#238 Texas · 2026

Collin County, Texas

28 · low county distress more distressed than 28% of U.S. counties · 238th of 254 counties in Texas · 1,195,359 residents How this is calculated →
The headline number
165 Collin residents
vs.
126 U.S. median

Above the national median for bankruptcy filing rate — and 22.7× the rate of the healthiest U.S. county (Glacier County, MT — 7).

Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts, F-5A (2025)

Main Findings

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Collin County, Texas is more distressed than 28% of U.S. counties on the County Distress Index. Collin sits near the national median across major distress indicators. Its highest-scoring domain is Default & Legal and its lowest is Safety Net & Buffer.

Key Findings
  • 238th of 254 counties in Texas on the County Distress Index — 28 · low county distress, more distressed than 28% of U.S. counties.
  • A bankruptcy filing rate of 165 (U.S. median 126). Bankruptcy filing rate at the 65th percentile nationally. Source: Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts, F-5A (2025).
  • Severe rent burden (50%+) at 22% — national median 18%, ranked at the 70th percentile. Source: U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-year (2024).
  • Unemployment (average of monthly rates) at 4% — national median 4%, ranked at the 54th percentile. Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, LAUS (monthly rates averaged, September 2025 to August 2026; no figures published for October 2025).
  • Uninsured rate at 10% — national median 8%, ranked at the 63rd percentile. Source: U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-year (2024).
Distinctive Signals
Boundary Signal

Neighbors span four CDI score labels. The 44-point drop to Denton County marks where the Dallas suburbs distress corridor ends.

County Distress Index cluster map. Collin County, Texas and its neighbors colored by county distress score label.
Collin and its 6 geographic neighbors, graded by County Distress Index score. Collin County is more distressed than 28% of U.S. counties. American Default Research
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Collin County has a low county distress score. The CDI reading is a county comparison, separate from national ADI bands.

— American Default Research
Index note — for feature use 28 words

The CDI gives this county a low county distress label. The score is a county comparison, separate from national ADI bands. Its highest-scoring domain is Default & Legal.

— 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
BLS 1990 to 2025

Unemployment rate

3.9% +0.1 percentage points since 1990
Census 1989 to 2024

Poverty rate

5.7% +0.1 percentage points since 1989
U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis 1969 to 2024

Transfer income share

8.2% +2 percentage points since 1969
Equifax data retrieved via FRED 2014 Q2 to 2025 Q4

Subprime credit population

21.6% -5.84 percentage points since 2014 Q2

The Indicators Behind Collin County's CDI Score

Every number traces to a public source. Collin 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 Collin County's national rank among all 3,144 U.S. counties for that indicator, always oriented so higher = more distressed.
Indicator Collin TX median U.S. median Pctile Source
Delinquency — domain score 40 · Rank 1,934 of 3,144
Auto loan delinquency Share of auto loan accounts 60+ days past due 5% 7% 5% 44th Urban Institute Debt in America (2025)
Credit card delinquency Share of credit card accounts 60+ days past due 5% 7% 5% 33rd Urban Institute Debt in America (2025)
Subprime credit share Share of residents with a credit score below 660 22% 32% 23% 42nd Equifax data retrieved via FRED (2025)
Default & Legal — domain score 52 · Rank 1,462 of 3,144
Debt in collections Share of residents with a credit file who have debt in collections 20% 35% 23% 38th Urban Institute Debt in America (2025)
Bankruptcy filing rate Personal bankruptcy filings per 100,000 residents 165 78 126 65th Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts, F-5A (2025)
Debt Burden (housing basis) — domain score 43 · Rank 1,876 of 3,144
Rent-to-income ratio Fair Market Rent (2BR) as share of median household income 17% 22% 21% 16th 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 22% 17% 18% 70th U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-year (2024)
Labor — domain score 42 · Rank 1,959 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) 17% 22% 21% 29th 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% 54th 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 14 · Rank 2,932 of 3,144
Child poverty rate Share of children under 18 below the federal poverty line 6% 20% 17% 2nd U.S. Census Bureau, SAIPE (2024)
Disability rate Share of residents reporting a disability 8% 16% 16% 1st U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-year (2024)
Poverty rate Share of population below the federal poverty line 6% 15% 13% 1st U.S. Census Bureau, SAIPE (2024)
Uninsured rate Share of residents without health insurance coverage 10% 17% 8% 63rd 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.

Default & Legal Primary driver 52
Weight 20% · Rank 1,462 of 3,144
Debt Burden (housing basis) 43
Weight 20% · Rank 1,876 of 3,144
Labor 42
Weight 20% · Rank 1,959 of 3,144
Delinquency 40
Weight 20% · Rank 1,934 of 3,144
Safety Net & Buffer 14
Weight 20% · Rank 2,932 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 Collin County data.

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Press contact: Ross Kilburn · press@americandefault.org · (307) 264-2992 · media inquiries welcome
Draft wire copy 122-word AP-style article — use freely with attribution
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MCKINNEY, Texas — Collin County is more distressed than 28% of U.S. counties, according to the County Distress Index released this month by American Default Research.

Collin scores 28 out of 100, which means it is more distressed than 28% of U.S. counties; its score label is low county distress. Within Texas, Collin ranks 238th 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, finds Collin sitting near the national median across major distress indicators, with no single domain emerging as a clear driver.

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

Collin County scores 28 out of 100 on the County Distress Index, which means it is more distressed than 28% of U.S. counties. Its score label is low county distress. It ranks 238th of 254 Texas counties. Higher county scores indicate more distress.

What drives Collin County's distress score?

The highest-scoring domain is Default & Legal, at a domain score of 52. Bankruptcy filing rate ranks at the 65th percentile nationally.

How does Collin County compare to its neighbors?

Collin County's neighbors span 4 CDI score labels. Highest-distress neighbor: Dallas County (80.00, very high county distress). Lowest: Rockwall County (36.00, low-moderate 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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from Ross →