#29 North Carolina · 2026

Greene County, North Carolina

76 · high county distress more distressed than 76% of U.S. counties · 29th of 100 counties in North Carolina · 20,530 residents How this is calculated →
The headline number
10% Greene residents
vs.
5% U.S. median

Above the national median for auto loan delinquency.

Urban Institute Debt in America (2025)

Main Findings

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Greene County, North Carolina is more distressed than 76% of U.S. counties on the County Distress Index. The driver: 10% of auto loan accounts are 60+ days past due — above the national median of 5%. Its highest-scoring domain is Delinquency and its lowest is Labor.

Key Findings
  • 29th of 100 counties in North Carolina on the County Distress Index — 76 · high county distress, more distressed than 76% of U.S. counties.
  • 10% of auto loan accounts are 60+ days past due (U.S. median 5%). Auto loan delinquency at the 93rd percentile nationally. Source: Urban Institute Debt in America (2025).
  • Uninsured rate at 17% — national median 8%, ranked at the 92nd percentile. Source: U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-year (2024).
  • Debt in collections at 42% — national median 23%, ranked at the 96th percentile. Source: Urban Institute Debt in America (2025).
  • Severe rent burden (50%+) at 20% — national median 18%, ranked at the 62nd percentile. Source: U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-year (2024).
Distinctive Signals
Labor–Credit Divergence

Unemployment is 3%, near the national median of 4%, while auto loan delinquency runs at the 93rd percentile. Jobs exist; wages don't close the gap.

County Distress Index cluster map. Greene County, North Carolina and its neighbors colored by county distress score label.
Greene and its 4 geographic neighbors, graded by County Distress Index score. Greene County is more distressed than 76% of U.S. counties. American Default Research
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Greene County has a high county distress score. The score label gives the intensity; the rank gives the national position.

— American Default Research
Index note — for feature use 32 words

The CDI gives this county a high county distress label. The rank belongs beside the score because the two answer different questions: score intensity and national position. Its highest-scoring domain is Delinquency.

— American Default Research

Indicator History

Period-correct raw indicators from the county-history panel. The CDI composite is excluded because it is a current cross-sectional score.

Updated Sep 22, 2026
U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics 1990 to 2025

Unemployment rate

3.4% -0.7 percentage points since 1990
Census 1989 to 2024

Poverty rate

19.9% +2.2 percentage points since 1989
U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis 1969 to 2024

Transfer income share

27.6% +21.8 percentage points since 1969
Equifax data retrieved via FRED 2014 Q2 to 2025 Q4

Subprime credit population

37.6% -0.3 percentage points since 2014 Q2

The Indicators Behind Greene County's CDI Score

Every number traces to a public source. Greene County's value shown alongside NC's median and the U.S. median. Full CSV available for download.

How to read the table. A domain score is a 0–100 composite of the indicators in that domain; higher values represent a higher mean of distress-oriented indicator percentiles. A county's domain rank is computed separately against all counties. Percentile is Greene County's national rank among all 3,144 U.S. counties for that indicator, always oriented so higher = more distressed.
Indicator Greene NC median U.S. median Pctile Source
Delinquency — domain score 91 · Rank 207 of 3,144
Auto loan delinquency Share of auto loan accounts 60+ days past due 10% 7% 5% 93rd Urban Institute Debt in America (2025)
Credit card delinquency Share of credit card accounts 60+ days past due 8% 7% 5% 87th Urban Institute Debt in America (2025)
Subprime credit share Share of residents with a credit score below 660 38% 28% 23% 92nd Equifax data retrieved via FRED (2025)
Default & Legal — domain score 60 · Rank 1,095 of 3,144
Debt in collections Share of residents with a credit file who have debt in collections 42% 27% 23% 96th Urban Institute Debt in America (2025)
Bankruptcy filing rate Personal bankruptcy filings per 100,000 residents 78 87 126 24th Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts, F-5A (2025)
Debt Burden (housing basis) — domain score 58 · Rank 1,121 of 3,144
Rent-to-income ratio Fair Market Rent (2BR) as share of median household income 21% 22% 21% 55th 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 20% 20% 18% 62nd U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-year (2024)
Labor — domain score 33 · Rank 2,261 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) 20% 22% 21% 43rd 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) 3% 4% 4% 23rd 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 84 · Rank 217 of 3,144
Child poverty rate Share of children under 18 below the federal poverty line 24% 20% 17% 81st U.S. Census Bureau, SAIPE (2024)
Disability rate Share of residents reporting a disability 21% 17% 16% 84th U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-year (2024)
Poverty rate Share of population below the federal poverty line 20% 14% 13% 87th U.S. Census Bureau, SAIPE (2024)
Uninsured rate Share of residents without health insurance coverage 17% 10% 8% 92nd U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-year (2024)
Compiled September 30, 2026 from Urban Institute Debt in America (2025 panel), U.S. Census Bureau (ACS 5-yr 2024, SAIPE 2024, Business Formation Statistics 2025), U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (LAUS August 2026, QCEW 2025), Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts (F-5A bankruptcy filings 2025), and HUD Fair Market Rents (FY2027).

Five-Domain Breakdown

The CDI is an equal-weight composite of five family-v1 distress domains. Each domain contributes 20% of the county score.

Delinquency Primary driver 91
Weight 20% · Rank 207 of 3,144
Safety Net & Buffer 84
Weight 20% · Rank 217 of 3,144
Default & Legal 60
Weight 20% · Rank 1,095 of 3,144
Debt Burden (housing basis) 58
Weight 20% · Rank 1,121 of 3,144
Labor 33
Weight 20% · Rank 2,261 of 3,144

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 Greene County data.

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Press contact: Ross Kilburn · press@americandefault.org · (307) 264-2992 · media inquiries welcome
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SNOW HILL, N.C. — Greene County is more distressed than 76% of U.S. counties, according to the County Distress Index released this month by American Default Research.

Greene scores 76 out of 100, which means it is more distressed than 76% of U.S. counties; its score label is high county distress. Within North Carolina, Greene ranks 29th of 100 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 delinquency as the primary driver in Greene. 10% of auto loan accounts are 60+ days past due — above the national median of 5%.

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.

— 30 —

Frequently Asked Questions

What is Greene County's CDI score, and what does it mean?

Greene County scores 76 out of 100 on the County Distress Index, which means it is more distressed than 76% of U.S. counties. Its score label is high county distress. It ranks 29th of 100 North Carolina counties. Higher county scores indicate more distress.

What drives Greene County's distress score?

The highest-scoring domain is Delinquency, at a domain score of 91. Auto loan delinquency ranks at the 93rd percentile nationally.

How does Greene County compare to its neighbors?

Greene County's neighbors span 1 CDI score labels. Highest-distress neighbor: Wilson County (88.00, very high county distress). Lowest: Wayne County (81.00, very high county distress).

How is the County Distress Index calculated?

The CDI averages 14 source indicators across five equal-weighted domains: Delinquency, Default & Legal, Debt Burden, Labor, and Safety Net & Buffer, then ranks that average against every other county, so the score is the share of U.S. counties a county is more distressed than. Data comes from Urban Institute, Census Bureau, BLS, U.S. Courts, U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, and related public sources. Full methodology →
Ross Kilburn
Written by

Ross Kilburn, Founder

Founder · American Default Research · Seattle, Washington

Ross Kilburn is the former COO of Ark Law Group, a foreclosure defense firm serving five states. He founded Seattle Short Sales, wrote Short Sale Your Home, and worked as a mortgage loan originator and real estate agent. He founded American Default Research in 2026.

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