In Summers County, West Virginia, benefit checks have brought in more money than paychecks since 2020
In 2024, 45 cents of every dollar of income here came from benefit checks, including Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid and veterans' benefits. That was a larger share than across the country.
More distressed than 94% of U.S. counties.
What drives Summers County's score
In Summers County, late payments on loans weigh most: the score for late payments on loans is 88.3. People with a credit card behind: 9.5%, August 2025, higher than in 93% of U.S. counties. Jobs come next, at 85.5.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Summers 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.
Summers County does better than most counties on two measures: bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people (103.6, 2025) and people without health insurance (6.6%, 2020 to 2024).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 88.3 of 100
Late payments
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind9.5% · August 202593rd percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind8.5% · August 202586th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score52.6% · second quarter of 202685th percentile
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- 85.5 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year4.7% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202675th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working43.1% · 2020 to 2024top 5%
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- 83.5 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 rent24.3% · 2020 to 202484th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income24.9% · fiscal year 202782nd percentile
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- 82.5 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line24.2% · 2024top 5%
- Children below the poverty line28.6% · 202489th percentile
- People with a disability27.5% · 2020 to 2024top 5%
- People without health insurance6.6% · 2020 to 202438th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$45,580 · 2024top 5%
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- 55.5 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector29.8% · August 202573rd percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people103.6 · 202537th 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 Summers 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 Summers County, 27.1% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Summers County
West Virginia
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Summers County, benefit checks brought in more than pay from work in 2024, a bigger share of income than across West Virginia
In Summers County, West Virginia, benefit checks' share of income doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 45.2%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Summers County getting SNAP food aid had its largest drop in the last span, from 27.8% in 2023 to 23.0% in 2024.
The share of households in Summers County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2019 and has since fallen to 23.0%
Low on the chart: 12.9% in 2010. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Summers County, West Virginia.
How Summers County has changed
Summers County's population had its largest rise, from 13,860 in 1974 to 15,573 in 1979.
Summers County's population was at its highest on the chart in 1984 and has since fallen by about a quarter
High on the chart: 15,658 in 1984. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Summers County, West Virginia.
The number of jobs located in Summers County rose most sharply from its first year (2,032 in 1990) to 2,254 in 1995.
The number of jobs located in Summers County was at its highest on the chart in 2005 and is down 11% since
High on the chart: 2,391 in 2005. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Summers County, West Virginia.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 9.9% | 2025 4.6% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 28.5% | 2024 24.2% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $15,660 | 2024 $45,580 |
The table uses 4.6% for 2025; the score uses 4.7% 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 Summers County's history
1871
Created February 27, 1871 from Fayette, Greenbrier, Mercer and Monroe counties. Wikipedia
1930
The county's largest recorded population was the 1930 Census count of 20,468. The 2020 Census counted 11,959, 58% of the peak. Census Bureau
2016
A flash flood in June 2016 did $1 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1967
24 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Summers County, 13 of them for flooding. FEMA
Summers County beside its neighbors
Summers County scores higher than all six counties that border it, in West Virginia and Virginia. Of the group, Summers County gets the largest share of its income from benefit checks (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% |
| Mercer County, WV | 76 | 17.9% | 40.1% |
| Greenbrier County, WV | 65 | 16.2% | 38.5% |
| Monroe County, WV | 59 | 13.9% | 36.0% |
| Giles County, VA | 44 | 11.5% | 30.7% |
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 Summers County the poorest county in West Virginia?
No, Summers County's poverty rate was 24.2% in 2024, 6th 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, Summers County ranks 4th of 55 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Summers 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 Summers 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 Summers County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.