Study says these are the 10 poorest Missouri counties. How does your county compare?
The richest counties in Missouri are all near the most populated cities in the state, according to a study on wealth. But where are the poorest counties in the state?
Financial tech company SmartAsset published a report showing the 10 wealthiest counties in the state using data from property values, investment income and median income. Data sources included IRS tax statistics, Zillow and the U.S. Census.
The report includes ranks for each county based on the data, meaning you can also find the poorest areas in Missouri. Of the 10 poorest counties, eight of them are in the southeast part of the state and two are near the northwestern corner.
See how the bottom 10 ranked below.
Poorest counties in Missouri
Here are eight of the poorest counties in Missouri:
Pemiscot County
- Median income: $37,426
- Investment income: $23,494
- Median home value: $88,292
Hickory County
- Median income: $33,302
- Investment income: $24,032
- Median home value: $178,246
Mississippi County
- Median income: $40,833
- Investment income: $37,705
- Median home value: $95,759
New Madrid County
- Median income: $44,092
- Investment income: $22,784
- Median home value: $92,772
Wayne County
- Median income: $42,758
- Investment income: $22,418
- Median home value: $115,931
Dunklin County
- Median income: $44,868
- Investment income: $30,498
- Median home value: $80,707
Oregon County
- Median income: $41,365
- Investment income: $24,218
- Median home value: $156,258
Ripley County
- Median income: $42,541
- Investment income: $27,465
- Median home value: $140,865
StateAsset also lists Worth County and Holt County as poor counties in Missouri. However, the data collection from Zillow does not list the counties’ home values, causing both counties to have an incorrect median home value of $0.
Worth County has one home on sale listed on Zillow priced at $79,900, while Holt County has 45 homes listed with prices ranging from $80,000 to $395,000.
The median income in Worth County, two hours north of Kansas City, is $43,536 and the county’s investment income is $17,134, lower than the state median of $31,357. The county has a population of 1,907, according to the U.S. Census.
Holt County, an hour-and-a-half west of Worth County. The median income in this county of 4,248 residents is $55,153 and the investment income is $32,751.
