About one in nine people with a credit file in Ferry County, Washington, has unpaid debt sent to a collector
In Ferry County, 11.1% of people with a credit file had unpaid debt sent to a collector. That is lower than in 94% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 56% of U.S. counties.
What drives Ferry County's score
In Ferry County, jobs are the highest-scoring part, at 95.0. Collections and bankruptcy is the lowest part, at 8.4.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Ferry 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, Ferry County is worse off than most counties on unemployment rate, average over the latest year (7.5%, Oct 2025 to Sep 2026) and adults 25 to 54 not working (36.3%, 2020 to 2024).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 95.0 of 100
Jobs
Biggest factorUnemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year7.5% · Oct 2025 to Sep 2026top 5%
- Adults 25 to 54 not working36.3% · 2020 to 2024top 5%
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- 69.2 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line16.3% · 202472nd percentile
- Children below the poverty line24.6% · 202481st percentile
- People with a disability23.5% · 2020 to 202493rd percentile
- People without health insurance5.7% · 2020 to 202427th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$59,801 · 202471st percentile
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- 36.3 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 rent11.5% · 2020 to 202416th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income21.2% · fiscal year 202755th percentile
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- 22.2 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind4.0% · August 202525th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind0.0% · August 20255th or lower percentile
- People with a subprime credit score36.7% · second quarter of 202636th percentile
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- 8.4 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector11.1% · August 20255th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people53.4 · 202510th 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 Ferry 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 Ferry County, 30.6% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Ferry County
Washington
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Ferry County, benefit checks' share of income has grown to about four times its 1969 level, reaching 40.1% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in only a little more than benefit checks
In Ferry County, Washington, benefit checks' share of income grew to about four times its 1969 level by 2024, reaching 40.1%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Ferry County getting SNAP food aid had its largest rise, from 11.2% in 2010 to 15.2% in 2011.
The share of households in Ferry County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2014 and has since fallen to 19.5%
Low on the chart: 11.0% in 2009. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Ferry County, Washington.
How Ferry County has changed
Ferry County's population doubled to 7,543, the highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 1974 to 1979, reaching 5,690. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Ferry County, Washington.
The number of jobs located in Ferry County rose most sharply after its 2010 low, from 1,655 in 2010 to 1,753 in 2015.
The number of jobs located in Ferry County fell 5% from 1990 to 2025
High on the chart: 1,814 in 1995. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Ferry County, Washington.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 11.7% | 2025 7.4% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 17.3% | 2024 16.3% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $24,217 | 2024 $59,801 |
The table uses 7.4% for 2025; the score uses 7.5% 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 Ferry County's history
1896
Republic Mining District gold mining established. Wikipedia
1901
Republic mill shut down due to milling cost and lack of profitable ore. Wikipedia
1998
A flash flood in May 1998 did $3.5 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2001
Mount Leona Fire burned over 6,000 acres. Wikipedia
2010
The county's largest recorded population was the 2010 Census count of 7,551. The 2020 Census counted 7,178, 95% of the peak. Census Bureau
2017
A flood in April 2017 did $1.5 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2018
A flood in May 2018 did $3 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1974
17 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Ferry County, 6 of them for flooding. FEMA
Ferry County beside its neighbors
Of the three counties that border Ferry County, one scores higher. Of the group, Ferry County gets the largest share of its income from benefit checks (40.1%).
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Okanogan County, WA | 60 | 21.7% | 32.4% |
| Ferry County, WA | 43 | 16.3% | 40.1% |
| Stevens County, WA | 41 | 13.6% | 33.2% |
| Lincoln County, WA | 39 | 13.2% | 31.4% |
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 Ferry County the poorest county in Washington?
No, Ferry County's poverty rate was 16.3% in 2024, 5th 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, Ferry County ranks 18th of 39 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Ferry 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.
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 Ferry County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.