#1,662 Oklahoma · 2026

Jackson County, Oklahoma

Middle fifth 1,662nd of 3,144 counties nationally · 24,669 residents How this is calculated →
The headline number
7% Jackson residents
vs.
5% U.S. median

Above the national median for auto loan delinquency.

Urban Institute (2024)

Main Findings

Wire lede · 35 words · paste-ready

Jackson County, Oklahoma ranks 1,662nd most distressed in the United States on the County Distress Index. The driver: 7% of auto loan accounts are 60+ days past due — above the national median of 5%.

Key Findings
  • 1,662nd of 3,144 counties on the County Distress Index — Middle fifth, 60th in Oklahoma.
  • 7% of auto loan accounts are 60+ days past due (U.S. median 5%). Auto loan delinquency at the 78th percentile nationally.
  • Uninsured rate at 14% — national median 8%, ranked at the 85th percentile.
  • Debt in collections at 30% — national median 23%, ranked at the 74th percentile.
  • Labor domain score 27 — weight 20.0% of the CDI composite.
County Distress Index cluster map. Jackson County, Oklahoma and its neighbors colored by distress fifth.
Jackson and its 6 geographic neighbors, graded by County Distress Index score. Jackson County ranks 1,662nd of 3,144. American Default Research
Wire quote — paste-ready, any angle 28 words

"Jackson County ranks in the middle fifth of U.S. counties. The county sits near the national center of the CDI distribution, so the domain mix carries the story."

— Ross Kilburn, Founder, American Default Research
Analyst quote — for feature use 30 words

"The CDI places this county in the middle fifth nationally. The county sits near the center of the geography distribution, so the domain mix matters more than the composite alone."

— Ross Kilburn, Founder, American Default Research

The Indicators Behind Jackson County's CDI Score

Every number traces to a public source. Jackson County's value shown alongside OK'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, where 50 = U.S. county median and higher = more distressed. Percentile is Jackson County's national rank among all 3,144 U.S. counties for that indicator, always oriented so higher = more distressed.
Indicator Jackson OK median U.S. median Pctile Source
Delinquency — domain score 74 · Rank 711 of 3,144
Auto loan delinquency Share of auto loan accounts 60+ days past due 7% 7% 5% 78th Urban Institute (2024)
Credit card delinquency Share of credit card accounts 60+ days past due 7% 6% 5% 72nd Urban Institute (2024)
Subprime credit share Share of residents with a credit score below 660 29% 30% 23% 72nd Urban Institute (2024)
Default & Legal — domain score 57 · Rank 1,244 of 3,144
Debt in collections Share of residents with a credit file who have debt in collections 30% 31% 23% 74th Urban Institute (2024)
Bankruptcy filing rate Personal bankruptcy filings per 100,000 residents 105 147 126 39th US Courts F-5A (2025)
Debt Burden (housing basis) — domain score 21 · Rank 2,743 of 3,144
Rent-to-income ratio Fair Market Rent (2BR) as share of median household income 19% 21% 21% 31st HUD FMR × Census ACS (2024)
Severe rent burden (50%+) Share of renter households paying 50%+ of income on rent 9% 16% 18% 11th Census ACS 5-yr (2023)
Labor — domain score 27 · Rank 2,305 of 3,144
Unemployment Share of labor force unemployed 3% 4% 4% 27th BLS LAUS (Dec 2025)
Safety Net & Buffer — domain score 66 · Rank 958 of 3,144
Child poverty rate Share of children under 18 below the federal poverty line 23% 23% 18% 75th Census SAIPE (2023)
Disability rate Share of residents reporting a disability 16% 20% 16% 49th Census ACS 5-yr (2023)
Poverty rate Share of population below the federal poverty line 16% 17% 14% 70th Census SAIPE (2023)
Transfer-income dependency Share of personal income from government transfers 25% 30% 27% 39th BEA Regional Personal Income (2023)
Uninsured rate Share of residents without health insurance coverage 14% 14% 8% 85th Census ACS 5-yr (2023)
Data compiled April 2026 from Urban Institute Debt in America (Equifax 2024 panel), U.S. Census Bureau (ACS 5-yr 2023, SAIPE 2023, Business Formation Statistics 2024), Bureau of Labor Statistics (LAUS Dec 2025, QCEW 2024), U.S. Courts Administrative Office (F-5A bankruptcy filings 2025), and HUD Fair Market Rents (FY2024).

