2015.
The number of jobs located in Zavala County was at its highest on the chart in 2010 and has since fallen by about a quarter
High on the chart: 2,952 in 2010. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Zavala County, Texas.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 20.9% | 2025 6.8% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 49.8% | 2024 25.7% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $11,196 | 2024 $41,554 |
Figures are as each agency published them, not adjusted for prices.
Dated events in Zavala County's history
1858
February 1, 1858 (created) February 25, 1884 (organized). Wikipedia
1941
Large internment camp located during World War II. Wikipedia
1960
The county's largest recorded population was the 1960 Census count of 12,696. The 2020 Census counted 9,670, 76% of the peak. Census Bureau
1993
Hail in March 1993 did $5 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1984
19 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Zavala County, 5 of them for flooding. FEMA
Zavala County beside its neighbors
Of the four counties that border Zavala County, one scores higher. Of the group, Zavala County gets the largest share of its income from benefit checks (39.7%).
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dimmit County, TX | 95 | 28.5% | 32.8% |
| Zavala County, TX | 94 | 25.7% | 39.7% |
| Maverick County, TX | 89 | 21.8% | 34.4% |
| Uvalde County, TX | 86 | 19.5% | 30.5% |
| Frio County, TX | 84 | 27.0% | 28.6% |
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 Zavala County the poorest county in Texas?
No, Zavala County's poverty rate was 25.7% in 2024, 8th 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, Zavala County ranks 6th of 254 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Zavala 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 Zavala 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 Zavala County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.