About one in four people in Lunenburg County, Virginia, has a disability
In Lunenburg County, 24.2% of people reported a disability. That is higher than in 94% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 74% of U.S. counties.
What drives Lunenburg County's score
In Lunenburg County, income and the safety net weighs most: the score for income and the safety net is 81.0. Late payments on loans come next, at 77.8.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Lunenburg 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.
Lunenburg County does better than most counties on two measures: renters paying half their income or more in rent (6.6%, 2020 to 2024) and rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income (20.1%, fiscal year 2027).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 81.0 of 100
Income and safety net
Biggest factorPoverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line19.9% · 202487th percentile
- Children below the poverty line23.5% · 202477th percentile
- People with a disability24.2% · 2020 to 202494th percentile
- People without health insurance10.0% · 2020 to 202466th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$56,412 · 202479th percentile
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- 77.8 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind6.3% · August 202564th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind8.5% · August 202586th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score51.5% · second quarter of 202683rd percentile
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- 73.9 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year4.6% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202668th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working26.4% · 2020 to 202479th percentile
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- 64.8 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector24.4% · August 202554th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people199.4 · 202574th percentile
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- 24.2 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 rent6.6% · 2020 to 20245th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income20.1% · fiscal year 202742nd 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 Lunenburg 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 Lunenburg County, 23.2% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Lunenburg County
Virginia
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Lunenburg County, benefit checks' share of income has more than tripled since 1969, reaching 35.7% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in about a third more than benefit checks
In Lunenburg County, Virginia, benefit checks' share of income more than tripled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 35.7%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Lunenburg County getting SNAP food aid had its largest drop, from 17.3% in 2018 to 14.0% in 2019.
The share of households in Lunenburg County getting SNAP food aid fell to its lowest on the chart in 2019, then climbed past the 2009 level
Low on the chart: 14.0% in 2019. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Lunenburg County, Virginia.
How Lunenburg County has changed
Lunenburg County's population had its largest rise, from 11,710 in 1994 to 13,183 in 1999.
Lunenburg County's population was at its highest on the chart in 1999 and is down 9% since
High on the chart: 13,183 in 1999. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Lunenburg County, Virginia.
The jobs count covers work located in the county; the population count covers residents.
The number of jobs located in Lunenburg County fell by about a quarter from 1990 to 2025, reaching 2,363, with most of the change between 1990 and 1995
High on the chart: 3,188 in 1990. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Lunenburg County, Virginia.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 7.8% | 2025 4.3% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 18.2% | 2024 19.9% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $18,859 | 2024 $56,412 |
The table uses 4.3% for 2025; the score uses 4.6% 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 Lunenburg County's history
1746
Established May 1, 1746, from the western portion of Brunswick County. Wikipedia
1920
The county's largest recorded population was the 1920 Census count of 15,260. The 2020 Census counted 11,936, 78% of the peak. Census Bureau
1993
A tornado in August 1993 did $5 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2019
A thunderstorm in April 2019 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1972
23 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Lunenburg County, 4 of them for flooding. FEMA
Lunenburg County beside its neighbors
Of the five counties that border Lunenburg County, three score higher. Of the group, Lunenburg County gets the smallest share of its income from benefit checks; Nottoway County gets the largest, at 39.9%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Nottoway County, VA | 81 | 19.0% | 39.9% |
| Brunswick County, VA | 78 | 20.2% | 39.9% |
| 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% |
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 Lunenburg County the poorest county in Virginia?
No, Lunenburg County's poverty rate was 19.9% in 2024, 16th 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, Lunenburg County ranks 36th of 133 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Lunenburg 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 Lunenburg 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 Lunenburg County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.