In Morgan County, West Virginia, rent on a two-bedroom takes about one in six dollars of the typical household's income
In Morgan County, 17.3% of the typical household's income would go to rent on a two-bedroom. That is lower than in 83% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 73% of U.S. counties.
What drives Morgan County's score
In Morgan County, jobs are the highest-scoring part, at 42.8. Late payments on loans are the lowest part, at 28.6. People with a credit card behind: 3.1%, August 2025, lower than in 88% of U.S. counties.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Morgan 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.
Morgan 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.
- 42.8 of 100
Jobs
Biggest factorUnemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year3.5% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202634th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working20.9% · 2020 to 202450th percentile
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- 42.2 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line11.2% · 202432nd percentile
- Children below the poverty line14.2% · 202434th percentile
- People with a disability17.6% · 2020 to 202464th percentile
- People without health insurance6.1% · 2020 to 202432nd percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$67,722 · 202446th percentile
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- 35.2 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector21.0% · August 202542nd percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people85 · 202528th percentile
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- 33.9 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 rent18.4% · 2020 to 202451st percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income17.3% · fiscal year 202716th percentile
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- 28.6 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind3.1% · August 202511th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind3.2% · August 202518th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score41.7% · second quarter of 202655th 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 Morgan 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 Morgan County, 25.2% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Morgan County
West Virginia
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Morgan County, benefit checks' share of income has more than doubled since 1969, reaching 33.5% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in about one and a half times as much as benefit checks
In Morgan County, West Virginia, benefit checks' share of income more than doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 33.5%; 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 Morgan County getting SNAP food aid more than tripled to 14.0%, the highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 2012 to 2013, reaching 8.6%. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Morgan County, West Virginia.
How Morgan County has changed
Morgan County's population doubled to 17,780, the highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 1974 to 1979, reaching 10,607. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Morgan County, West Virginia.
The jobs count covers work located in the county; the population count covers residents.
The number of jobs located in Morgan County rose by about a quarter to 3,110, the highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 2020 to 2025, reaching 3,110. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Morgan County, West Virginia.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 4.9% | 2025 3.4% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 11.4% | 2024 11.2% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $23,454 | 2024 $67,722 |
The table uses 3.4% for 2025; the score uses 3.5% 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 Morgan County's history
1996
A flash flood in January 1996 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2004
A thunderstorm in June 2004 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2010
The county's largest recorded population was the 2010 Census count of 17,541. The 2020 Census counted 17,063, 97% of the peak. Census Bureau
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Since 1972
17 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Morgan County, 7 of them for flooding. FEMA
Morgan County beside its neighbors
Of the five counties that border Morgan County, in West Virginia, Maryland and Virginia, four score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Morgan County ranks 2nd of the five; Allegany County is highest, at 38.3%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Allegany County, MD | 64 | 16.6% | 38.3% |
| Washington County, MD | 52 | 11.6% | 24.1% |
| Hampshire County, WV | 52 | 14.1% | 30.0% |
| Berkeley County, WV | 44 | 11.0% | 19.4% |
| Morgan County, WV | 26 | 11.2% | 33.5% |
| Frederick County, VA | 14 | 6.3% | — |
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 Morgan County the poorest county in West Virginia?
No, Morgan County's poverty rate was 11.2% in 2024, 52nd 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, Morgan County ranks 53rd of 55 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Morgan 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 Morgan 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 Morgan County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.