Benefit checks make up 39 cents of every dollar of income in Charlotte County, Virginia
In Charlotte County, 38.7% of all the income people there received came from benefit checks. That is higher than in 90% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 70% of U.S. counties.
What drives Charlotte County's score
In Charlotte County, late payments on loans weigh most: the score for late payments on loans is 69.5. People with a credit card behind: 7.2%, August 2025, higher than in 75% of U.S. counties. Income and the safety net comes next, at 68.8.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Charlotte 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.
Charlotte County does better than most counties on two measures: rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income (19.2%, fiscal year 2027) and people without health insurance (6.4%, 2020 to 2024).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 69.5 of 100
Late payments
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind7.2% · August 202575th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind6.4% · August 202567th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score44.7% · second quarter of 202665th percentile
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- 68.8 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line15.9% · 202470th percentile
- Children below the poverty line23.8% · 202478th percentile
- People with a disability21.3% · 2020 to 202486th percentile
- People without health insurance6.4% · 2020 to 202435th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$58,879 · 202473rd percentile
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- 60.5 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 rent25.1% · 2020 to 202486th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income19.2% · fiscal year 202733rd percentile
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- 58.1 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector20.2% · August 202538th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people211.7 · 202577th percentile
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- 51.0 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year4.1% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202653rd percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working20.5% · 2020 to 202448th 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 Charlotte 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 Charlotte County, 22.7% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Charlotte County
Virginia
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Charlotte County, benefit checks' share of income has grown to about four times its 1969 level, reaching 38.7% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in about a fifth more than benefit checks
In Charlotte County, Virginia, benefit checks' share of income grew to about four times its 1969 level by 2024, reaching 38.7%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Charlotte County getting SNAP food aid had its largest rise, from 17.7% in 2019 to 22.5% in 2020.
The share of households in Charlotte County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2023 and has since fallen to 21.0%
Low on the chart: 13.3% 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, Charlotte County, Virginia.
How Charlotte County has changed
Charlotte County's population fell most sharply after its 2009 high, from 12,588 in 2009 to 12,038 in 2014.
Charlotte County's population fell 10% from 1969 to 2024, reaching its lowest on the chart
High on the chart: 12,588 in 2009. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Charlotte County, Virginia.
The number of jobs located in Charlotte County had its largest rise, from 2,839 in 1995 to 3,460 in 2000.
The number of jobs located in Charlotte County was at its highest on the chart in 2000 and has since fallen by about a fifth
High on the chart: 3,460 in 2000. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Charlotte County, Virginia.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 10.1% | 2025 3.9% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 19.8% | 2024 15.9% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $18,938 | 2024 $58,879 |
The table uses 3.9% for 2025; the score uses 4.1% 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 Charlotte County's history
1764
Formed in 1764 from Lunenburg County. Wikipedia
1920
The county's largest recorded population was the 1920 Census count of 17,540. The 2020 Census counted 11,529, 66% of the peak. Census Bureau
1984
A tornado in May 1984 did $2.5 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
1996
A flash flood in September 1996 did $1.2 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2018
A flash flood in October 2018 did $1.08 million in property damage and killed two people. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1972
22 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Charlotte County, 3 of them for flooding. FEMA
Charlotte County beside its neighbors
Of the six counties that border Charlotte County, three score higher. Of the group, Charlotte County gets the largest share of its income from benefit checks (38.7%).
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Halifax County, VA | 85 | 15.0% | 38.4% |
| Prince Edward County, VA | 77 | 17.6% | 36.8% |
| Lunenburg County, VA | 74 | 19.9% | 35.7% |
| Charlotte County, VA | 70 | 15.9% | 38.7% |
| Mecklenburg County, VA | 61 | 14.5% | 37.2% |
| Campbell County, VA | 41 | 11.2% | — |
| Appomattox County, VA | 38 | 12.2% | 31.0% |
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 Charlotte County the poorest county in Virginia?
No, Charlotte County's poverty rate was 15.9% in 2024, 38th 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, Charlotte County ranks 40th of 133 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Charlotte 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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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 Charlotte 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 Charlotte County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.