Benefit checks make up 38 cents of every dollar of income in Fayette County, West Virginia
In Fayette County, 38.3% of all the income people there received came from benefit checks. That is higher than in 89% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 87% of U.S. counties.
What drives Fayette County's score
In Fayette County, jobs weigh most: the score for jobs is 84.9. About three in ten adults aged 25 to 54 (29.1%, 2020 to 2024) aren't working, a higher share than in 87% of U.S. counties. Income and the safety net comes next, at 82.2.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Fayette 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.
Fayette County does better than most counties on two measures: bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people (56.3, 2025) and renters paying half their income or more in rent (18.1%, 2020 to 2024).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 84.9 of 100
Jobs
Biggest factorUnemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year5.1% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202682nd percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working29.1% · 2020 to 202487th percentile
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- 82.2 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line20.8% · 202489th percentile
- Children below the poverty line28.4% · 202489th percentile
- People with a disability21.4% · 2020 to 202486th percentile
- People without health insurance8.0% · 2020 to 202451st percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$47,998 · 202494th percentile
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- 82.2 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind7.8% · August 202582nd percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind8.2% · August 202584th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score49.6% · second quarter of 202679th percentile
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- 64.1 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 rent18.1% · 2020 to 202449th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income24.0% · fiscal year 202778th percentile
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- 48.5 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector34.5% · August 202584th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people56.3 · 202512th 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 Fayette 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 Fayette County, 22.4% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Fayette County
West Virginia
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Fayette County, benefit checks' share of income has doubled since 1969, reaching 38.3% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in about a third more than benefit checks
In Fayette County, West Virginia, benefit checks' share of income doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 38.3%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Fayette County getting SNAP food aid fell most in two steps: 21.9% in 2015 to 19.4% in 2016; 22.1% in 2023 to 19.6% in 2024.
The share of households in Fayette County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2022 and has since fallen to 19.6%
Low on the chart: 16.3% 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, Fayette County, West Virginia.
How Fayette County has changed
Fayette County's population had its largest drop, from 56,148 in 1984 to 48,571 in 1989.
Fayette County's population was at its highest on the chart in 1979 and has since fallen by about a third
High on the chart: 58,255 in 1979. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Fayette County, West Virginia.
The number of jobs located in Fayette County had its largest rise, from 11,019 in 1990 to 12,439 in 1995.
The number of jobs located in Fayette County was at its highest on the chart in 1995 and is down 16% since
High on the chart: 12,439 in 1995. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Fayette County, West Virginia.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 11.5% | 2025 4.8% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 22.7% | 2024 20.8% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $18,075 | 2024 $47,998 |
The table uses 4.8% for 2025; the score uses 5.1% 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 Fayette County's history
1950
The county's largest recorded population was the 1950 Census count of 82,443. The 2020 Census counted 40,488, 49% of the peak. Census Bureau
1974
A tornado in April 1974 did $2.5 million in property damage and killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2001
A flash flood in July 2001 did $47 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2015
Lightning in June 2015 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2023
A flood in February 2023 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1967
25 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Fayette County, 13 of them for flooding. FEMA
Fayette County beside its neighbors
Of the five counties that border Fayette County, one scores higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Fayette County ranks 4th of the six; Summers County is highest, at 45.2%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Summers County, WV | 94 | 24.2% | 45.2% |
| Fayette County, WV | 87 | 20.8% | 38.3% |
| Raleigh County, WV | 85 | 18.7% | 33.7% |
| Nicholas County, WV | 75 | 16.4% | 40.3% |
| Kanawha County, WV | 70 | 15.3% | 29.3% |
| Greenbrier County, WV | 65 | 16.2% | 38.5% |
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 Fayette County the poorest county in West Virginia?
No, Fayette County's poverty rate was 20.8% in 2024, 10th highest of 55 in West Virginia (U.S. Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates). By that measure the poorest county in the state is McDowell County, at 38.4%. On our distress index, which counts more than poverty, Fayette County ranks 11th of 55 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Fayette 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 Aid of West Virginia
Legal aid
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Mountain State Justice, Inc.
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 Fayette 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 Fayette County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.