Financial distress, county by county.

Washington County, MS scored 92.0 on the County Distress Index in June 2026 — 5th of 3,144 U.S. counties, 3rd in Mississippi. 20% auto loan delinquency at the 99th percentile nationally, the Delinquency domain ranked 3rd in the nation. 36% poverty rate. The county seat, Greenville, was home to Pulitzer-winning editor Hodding Carter II, Civil War historian Shelby Foote, and novelist Walker Percy. Today nearly half its children live in poverty.

Petersburg City scores 92.5 · extreme county distress — 3rd most distressed county in the U.S., 1st in Virginia. 45% debt in collections, a Default & Legal domain ranked 3rd in the nation. The 47-point gap with neighboring Chesterfield reveals what Virginia's independent city structure concentrates.

Dougherty County, Georgia ranks 7th of 3,144 on the County Distress Index, 1st in Georgia, with three credit indicators at the 99th percentile.

Gadsden County records extreme county distress — 13th most distressed in America, 1st in Florida. Only majority-Black county in the state. 41% of residents carry debt in collections.

Pemiscot County records extreme county distress. Fourteenth most distressed in America, first in Missouri. 46% of residents have debt in collections.

Tunica County, MS records very high county distress — 16th of 3,144, 7th in Mississippi. Four casino closures since 2014 have left the county carrying the debt, with its Delinquency, Debt Burden, and Default & Legal domains all pressed against the ceiling.

Bibb County (Macon-Bibb), GA records very high county distress — 26th of 3,144, 3rd in Georgia. Renter cost burden at the 98th percentile and debt in collections at the 99th despite a 2014 city-county merger.

Richmond County, GA records very high county distress — 4th of 159 in Georgia. Debt in collections at the 98th percentile, auto loan delinquency at the 98th. Home to Fort Eisenhower and Augusta National, one county line from $95,592 median income.

Mitchell County, GA records very high county distress — 55th of 3,144, 7th in Georgia. Top peanut producer with $370 million in farm output and 3.8% unemployment, yet its Default & Legal domain ranks 12th in the nation. Full employment, crisis-level debt.

Harlan County, KY records very high county distress — 64th of 3,144, 7th in Kentucky. The most documented poor county in America. 27.3% disability rate at the 98th percentile, poverty at the 98th and median household income at the 99th. See the full five-domain breakdown.

Russell County, AL scores 83.3 · very high county distress — 204th of 3,144 and 9th in Alabama in June 2026 — and its Default & Legal domain ranks 4th in the nation. 484 bankruptcy filings per 100,000 residents, roughly four times the national median. Nearly half of residents with a credit file carry debt in collections. Phenix City sits across the Chattahoochee River from Columbus, Georgia, where most of the county's working population commutes.

Dunklin County, MO scores 81.9 · very high county distress, 105th of 3,144 U.S. counties, 3rd in Missouri. A legacy cotton and soybean economy in the Missouri Bootheel.

Wayne County, MO records very high county distress — 129th of 3,144, 4th in Missouri. Its Safety Net & Buffer domain ranks 28th in the nation, with disability and household income at the 95th percentile and child poverty above the 93rd. 29.1% disability rate, 22.4% poverty, every domain distressed at once.

Glades County, Florida records high county distress — more distressed than 89% of U.S. counties, 321st of 3,144. The largest employer is a detention center. There is no hospital. See the full five-domain breakdown.

Duval County, TX records high county distress — 360th of 3,144, 34th in Texas. The county that changed American history with 87 votes. Poverty, child poverty, health coverage and median household income all at the 95th percentile, a Safety Net & Buffer domain ranked 5th in the nation. See the full five-domain breakdown.

Lenoir County records moderate-high county distress — 19th most distressed in North Carolina. A Navy aviation facility and 3.8% unemployment exist five miles from the state’s most distressed census tract.

Yakima County scores 66.7 · moderate-high county distress. Most distressed in Washington. Its Labor domain leads at 94.51 while the safety net holds debt near zero.

Quay County, New Mexico records moderate-high county distress — more distressed than 72% of U.S. counties, 14th in New Mexico. A town named for waiting, still waiting. See the full five-domain breakdown.

DC records moderate-high county distress and leads the nation in FHA serious delinquency at 8.34%. Its Debt Burden domain at 76.42 sits 16 points above the composite. See the full five-domain breakdown.

Lincoln County, Montana scores 55.8 · moderate county distress, 7th in Montana — masking a Labor domain at 92.41 and a Safety Net & Buffer domain at 79.65 against a Delinquency domain near the floor at 10.67. A vermiculite mine left a multi-decade asbestos health legacy; the clinic that tracked cases has closed.

Des Moines County, Iowa scores 54.7 · moderate county distress, 2nd in Iowa, 1,338th nationally. Burlington made backhoes for 87 years. The factory is closing. See the full breakdown.

Wallowa County, OR records moderate-low county distress — 1,639th of 3,144, 29th of 36 in Oregon. Unemployment at the 92nd percentile, debt in collections at the 7th. A county that learned not to borrow. Home of the WWII Memorial’s bronze.

King County, Washington records low-moderate county distress — 2,195th of 3,144 U.S. counties, 35th of 39 in Washington. But its Debt Burden domain scores 74.52. See the full five-domain breakdown.

Los Alamos County scores 5.7 · exceptionally low county distress — the single least distressed of 3,144 U.S. counties, last of 33 in New Mexico. A $5.28 billion federal laboratory in a state ranked last for child wellbeing.