Letcher County, Kentucky
Above the national median for adults 25-54 not working — and 18.8× the rate of the healthiest U.S. county (Thomas County, NE — 2%).
Main Findings
Letcher County, Kentucky is more distressed than 85% of U.S. counties on the County Distress Index. The driver: 38% of adults aged 25 to 54 are not working — above the national median of 21%. Its highest-scoring domain is Labor and its lowest is Debt Burden (housing basis).
- 34th of 120 counties in Kentucky on the County Distress Index — 85 · very high county distress, more distressed than 85% of U.S. counties.
- 38% of adults aged 25 to 54 are not working (U.S. median 21%). Adults 25-54 not working at the 97th percentile nationally. Source: U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-year (2024).
- Bankruptcy filing rate at 573 — national median 126, ranked at the 99th percentile. Source: Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts, F-5A (2025).
- Disability rate at 30% — national median 16%, ranked at the 99th percentile. Source: U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-year (2024).
- Subprime credit share at 34% — national median 23%, ranked at the 85th percentile. Source: Equifax data retrieved via FRED (2025).
Letcher County has a very high county distress score. The domain table shows which local pressure carries the composite.
The CDI gives this county a very high county distress label. The five-domain profile shows which local pressures carry the score. Its highest-scoring domain is Labor.
Reporter's Notes
Two data points in the indicator table worth a follow-up call.
According to U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-year (2024), Letcher County's uninsured rate indicator is at the 4th percentile. American Default Research's CDI places every other indicator in the Safety Net & Buffer domain at or above the 87th percentile. The gap stands out against child poverty rate and disability rate. Worth a call to the source agency or a local subject-matter contact in Whitesburg.
According to U.S. Census Bureau, SAIPE (2024), 28% of children under 18 in Letcher County live below the federal poverty line, versus 17% nationally. When a county's adult poverty rate is accompanied by a materially higher child poverty rate, the gap typically reflects single-parent household concentration or limited access to workforce-participation supports (childcare, transportation). Worth a call to the local school district's free-and-reduced-lunch coordinator or a regional United Way affiliate.
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 Letcher County's CDI Score
Every number traces to a public source. Letcher County's value shown alongside KY's median and the U.S. median. Full CSV available for download.
| Indicator | Letcher | KY median | U.S. median | Pctile | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Delinquency — domain score 51 · Rank 1,506 of 3,144 | |||||
| Auto loan delinquency Share of auto loan accounts 60+ days past due | 4% | 6% | 5% | 38th | Urban Institute Debt in America (2025) |
| Credit card delinquency Share of credit card accounts 60+ days past due | 4% | 6% | 5% | 32nd | Urban Institute Debt in America (2025) |
| Subprime credit share Share of residents with a credit score below 660 | 34% | 28% | 23% | 85th | Equifax data retrieved via FRED (2025) |
| Default & Legal — domain score 89 · Rank 162 of 3,144 | |||||
| Debt in collections Share of residents with a credit file who have debt in collections | 32% | 29% | 23% | 79th | Urban Institute Debt in America (2025) |
| Bankruptcy filing rate Personal bankruptcy filings per 100,000 residents | 573 | 243 | 126 | 99th | Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts, F-5A (2025) |
| Debt Burden (housing basis) — domain score 49 · Rank 1,576 of 3,144 | |||||
| Rent-to-income ratio Fair Market Rent (2BR) as share of median household income | 25% | 21% | 21% | 82nd | 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% | 18% | 18% | 16th | U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-year (2024) |
| Labor — domain score 91 · Rank 135 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) | 38% | 27% | 21% | 97th | 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) | 5% | 5% | 4% | 85th | 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 77 · Rank 511 of 3,144 | |||||
| Child poverty rate Share of children under 18 below the federal poverty line | 28% | 22% | 17% | 87th | U.S. Census Bureau, SAIPE (2024) |
| Disability rate Share of residents reporting a disability | 30% | 21% | 16% | 99th | U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-year (2024) |
| Poverty rate Share of population below the federal poverty line | 25% | 17% | 13% | 96th | U.S. Census Bureau, SAIPE (2024) |
| Uninsured rate Share of residents without health insurance coverage | 3% | 6% | 8% | 4th | 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 Letcher County data.
Draft wire copy 128-word AP-style article — use freely with attribution
WHITESBURG, Ky. — Letcher County is more distressed than 85% of U.S. counties, according to the County Distress Index released this month by American Default Research.
Letcher scores 85 out of 100, which means it is more distressed than 85% of U.S. counties; its score label is very high county distress. Within Kentucky, Letcher ranks 34th of 120 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 labor as the primary driver in Letcher. 38% of adults aged 25 to 54 are not working — above the national median of 21%.
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 Letcher County's CDI score, and what does it mean?
What drives Letcher County's distress score?
How does Letcher County compare to its neighbors?
How is the County Distress Index calculated?
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