Prairie County, Arkansas
Above the national median for bankruptcy filing rate — and 34.1× the rate of the healthiest U.S. county (Glacier County, MT — 7).
Main Findings
Prairie County, Arkansas is more distressed than 61% of U.S. counties on the County Distress Index. The driver: a bankruptcy filing rate of 249 — above the national median of 126. Its highest-scoring domain is Default & Legal and its lowest is Debt Burden (housing basis).
- 64th of 75 counties in Arkansas on the County Distress Index — 61 · moderate-high county distress, more distressed than 61% of U.S. counties.
- A bankruptcy filing rate of 249 (U.S. median 126). Bankruptcy filing rate at the 85th percentile nationally. Source: Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts, F-5A (2025).
- Disability rate at 23% — national median 16%, ranked at the 92nd percentile. Source: U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-year (2024).
- Credit card delinquency at 10% — national median 5%, ranked at the 94th percentile. Source: Urban Institute Debt in America (2025).
- Unemployment (average of monthly rates) at 4% — national median 4%, ranked at the 57th percentile. Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, LAUS (monthly rates averaged, September 2025 to August 2026; no figures published for October 2025).
Unemployment is 4%, near the national median of 4%, while credit card delinquency runs at the 94th percentile. Jobs exist; wages don't close the gap.
Neighbors span three CDI score labels. The 44-point drop to Lonoke County marks where the Arkansas distress corridor ends.
Prairie County has a moderate-high county distress score. The domain mix shows whether pressure is concentrated or spread across the profile.
The CDI gives this county a moderate-high county distress label. The domain table shows whether the score comes from debt, labor, safety-net pressure, or a mix. Its highest-scoring domain is Default & Legal.
Indicator History
Period-correct raw indicators from the county-history panel. The CDI composite is excluded because it is a current cross-sectional score.
Unemployment rate
Poverty rate
Transfer income share
Subprime credit population
The Indicators Behind Prairie County's CDI Score
Every number traces to a public source. Prairie County's value shown alongside AR's median and the U.S. median. Full CSV available for download.
| Indicator | Prairie | AR median | U.S. median | Pctile | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Delinquency — domain score 66 · Rank 1,007 of 3,144 | |||||
| Auto loan delinquency Share of auto loan accounts 60+ days past due | 6% | 7% | 5% | 56th | Urban Institute Debt in America (2025) |
| Credit card delinquency Share of credit card accounts 60+ days past due | 10% | 8% | 5% | 94th | Urban Institute Debt in America (2025) |
| Subprime credit share Share of residents with a credit score below 660 | 23% | 31% | 23% | 48th | Equifax data retrieved via FRED (2025) |
| Default & Legal — domain score 72 · Rank 676 of 3,144 | |||||
| Debt in collections Share of residents with a credit file who have debt in collections | 26% | 32% | 23% | 59th | Urban Institute Debt in America (2025) |
| Bankruptcy filing rate Personal bankruptcy filings per 100,000 residents | 249 | 214 | 126 | 85th | Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts, F-5A (2025) |
| Debt Burden (housing basis) — domain score 23 · Rank 2,707 of 3,144 | |||||
| Rent-to-income ratio Fair Market Rent (2BR) as share of median household income | 19% | 21% | 21% | 31st | U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development Fair Market Rents (FY2027); U.S. Census Bureau, SAIPE (2024) |
| Severe rent burden (50%+) Share of renter households paying 50%+ of income on rent | 11% | 17% | 18% | 15th | U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-year (2024) |
| Labor — domain score 57 · Rank 1,285 of 3,144 | |||||
| Adults 25-54 not working Share of adults aged 25 to 54 without a job, leaving out residents of prisons and other institutions (service members count as working) | 22% | 27% | 21% | 57th | U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-year (2024) |
| Unemployment (average of monthly rates) Share of labor force unemployed, averaged over the monthly rates published for September 2025 to August 2026 (no figures published for October 2025) | 4% | 5% | 4% | 57th | U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, LAUS (monthly rates averaged, September 2025 to August 2026; no figures published for October 2025) |
| Safety Net & Buffer — domain score 69 · Rank 842 of 3,144 | |||||
| Child poverty rate Share of children under 18 below the federal poverty line | 22% | 24% | 17% | 73rd | U.S. Census Bureau, SAIPE (2024) |
| Disability rate Share of residents reporting a disability | 23% | 22% | 16% | 92nd | U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-year (2024) |
| Poverty rate Share of population below the federal poverty line | 16% | 18% | 13% | 70th | U.S. Census Bureau, SAIPE (2024) |
| Uninsured rate Share of residents without health insurance coverage | 6% | 8% | 8% | 32nd | U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-year (2024) |
Five-Domain Breakdown
The CDI is an equal-weight composite of five family-v1 distress domains. Each domain contributes 20% of the county score.
Methodology
The County Distress Index scores household financial distress from 0 to 100 for all 3,144 U.S. counties. A county's score is the share of U.S. counties it is more distressed than. The index is built from five equal-weighted domains: Delinquency, Default & Legal, Debt Burden, Labor, and Safety Net & Buffer. Each domain is the mean of distress-oriented indicator percentiles; the five domains are averaged, and that average is ranked against every other county to give the score.
Data sources include the Urban Institute Debt in America (Equifax consumer credit panel), Equifax data retrieved via FRED (subprime credit share), U.S. Census Bureau (American Community Survey 5-year, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates), U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (Local Area Unemployment Statistics), Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts (F-5A bankruptcy filings), and U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development Fair Market Rents. Data vintages range from 2024 to 2027 depending on source; full indicator-level vintage detail is in the methodology document.
For Press & Research
Everything you need to cite Prairie County data.
Draft wire copy 126-word AP-style article — use freely with attribution
DES ARC, Ark. — Prairie County is more distressed than 61% of U.S. counties, according to the County Distress Index released this month by American Default Research.
Prairie scores 61 out of 100, which means it is more distressed than 61% of U.S. counties; its score label is moderate-high county distress. Within Arkansas, Prairie ranks 64th of 75 counties.
The index, which draws on 14 source indicators from the U.S. Census Bureau, Bureau of Labor Statistics, Urban Institute and federal court filings, identifies default & legal as the primary driver in Prairie. A bankruptcy filing rate of 249 — above the national median of 126.
American Default Research founder Ross Kilburn is available for interview at press@americandefault.org.
Full methodology and county-by-county data are available at americandefault.org/methodology/cdi.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is Prairie County's CDI score, and what does it mean?
What drives Prairie County's distress score?
How does Prairie County compare to its neighbors?
How is the County Distress Index calculated?
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