In Surry County, Virginia, rent on a two-bedroom takes about one in six dollars of the typical household's income
In Surry County, 15.9% of the typical household's income would go to rent on a two-bedroom. That is lower than in 93% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 60% of U.S. counties.
What drives Surry County's score
In Surry County, collections and bankruptcy is the highest-scoring part, at 64.3. Housing costs are the lowest part, at 31.1.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Surry 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.
Surry County isn't among the worst-off quarter of U.S. counties on any measure.
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 64.3 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector25.4% · August 202558th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people182 · 202570th percentile
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- 48.3 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year4.0% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202647th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working20.6% · 2020 to 202449th percentile
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- 39.7 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind1.6% · August 20255th or lower percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind5.4% · August 202553rd percentile
- People with a subprime credit score43.1% · second quarter of 202660th percentile
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- 35.3 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line11.7% · 202437th percentile
- Children below the poverty line16.8% · 202448th percentile
- People with a disability17.7% · 2020 to 202465th percentile
- People without health insurance3.1% · 2020 to 20245th or lower percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$80,189 · 202420th percentile
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- 31.1 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 rent19.0% · 2020 to 202455th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income15.9% · fiscal year 20276th 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 Surry 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 Surry County, 25.5% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Surry County
Virginia
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Surry County, benefit checks' share of income has grown to about four times its 1969 level, reaching 29.2% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in twice as much as benefit checks
In Surry County, Virginia, benefit checks' share of income grew to about four times its 1969 level by 2024, reaching 29.2%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Surry County getting SNAP food aid had its largest drop, from 15.6% in 2020 to 11.7% in 2021.
The share of households in Surry County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2019 and has since fallen to 9.4%
Low on the chart: 9.1% in 2022. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Surry County, Virginia.
How Surry County has changed
Surry County's population rose 11% from 1969 to 2024, with most of the change between 1989 and 1994
High on the chart: 7,037 in 2009. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Surry County, Virginia.
The number of jobs located in Surry County had its largest drop, from 2,498 in 2015 to 2,060 in 2020.
The number of jobs located in Surry County fell 13% from 1990 to 2025, with its low point on the chart in 2000
Low on the chart: 1,891 in 2000. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Surry County, Virginia.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 6.5% | 2025 3.5% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 15.1% | 2024 11.7% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $23,982 | 2024 $80,189 |
The table uses 3.5% for 2025; the score uses 4.0% 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 Surry County's history
1910
The county's largest recorded population was the 1910 Census count of 9,715. The 2020 Census counted 6,561, 68% of the peak. Census Bureau
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Since 1972
21 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Surry County, 5 of them for flooding. FEMA
Surry County beside its neighbors
Of the five counties that border Surry County, four score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Surry County ranks 2nd of the four; Sussex County is highest, at 39.0%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sussex County, VA | 87 | 21.9% | 39.0% |
| Charles City County, VA | 68 | 11.4% | 25.1% |
| Southampton County, VA | 52 | 12.7% | — |
| Prince George County, VA | 42 | 11.3% | — |
| Surry County, VA | 39 | 11.7% | 29.2% |
| Isle of Wight County, VA | 32 | 8.2% | 21.1% |
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 Surry County the poorest county in Virginia?
No, Surry County's poverty rate was 11.7% in 2024, 68th 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, Surry County ranks 84th of 133 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Surry 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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Central 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.
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 Surry County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.