In Hardy County, West Virginia, rent on a two-bedroom takes about one in five dollars of the typical household's income
In Hardy County, 19.0% of the typical household's income would go to rent on a two-bedroom. That is lower than in 67% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 50% of U.S. counties.
What drives Hardy County's score
In Hardy County, late payments on loans are the highest-scoring part, at 72.3. Housing costs are the lowest part, at 19.4. About one in 14 renters (7.2%, 2020 to 2024) pays half their income or more in rent, a lower share than in 93% of U.S. counties.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Hardy 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, Hardy County is worse off than most counties on people with a car or retail loan behind (7.7%, August 2025) and people with a disability (19.2%, 2020 to 2024).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 72.4 of 100
Late payments
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind6.8% · August 202570th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind7.7% · August 202580th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score44.9% · second quarter of 202666th percentile
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- 62.6 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line14.1% · 202457th percentile
- Children below the poverty line19.0% · 202460th percentile
- People with a disability19.2% · 2020 to 202475th percentile
- People without health insurance7.8% · 2020 to 202449th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$60,209 · 202469th percentile
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- 55.7 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year3.7% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202639th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working24.6% · 2020 to 202471st percentile
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- 40.1 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector30.0% · August 202573rd percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people42.1 · 20256th percentile
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- 19.4 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 rent7.2% · 2020 to 20246th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income19.0% · fiscal year 202732nd 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 Hardy 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 Hardy County, 23.2% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Hardy County
West Virginia
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Hardy County, benefit checks' share of income has more than doubled since 1969, reaching 27.8% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in twice as much as benefit checks
In Hardy County, West Virginia, benefit checks' share of income more than doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 27.8%; 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 Hardy County getting SNAP food aid grew to about four times its 2009 level, reaching 19.2%, the highest on the chart
Biggest drop: 2017 to 2018, reaching 9.9%. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Hardy County, West Virginia.
How Hardy County has changed
Hardy County's population had its largest rise, from 10,781 in 1989 to 11,666 in 1994.
Hardy County's population rose by more than half from 1969 to 2024, reaching 14,335
High on the chart: 14,370 in 2019. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Hardy County, West Virginia.
The number of jobs located in Hardy County rose most sharply from its first year (3,765 in 1990) to 5,288 in 1995.
The number of jobs located in Hardy County was at its highest on the chart in 2005 and is down 8% since
High on the chart: 6,631 in 2005. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Hardy County, West Virginia.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 5.8% | 2025 3.6% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 14.3% | 2024 14.1% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $20,458 | 2024 $60,209 |
The table uses 3.6% for 2025; the score uses 3.7% 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 Hardy County's history
1786
October 17, 1786, formed from Hampshire County. Wikipedia
1996
A flash flood in January 1996 did $9.5 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2020
The county's largest recorded population was the 2020 Census count of 14,299, which is also its most recent census. Census Bureau
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Since 1967
21 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Hardy County, 8 of them for flooding. FEMA
Hardy County beside its neighbors
Of the six counties that border Hardy County, in West Virginia and Virginia, one scores higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Hardy County ranks 4th of the five; Pendleton County is highest, at 39.1%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hampshire County, WV | 52 | 14.1% | 30.0% |
| Hardy County, WV | 49 | 14.1% | 27.8% |
| Grant County, WV | 48 | 14.5% | 36.7% |
| Shenandoah County, VA | 30 | 10.3% | 24.4% |
| Pendleton County, WV | 25 | 12.2% | 39.1% |
| Frederick County, VA | 14 | 6.3% | — |
| Rockingham County, VA | 13 | 8.2% | — |
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 Hardy County the poorest county in West Virginia?
No, Hardy County's poverty rate was 14.1% in 2024, 45th 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, Hardy County ranks 45th of 55 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Hardy 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.
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 Hardy County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.