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 74
Weight 20% · Rank 711 of 3,144
Safety Net & Buffer 66
Weight 20% · Rank 958 of 3,144
Default & Legal 57
Weight 20% · Rank 1,244 of 3,144
Labor 27
Weight 20% · Rank 2,305 of 3,144
Debt Burden (housing basis) 21
Weight 20% · Rank 2,743 of 3,144

Methodology

The County Distress Index is a 0–100 composite score of household financial distress, computed for all 3,144 U.S. counties. Higher scores indicate greater distress. 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 CDI score is the equal-weight mean of those domain scores.

Data sources include the Urban Institute Debt in America (Equifax consumer credit panel), U.S. Census Bureau (American Community Survey 5-year, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates, Business Formation Statistics), Bureau of Labor Statistics (Local Area Unemployment Statistics, Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages), U.S. Courts Administrative Office (F-5A bankruptcy filings), and HUD Fair Market Rents. Data vintages range from 2023 to 2025 depending on source; full indicator-level vintage detail is in the methodology document.

For Press & Research

Everything you need to cite Jackson County data — in under 60 seconds.

Embed preview — paste into any CMS <iframe src="https://americandefault.org/embed/county/40065/" width="600" height="300" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" style="border:1px solid #e5e7eb;border-radius:8px;" title="Jackson County, OK — County Distress Index"></iframe>
Press contact: Ross Kilburn · press@americandefault.org · (307) 264-2992 · same-day response, 9am–6pm ET
Draft wire copy 152-word AP-style article — use freely with attribution
DRAFT · 152 words · for immediate release · cleared for reuse with attribution to American Default Research

ALTUS, Okla. — Jackson County ranks 1,662nd among the nation's most financially distressed counties, according to the County Distress Index released this month by American Default Research.

The composite score of 49 out of 100 places Jackson in the middle fifth. Among 3,144 U.S. counties scored, 1,661 counties rank more distressed. Within Oklahoma, Jackson ranks 60th of 77 counties.

The index, which draws on 16 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 Jackson. 7% of auto loan accounts are 60+ days past due — above the national median of 5%.

"Jackson County ranks in the middle fifth of U.S. counties. The county sits near the national center of the CDI distribution, so the domain mix carries the story," said Ross Kilburn, founder of American Default Research.

Full methodology and county-by-county data are available at americandefault.org/methodology/cdi.

— 30 —

Frequently Asked Questions

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

Jackson County scores 49 out of 100 on the County Distress Index, placing it in the middle fifth. It ranks 1,662nd of 3,144 U.S. counties and 60th of 77 Oklahoma counties. Higher county scores indicate more distress.

What drives Jackson County's distress score?

The highest-scoring domain is Delinquency, at a domain score of 74. Auto loan delinquency ranks at the 78th percentile nationally.

How does Jackson County compare to its neighbors?

Jackson County's neighbors span two CDI distress fifths. Highest-distress neighbor: Tillman County (75.33, Most distressed fifth). Lowest: Harmon County (60.54, Second-most distressed fifth).

How is the County Distress Index calculated?

The CDI is a 0–100 composite of 16 source indicators across five equal-weighted domains: Delinquency, Default & Legal, Debt Burden, Labor, and Safety Net & Buffer. Data comes from Urban Institute, Census Bureau, BLS, U.S. Courts, HUD, and related public sources. Full methodology →
Ross Kilburn
Written by

Ross Kilburn, Founder

Founder · American Default Research · Seattle, Washington

Two decades working directly with financially distressed American households — from property preservation in 2003, to negotiating over 1,000 short sales during the Great Recession, to foreclosure defense marketing today. Author, The Ark Law Group Complete Guide to Short Sales (Auroch Press, 2013). Founded American Default Research in 2026.

Read more
from Ross →