In Rappahannock County, Virginia, benefit checks make up only 15 cents of every dollar of income
In Rappahannock County, 15.0% of all the income people there received came from benefit checks. That is lower than in 92% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 66% of U.S. counties.
What drives Rappahannock County's score
In Rappahannock County, housing costs are the highest-scoring part, at 74.4. Late payments on loans are the lowest part, at 25.3. People with a car or retail loan behind: 0.0%, August 2025, lower than in 95% of U.S. counties.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Rappahannock 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.
Even so, Rappahannock County is worse off than most counties on renters paying half their income or more in rent (23.0%, 2020 to 2024).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 74.4 of 100
Housing costs
Biggest factorRenters, 2020–24 Census survey; HUD's fair market rents, fiscal year 2027
- Renters paying half their income or more in rent23.0% · 2020 to 202477th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income22.9% · fiscal year 202770th percentile
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- 39.6 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year3.2% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202619th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working22.2% · 2020 to 202459th percentile
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- 33.8 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector12.0% · August 20258th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people148.4 · 202559th percentile
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- 30.0 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line9.1% · 202415th percentile
- Children below the poverty line13.2% · 202428th percentile
- People with a disability12.1% · 2020 to 202415th percentile
- People without health insurance10.8% · 2020 to 202471st percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$81,343 · 202418th percentile
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- 25.3 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind6.3% · August 202562nd percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind0.0% · August 20255th or lower percentile
- People with a subprime credit score27.8% · second quarter of 20268th 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 Rappahannock 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 Rappahannock County, 27.8% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Rappahannock County
Virginia
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
Benefit checks' share of income in Rappahannock County had its largest drop, from 13.5% in 1984 to 9.6% in 1989.
In Rappahannock County, benefit checks' share of income has nearly doubled since 1969, reaching 15.0% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in more than three times as much as benefit checks
In Rappahannock County, Virginia, benefit checks' share of income nearly doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 15.0%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Rappahannock County getting SNAP food aid had its largest drop, from 8.1% in 2022 to 5.6% in 2023.
The share of households in Rappahannock County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2022 and has since fallen by about a third
Low on the chart: 2.2% in 2010. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Rappahannock County, Virginia.
How Rappahannock County has changed
Rappahannock County's population had its largest rise, from 5,353 in 1974 to 6,085 in 1979.
Rappahannock County's population rose 44% from 1969 to 2024, with no dip in any year shown
Smallest rise: 2009 to 2014, reaching 7,362. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Rappahannock County, Virginia.
The jobs count covers work located in the county; the population count covers residents.
The number of jobs located in Rappahannock County rose 41% from 1990 to 2025, reaching its highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 2020 to 2025, reaching 1,570. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Rappahannock County, Virginia.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 5.7% | 2025 3.0% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 8.0% | 2024 9.1% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $31,032 | 2024 $81,343 |
The table uses 3.0% for 2025; the score uses 3.2% 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 Rappahannock County's history
1833
Rappahannock County founded by act of Virginia General Assembly in 1833 from Culpeper County. Wikipedia
1900
The county's largest recorded population was the 1900 Census count of 8,843. The 2020 Census counted 7,348, 83% of the peak. Census Bureau
1980
A tornado in April 1980 did $2.5 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1972
25 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Rappahannock County, 6 of them for flooding. FEMA
Rappahannock County beside its neighbors
Of the five counties that border Rappahannock County, one scores higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Rappahannock County ranks 5th of the six; Page County is highest, at 30.5%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Page County, VA | 60 | 12.2% | 30.5% |
| Rappahannock County, VA | 33 | 9.1% | 15.0% |
| Culpeper County, VA | 30 | 9.6% | 20.0% |
| Warren County, VA | 29 | 9.8% | 20.8% |
| Fauquier County, VA | 11 | 6.6% | 12.5% |
| Madison County, VA | 9 | 10.3% | 20.7% |
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 Rappahannock County the poorest county in Virginia?
No, Rappahannock County's poverty rate was 9.1% in 2024, 95th 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, Rappahannock County ranks 96th of 133 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Rappahannock 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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Legal Services of Northern Virginia
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 Rappahannock 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 Rappahannock County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.