In Buchanan County, Virginia, benefit checks have brought in more money than paychecks since 2020
In 2024, 45 cents of every dollar of income here came from benefit checks, including Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid and veterans' benefits. That was a larger share than across the country.
More distressed than 96% of U.S. counties.
What drives Buchanan County's score
In Buchanan County, jobs weigh most: the score for jobs is 95.0. Unemployment averaged 6.9%, Oct 2025 to Sep 2026, higher than in 95% of U.S. counties. Housing costs come next, at 86.7.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Buchanan 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.
Buchanan County does better than most counties on two measures: people without health insurance (4.8%, 2020 to 2024) and people with a credit card behind (5.4%, August 2025).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 95.0 of 100
Jobs
Biggest factorUnemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year6.9% · Oct 2025 to Sep 2026top 5%
- Adults 25 to 54 not working46.0% · 2020 to 2024top 5%
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- 86.7 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 rent29.4% · 2020 to 2024top 5%
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income24.0% · fiscal year 202778th percentile
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- 77.4 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line23.5% · 202494th percentile
- Children below the poverty line26.7% · 202486th percentile
- People with a disability37.7% · 2020 to 2024top 5%
- People without health insurance4.8% · 2020 to 202416th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$47,088 · 2024top 5%
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- 74.4 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector31.5% · August 202578th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people183.4 · 202570th percentile
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- 73.3 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind5.4% · August 202548th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind7.9% · August 202582nd percentile
- People with a subprime credit score54.5% · second quarter of 202688th 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 Buchanan 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 Buchanan County, 23.9% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Buchanan County
Virginia
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Buchanan County, benefit checks brought in more than pay from work in 2024, a bigger share of income than across Virginia
In Buchanan County, Virginia, benefit checks' share of income grew to about four times its 1969 level by 2024, reaching 44.5%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
SNAP food aid is one of the benefit checks counted in the income totals above.
The share of households in Buchanan County getting SNAP food aid rose by about half to 27.3%, the highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 2022 to 2023, reaching 25.4%. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Buchanan County, Virginia.
How Buchanan County has changed
Buchanan County's population had its largest drop, from 36,396 in 1984 to 31,990 in 1989.
Buchanan County's population was at its highest on the chart in 1979 and has since fallen by about half
High on the chart: 38,251 in 1979. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Buchanan County, Virginia.
The number of jobs located in Buchanan County had its largest drop, from 11,353 in 1990 to 9,296 in 1995.
The number of jobs located in Buchanan County fell by about half from 1990 to 2025, reaching 5,696
High on the chart: 11,353 in 1990. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Buchanan County, Virginia.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 11.2% | 2025 5.6% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 23.4% | 2024 23.5% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $22,255 | 2024 $47,088 |
The table uses 5.6% for 2025; the score uses 6.9% 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 Buchanan County's history
1858
The county was formed in 1858 from parts of Russell and Tazewell counties. Wikipedia
1977
Grundy flood damage forced business abandonment. Wikipedia
1980
The county's largest recorded population was the 1980 Census count of 37,989. The 2020 Census counted 20,355, 54% of the peak. Census Bureau
2000
A flash flood in July 2000 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2002
A flash flood in May 2002 did $25 million in property damage and killed two people. NOAA Storm Events Database
2015
A flood in March 2015 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2021
A flash flood in August 2021 did $2.5 million in property damage and killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1977
26 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Buchanan County, 14 of them for flooding. FEMA
Buchanan County beside its neighbors
Buchanan County scores higher than all six counties that border it, in Virginia, West Virginia and Kentucky. For the share of income from benefit checks, Buchanan County ranks 5th of the seven; McDowell County is highest, at 52.2%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mingo County, WV | 96 | 25.7% | 46.1% |
| Buchanan County, VA | 96 | 23.5% | 44.5% |
| McDowell County, WV | 95 | 38.4% | 52.2% |
| Pike County, KY | 95 | 22.4% | 44.9% |
| Tazewell County, VA | 88 | 17.4% | 37.1% |
| Russell County, VA | 74 | 15.9% | 41.1% |
| Dickenson County, VA | 72 | 19.9% | 47.2% |
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 Buchanan County the poorest county in Virginia?
No, Buchanan County's poverty rate was 23.5% in 2024, 5th highest of 133 in Virginia (U.S. Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates). By that measure the poorest county in the state is Radford city, at 27.2%. On our distress index, which counts more than poverty, Buchanan County ranks 7th of 133 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Buchanan 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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Southwest Virginia Legal Aid Society
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 Buchanan 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 Buchanan County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.