Southampton County, Virginia
Above the national median for auto loan delinquency.
Main Findings
Southampton County, Virginia ranks 1,276th most distressed in the United States on the County Distress Index. The driver: 7% of auto loan accounts are 60+ days past due — above the national median of 5%. Its highest-scoring domain is Delinquency.
- 1,276th of 3,144 counties on the County Distress Index — 55.8 · moderate county distress, 60th in Virginia.
- 7% of auto loan accounts are 60+ days past due (U.S. median 5%). Auto loan delinquency at the 77th percentile nationally. Source: Urban Institute Debt in America (2025).
- Bankruptcy filing rate at 178 — national median 126, ranked at the 69th percentile. Source: Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts, F-5A (2025).
- Severe rent burden (50%+) at 22% — national median 18%, ranked at the 77th percentile. Source: U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-year (2023).
- Disability rate at 19% — national median 16%, ranked at the 75th percentile. Source: U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-year (2023).
Neighbors span five CDI score labels. The 39-point drop to Isle of Wight County marks where the Virginia distress corridor ends.
Southampton County has a moderate county distress score. The county sits near the middle of the CDI score scale, so the domain mix carries the story.
The CDI gives this county a moderate county distress label. The domain mix matters because the same composite score can come from very different local conditions. Its highest-scoring domain is Delinquency.
Indicator History
Period-correct raw indicators from the county-history panel. The CDI composite is excluded because it is a current cross-sectional score.
Unemployment rate
Poverty rate
Subprime credit population
Debt in collections
The Indicators Behind Southampton County's CDI Score
Every number traces to a public source. Southampton County's value shown alongside VA's median and the U.S. median. Full CSV available for download.
| Indicator | Southampton | VA median | U.S. median | Pctile | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Delinquency — domain score 71 · Rank 805 of 3,144 | |||||
| Auto loan delinquency Share of auto loan accounts 60+ days past due | 7% | 6% | 5% | 77th | Urban Institute Debt in America (2025) |
| Credit card delinquency Share of credit card accounts 60+ days past due | 7% | 6% | 5% | 68th | Urban Institute Debt in America (2025) |
| Subprime credit share Share of residents with a credit score below 660 | 28% | 25% | 23% | 69th | Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis, Equifax (2025) |
| Default & Legal — domain score 66 · Rank 889 of 3,144 | |||||
| Debt in collections Share of residents with a credit file who have debt in collections | 27% | 22% | 23% | 62nd | Urban Institute Debt in America (2025) |
| Bankruptcy filing rate Personal bankruptcy filings per 100,000 residents | 178 | 177 | 126 | 69th | Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts, F-5A (2025) |
| Debt Burden (housing basis) — domain score 53 · Rank 1,401 of 3,144 | |||||
| Rent-to-income ratio Fair Market Rent (2BR) as share of median household income | 19% | 22% | 21% | 30th | HUD FMR (FY2026); U.S. Census Bureau, SAIPE (2023) |
| Severe rent burden (50%+) Share of renter households paying 50%+ of income on rent | 22% | 19% | 18% | 77th | U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-year (2023) |
| Labor — domain score 41 · Rank 1,779 of 3,144 | |||||
| Unemployment Share of labor force unemployed | 4% | 4% | 4% | 41st | U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, LAUS (May 2026) |
| Safety Net & Buffer — domain score 47 · Rank 1,696 of 3,144 | |||||
| Child poverty rate Share of children under 18 below the federal poverty line | 18% | 18% | 18% | 49th | U.S. Census Bureau, SAIPE (2023) |
| Disability rate Share of residents reporting a disability | 19% | 15% | 16% | 75th | U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-year (2023) |
| Poverty rate Share of population below the federal poverty line | 13% | 13% | 14% | 48th | U.S. Census Bureau, SAIPE (2023) |
| Uninsured rate Share of residents without health insurance coverage | 5% | 7% | 8% | 20th | U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-year (2023) |
Five-Domain Breakdown
The CDI is an equal-weight composite of five family-v1 distress domains. Each domain contributes 20% of the county score.
Methodology
The County Distress Index is a 0–100 composite score of household financial distress, computed for all 3,144 U.S. counties. Higher scores indicate greater distress. The index is built from five equal-weighted domains: Delinquency, Default & Legal, Debt Burden, Labor, and Safety Net & Buffer. Each domain is the mean of distress-oriented indicator percentiles; the CDI score is the equal-weight mean of those domain scores.
Data sources include the Urban Institute Debt in America (Equifax consumer credit panel), FRED/Equifax (subprime credit share), U.S. Census Bureau (American Community Survey 5-year, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates), Bureau of Labor Statistics (Local Area Unemployment Statistics), U.S. Courts Administrative Office (F-5A bankruptcy filings), and HUD Fair Market Rents. Data vintages range from 2022 to 2026 depending on source; full indicator-level vintage detail is in the methodology document.
For Press & Research
Everything you need to cite Southampton County data — in under 60 seconds.
Draft wire copy 132-word AP-style article — use freely with attribution
COURTLAND, Va. — Southampton County ranks 1,276th among the nation's most financially distressed counties, according to the County Distress Index released this month by American Default Research.
The composite score of 55.8 out of 100 gives Southampton a moderate county distress label. Among 3,144 U.S. counties scored, 1,275 counties rank more distressed. Within Virginia, Southampton ranks 60th of 133 counties and independent cities.
The index, which draws on 13 source indicators from the U.S. Census Bureau, Bureau of Labor Statistics, Urban Institute and federal court filings, identifies delinquency as the primary driver in Southampton. 7% of auto loan accounts are 60+ days past due — above the national median of 5%.
American Default Research founder Ross Kilburn is available for interview at press@americandefault.org.
Full methodology and county-by-county data are available at americandefault.org/methodology/cdi.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is Southampton County's CDI score, and what does it mean?
What drives Southampton County's distress score?
How does Southampton County compare to its neighbors?
How is the County Distress Index calculated?
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