Financial Literacy in Garrett County, Maryland

With a population of roughly 28,393, Garrett County, Maryland is the 22nd-largest of 24 counties in Maryland. The population has declined 1.4% since 2020, from 28,797 to 28,393. The median age is 48.1, skewing older, where the pressing questions shift toward retirement income, medical costs and passing things on.

24.6% of Garrett County residents 25 and older have completed a bachelor's degree or more. That sits 6.4 points below the Maryland average of 31%. Put the other way round: of the 21,498 adults 25 and over counted in the 2019–2023 ACS, roughly 16,209 — 75.4% — are building their financial lives without a four-year degree behind them.

The typical household here earns $69,031 a year. That is $11,842 below the Maryland median. About 11% of residents live below the poverty line. The median home is valued at $217,000 — about 3.1× the median household income, a ratio that makes the arithmetic of a mortgage worth understanding before signing one.

Garrett County by the numbers

Measure	Value
Population (2024)	28,393
Change since 2020	-1.4%
Median household income	$69,031
Adults 25+ with a bachelor’s degree	24.6%
Adults 25+ with a high school diploma	89.9%
Median age	48.1
Poverty rate	11%
Unemployment rate	4.6%
Median home value	$217,000
Land area	649.077 sq mi
Population density	44 / sq mi

What Maryland teaches — and to whom

Maryland requires personal finance instruction, but folds it into another course rather than a class of its own — so how much a student actually gets depends heavily on the district and the teacher. Coverage like that varies enormously between districts, and it reaches no one who has already graduated.

LearnLife organises this the way the decisions actually arrive: Legal literacy — leases, contracts, employment rights and what a signature actually commits you to; Money — budgeting, credit, debt and taxes — the mechanics nobody is formally taught; Emotional regulation — the self-management that decides whether the other skills ever get used.

Where to start in Garrett County

Shift from accumulating to drawing down

With a median age of 48.1, a large share of Garrett County is closer to drawing on savings than building them. The skills that matter shift accordingly: sequencing withdrawals, understanding Medicare's enrolment windows, and getting beneficiary designations and a will actually filled in.

Questions people ask about Garrett County

Do high school students in Garrett County, Maryland have to take a personal finance class?

Maryland requires personal finance content, but delivers it inside another course rather than a dedicated class, so the depth varies by district and teacher.

How many adults in Garrett County, Maryland have a college degree?

24.6% of adults 25 and older hold a bachelor's degree or higher, based on the Census Bureau's 2019–2023 American Community Survey. The remaining 75.4% are managing their finances without one.

What is the median household income in Garrett County, Maryland?

$69,031, per the Census Bureau's 2019–2023 American Community Survey.

Where can adults in Garrett County, Maryland learn personal finance?

Graduation requirements only ever reach people still in school. For adults, LearnLife covers the same ground on demand — money, legal literacy and the self-management that decides whether either gets used.

Start with whichever one is costing you money right now.

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Population and demographic figures: U.S. Census Bureau — 2024 Gazetteer, Vintage 2024 Population Estimates, and the American Community Survey 2019–2023 5-year estimates. Graduation-requirement status: NGPF Live U.S. Dashboard, read 2026-09-14. Figures marked as unavailable are suppressed by the Census Bureau for small populations.