Real County, Texas

Real County is a county located on the Edwards Plateau in the U.S. state of Texas. As of the 2020 census, its population was 2,758. The county seat is Leakey. The county is named for Julius Real (1860–1944), a former member of the Texas State Senate. The Alto Frio Baptist Encampment is located in an isolated area of Real County southeast of Leakey.

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 700.1 square miles (1,813 km²), of which 699 square miles (1,810 km²) is land and 0.9 square miles (2.3 km²) (0.1%) is water.

As of the 2020 census, the county had a population of 2,758. The median age was 56.3 years, with 17.3% of residents under the age of 18 and 34.3% of residents 65 years of age or older. For every 100 females there were 103.2 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 99.0 males age 18 and over.

The racial makeup of the county was 80.2% White, 1.0% Black or African American, 0.7% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.5% Asian, 0.1% Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander, 5.6% from some other race, and 11.8% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino residents of any race comprised 25.1% of the population.

<0.1% of residents lived in urban areas, while 100.0% lived in rural areas.

There were 1,164 households in the county, of which 21.8% had children under the age of 18 living in them. Of all households, 50.8% were married-couple households, 18.7% were households with a male householder and no spouse or partner present, and 25.3% were households with a female householder and no spouse or partner present. About 28.2% of all households were made up of individuals and 16.2% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.

There were 1,656 housing units, of which 29.7% were vacant. Among occupied housing units, 80.7% were owner-occupied and 19.3% were renter-occupied. The homeowner vacancy rate was 2.1% and the rental vacancy rate was 8.8%.

As of the 2000 census, 3,047 people, 1,245 households, and 869 families resided in the county. The population density was 4/mi² (1.5/km²). The 2,007 housing units averaged 3/mi² (1.2/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 91.40% White, 0.20% Black or African American, 0.62% Native American, 0.20% Asian, 0.03% Pacific Islander, 6.01% from other races, and 1.54% from two or more races. Hispanics or Latinos of any race were about 22.58% of the population.