#58 Texas · 2026

Bexar County, Texas

81 · very high county distress more distressed than 81% of U.S. counties · 58th of 254 counties in Texas · 2,087,679 residents How this is calculated →
The headline number
34% Bexar residents
vs.
23% U.S. median

Above the national median for subprime credit share.

Equifax data retrieved via FRED (2025)

Main Findings

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Bexar County, Texas is more distressed than 81% of U.S. counties on the County Distress Index. The driver: 34% of residents carry subprime credit (score below 660) — above the national median of 23%. Its highest-scoring domain is Delinquency and its lowest is Labor.

Key Findings
  • 58th of 254 counties in Texas on the County Distress Index — 81 · very high county distress, more distressed than 81% of U.S. counties.
  • 34% of residents carry subprime credit (score below 660) (U.S. median 23%). Subprime credit share at the 86th percentile nationally. Source: Equifax data retrieved via FRED (2025).
  • Severe rent burden (50%+) at 25% — national median 18%, ranked at the 87th percentile. Source: U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-year (2024).
  • Debt in collections at 35% — national median 23%, ranked at the 85th percentile. Source: Urban Institute Debt in America (2025).
  • Uninsured rate at 16% — national median 8%, ranked at the 92nd percentile. Source: U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-year (2024).
Distinctive Signals
Boundary Signal

Neighbors span five CDI score labels. The 64-point drop to Kendall County marks where the San Antonio metro distress corridor ends.

County Distress Index cluster map. Bexar County, Texas and its neighbors colored by county distress score label.
Bexar and its 7 geographic neighbors, graded by County Distress Index score. Bexar County is more distressed than 81% of U.S. counties. American Default Research
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Bexar County has a very high county distress score. The domain table shows which local pressure carries the composite.

— American Default Research
Index note — for feature use 26 words

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 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

4.0% -3.3 percentage points since 1990
Census 1989 to 2024

Poverty rate

14.6% -7 percentage points since 1989
U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis 1969 to 2024

Transfer income share

18.4% +11.9 percentage points since 1969
FRED/Equifax 2014 Q2 to 2025 Q4

Subprime credit population

34.4% -5.74 percentage points since 2014 Q2

The Indicators Behind Bexar County's CDI Score

Every number traces to a public source. Bexar County's value shown alongside TX'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 Bexar County's national rank among all 3,144 U.S. counties for that indicator, always oriented so higher = more distressed.
Indicator Bexar TX median U.S. median Pctile Source
Delinquency — domain score 83 · Rank 428 of 3,144
Auto loan delinquency Share of auto loan accounts 60+ days past due 8% 7% 5% 83rd Urban Institute Debt in America (2025)
Credit card delinquency Share of credit card accounts 60+ days past due 8% 7% 5% 81st Urban Institute Debt in America (2025)
Subprime credit share Share of residents with a credit score below 660 34% 32% 23% 86th Equifax data retrieved via FRED (2025)
Default & Legal — domain score 64 · Rank 957 of 3,144
Debt in collections Share of residents with a credit file who have debt in collections 35% 35% 23% 85th Urban Institute Debt in America (2025)
Bankruptcy filing rate Personal bankruptcy filings per 100,000 residents 113 78 126 43rd Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts, F-5A (2025)
Debt Burden (housing basis) — domain score 82 · Rank 354 of 3,144
Rent-to-income ratio Fair Market Rent (2BR) as share of median household income 24% 22% 21% 77th 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 25% 17% 18% 87th U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-year (2024)
Labor — domain score 56 · Rank 1,331 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) 21% 22% 21% 53rd 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% 4% 4% 59th 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 57 · Rank 1,301 of 3,144
Child poverty rate Share of children under 18 below the federal poverty line 18% 20% 17% 55th U.S. Census Bureau, SAIPE (2024)
Disability rate Share of residents reporting a disability 15% 16% 16% 41st U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-year (2024)
Poverty rate Share of population below the federal poverty line 15% 15% 13% 62nd U.S. Census Bureau, SAIPE (2024)
Uninsured rate Share of residents without health insurance coverage 16% 17% 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 83
Weight 20% · Rank 428 of 3,144
Debt Burden (housing basis) 82
Weight 20% · Rank 354 of 3,144
Default & Legal 64
Weight 20% · Rank 957 of 3,144
Safety Net & Buffer 57
Weight 20% · Rank 1,301 of 3,144
Labor 56
Weight 20% · Rank 1,331 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 Bexar County data.

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Press contact: Ross Kilburn · press@americandefault.org · (307) 264-2992 · media inquiries welcome
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SAN ANTONIO, Texas — Bexar County is more distressed than 81% of U.S. counties, according to the County Distress Index released this month by American Default Research.

Bexar scores 81 out of 100, which means it is more distressed than 81% of U.S. counties; its score label is very high county distress. Within Texas, Bexar ranks 58th of 254 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 Bexar. 34% of residents carry subprime credit (score below 660) — above the national median of 23%.

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 Bexar County's CDI score, and what does it mean?

Bexar County scores 81 out of 100 on the County Distress Index, which means it is more distressed than 81% of U.S. counties. Its score label is very high county distress. It ranks 58th of 254 Texas counties. Higher county scores indicate more distress.

What drives Bexar County's distress score?

The highest-scoring domain is Delinquency, at a domain score of 83. Subprime credit share ranks at the 86th percentile nationally.

How does Bexar County compare to its neighbors?

Bexar County's neighbors span 5 CDI score labels. Highest-distress neighbor: Atascosa County (83.00, very high county distress). Lowest: Kendall County (19.00, very low 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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