About one in eight people with a credit file in Chelan County, Washington, has unpaid debt sent to a collector
In Chelan County, 12.6% of people with a credit file had unpaid debt sent to a collector. That is lower than in 89% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 79% of U.S. counties.
What drives Chelan County's score
In Chelan County, housing costs are the highest-scoring part, at 51.3. Late payments on loans are the lowest part, at 8.4. People with a car or retail loan behind: 2.1%, August 2025, lower than in 94% of U.S. counties.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Chelan 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.
Chelan 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.
- 51.3 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 rent16.4% · 2020 to 202439th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income22.0% · fiscal year 202763rd percentile
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- 49.3 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 202669th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working17.3% · 2020 to 202428th percentile
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- 36.4 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line10.2% · 202423rd percentile
- Children below the poverty line11.6% · 202420th percentile
- People with a disability15.7% · 2020 to 202447th percentile
- People without health insurance10.5% · 2020 to 202469th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$79,974 · 202420th percentile
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- 15.8 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector12.6% · August 20259th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people73.8 · 202521st percentile
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- 8.4 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind2.6% · August 20257th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind2.1% · August 20255th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score29.6% · second quarter of 202611th 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 Chelan 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 Chelan County, 20.9% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Chelan County
Washington
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
Benefit checks' share of income in Chelan County made its largest gain on the way to its 2009 high, from 18.2% in 2004 to 22.3% in 2009.
In Chelan County, benefit checks' share of income has doubled since 1969, reaching 21.7% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in more than twice as much as benefit checks
In Chelan County, Washington, benefit checks' share of income doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 21.7%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
SNAP food aid is one of the benefit checks counted in the income totals above.
The share of households in Chelan County getting SNAP food aid nearly doubled to 12.0%, the highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 2012 to 2013, reaching 11.1%. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Chelan County, Washington.
How Chelan County has changed
Chelan County's population had its largest rise, from 58,384 in 1994 to 65,764 in 1999.
Chelan County's population doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 81,228, with no dip in any year shown
Smallest rise: 1969 to 1974, reaching 40,639. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Chelan County, Washington.
The jobs count covers work located in the county; the population count covers residents.
The number of jobs located in Chelan County rose by about half to 44,636, the highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 2010 to 2015, reaching 42,817. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Chelan County, Washington.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 8.6% | 2025 4.5% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 15.6% | 2024 10.2% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $24,015 | 2024 $79,974 |
The table uses 4.5% 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 Chelan County's history
1899
Created March 13, 1899, from Okanogan and Kittitas Counties. Wikipedia
1996
Lightning in April 1996 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
1998
A wildfire in August 1998 did $10 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2009
A flood in January 2009 did $1.1 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2020
The county's largest recorded population was the 2020 Census count of 79,074, which is also its most recent census. Census Bureau
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Since 1972
23 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Chelan County, 11 of them for flooding. FEMA
Chelan County beside its neighbors
All six counties that border Chelan County score higher than it does. For the share of income from benefit checks, Chelan County ranks 4th of the seven; Okanogan County is highest, at 32.4%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Okanogan County, WA | 60 | 21.7% | 32.4% |
| Kittitas County, WA | 44 | 12.9% | 21.0% |
| Snohomish County, WA | 36 | 8.6% | 13.1% |
| Douglas County, WA | 35 | 10.9% | 23.6% |
| Skagit County, WA | 34 | 9.8% | 22.1% |
| King County, WA | 23 | 8.8% | 7.7% |
| Chelan County, WA | 20 | 10.2% | 21.7% |
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 Chelan County the poorest county in Washington?
No, Chelan County's poverty rate was 10.2% in 2024, 31st highest of 39 in Washington (U.S. Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates). By that measure the poorest county in the state is Whitman County, at 23.0%. On our distress index, which counts more than poverty, Chelan County ranks 39th of 39 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Chelan 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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Northwest Justice Project (NJP)
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 Chelan 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 Chelan County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.