Lee County, GA
Housing, jobs, water, deposits and federal obligations for this county, each figure with the release it came from. Internal point 31.82, -84.15.
Assembled 2026-10-06. Read the brief.
- 60th pct · 1,204th of 3,063 US counties · median $234,566
- 63rd pct · 59th of 159 Georgia counties · median $219,820
- counties in the Albany metro: Rank context is unavailable: the manifest lists 4 counties in the Albany metro; fewer than 5 is too few to rank.
- 38th pct · 1,892nd of 3,063 US counties · median +2.9%
- 38th pct · 98th of 159 Georgia counties · median +2.6%
- counties in the Albany metro: Rank context is unavailable: the manifest lists 4 counties in the Albany metro; fewer than 5 is too few to rank.
- 41st pct · 812th of 1,399 US counties · median $1,496
- 28th pct · 52nd of 72 Georgia counties · median $1,651
- counties in the Albany metro: Rank context is unavailable: the manifest lists 4 counties in the Albany metro; fewer than 5 is too few to rank.
- 47th pct · 1,707th of 3,221 US counties · median 8,232
- 51st pct · 78th of 159 Georgia counties · median 7,095
- counties in the Albany metro: Rank context is unavailable: the manifest lists 4 counties in the Albany metro; fewer than 5 is too few to rank.
- 27th pct · 2,330th of 3,221 US counties · median $1,039
- 41st pct · 93rd of 159 Georgia counties · median $964
- counties in the Albany metro: Rank context is unavailable: the manifest lists 4 counties in the Albany metro; fewer than 5 is too few to rank.
- 71st pct · 878th of 3,063 US counties · median 4.3
- 70th pct · 47th of 159 Georgia counties · median 4.3
- counties in the Albany metro: Rank context is unavailable: the manifest lists 4 counties in the Albany metro; fewer than 5 is too few to rank.
Typical home value divided by the average annual wage of one covered job.
A percentile here is a min-max scaling of average rank: the smallest published value in the cohort is 0 and the largest is 100, and tied values share the average of the ranks they span. It is not the share of entities below the value, so 0 means smallest, not none below. Entities that did not publish the metric are outside the cohort entirely and are counted in neither the rank nor its denominator.
Home values #
Typical home $266,114 (Aug 2026), +1.9% over one year, +31.9% over five
- 60th pct · 1,204th of 3,063 US counties · median $234,566
- 63rd pct · 59th of 159 Georgia counties · median $219,820
- counties in the Albany metro: Rank context is unavailable: the manifest lists 4 counties in the Albany metro; fewer than 5 is too few to rank.
| Item | Value | Distance |
|---|---|---|
| Lee County, GA | $266,114 · +1.9% 1-yr |
Zillow Home Value Index (ZHVI), typical value of homes in the 35th to 65th percentile, smoothed and seasonally adjusted; a model estimate of value, not a sale price. Data through Zillow Research.
Rents #
Typical rent $1,403/mo (Aug 2026), +2.6% over one year; price-to-rent 15.8
- 41st pct · 812th of 1,399 US counties · median $1,496
- 28th pct · 52nd of 72 Georgia counties · median $1,651
- counties in the Albany metro: Rank context is unavailable: the manifest lists 4 counties in the Albany metro; fewer than 5 is too few to rank.
| Item | Value | Distance |
|---|---|---|
| Lee County, GA | $1,403/mo · +2.6% 1-yr |
Zillow Observed Rent Index (ZORI), smoothed, all homes and multifamily; price-to-rent = typical home / (typical rent × 12).
What the typical home costs to carry #
Principal and interest of $1,457 a month on $266,114 at 7.28%, against an average weekly wage worth $4,082 a month: 35.7% of one job’s pay.
- payment = P·r / (1 − (1+r)^−n), P = $266,114 × 80% = $212,891, r = 7.28%/12 (Freddie Mac PMMS via FRED, 2026-10-01), n = 360 → $1,457/mo principal and interest
- wage share = payment / (avg weekly wage $942 × 52 / 12 = $4,082) = 36% of one average job's pay (BLS QCEW 2026 Q1, all covered jobs)
- years of wages = $266,114 / ($942 × 52) = 5.4
- price-to-rent = $266,114 / ($1,403 × 12) = 15.8
The wage is one covered job’s average, not a household’s income, so this is the share of a single paycheque and not a mortgage underwriting ratio.
Estimate. Principal and interest on the typical home with 20% down over 30 years at this week's Freddie Mac average rate; compared with the average weekly wage of all jobs covered by unemployment insurance in the area (BLS QCEW), which is pay per job, not household income.
Jobs & wages #
7,318 jobs at 642 employers (2026 Q1); -3.5% jobs and +3.1% average weekly wage over the year
- 47th pct · 1,707th of 3,221 US counties · median 8,232
- 51st pct · 78th of 159 Georgia counties · median 7,095
- counties in the Albany metro: Rank context is unavailable: the manifest lists 4 counties in the Albany metro; fewer than 5 is too few to rank.
| Item | Value | Distance |
|---|---|---|
| Lee County, GA | 7,318 jobs · $942/wk · -3.5% YoY |
| NAICS sector | Jobs | Avg weekly wage | Location quotient | Jobs over the year |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Retail trade | 1,312 | $748 | 1.84 | -0.4% |
| Construction | 903 | $1,100 | 2.35 | -6.2% |
| Administrative and waste services | 686 | $705 | 1.65 | -17.9% |
| Accommodation and food services | 518 | $329 | 0.79 | +2.6% |
| Wholesale trade | 405 | $1,402 | 1.44 | -8.2% |
| Other services | 260 | $969 | 1.19 | +35.4% |
| Finance and insurance | 127 | $1,948 | 0.43 | -17.5% |
| Real estate and rental | 63 | $1,124 | 0.56 | +6.8% |
| Arts, entertainment and recreation | 9 | $503 | 0.07 | +28.6% |
| Agriculture, forestry, fishing | withheld | |||
| Mining, oil and gas | withheld | |||
| Utilities | withheld |
BLS Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages, all ownerships, total covered employment in the quarter's third month; over-the-year changes as published. Suppressed cells stay blank.
Drought #
D0 abnormally dry
Sites found: 5, searched within 0 km of this place’s internal point. That is a disc around a point, not the area itself: sites outside the boundary are included, and sites inside it further than 0 km away are not.
US Drought Monitor current week; the highest class of any polygon containing the point.
Reservoirs #
3 USGS reservoir gauges, no capacity figures to weight
Sites found: 3, searched within 150 km of this place’s internal point. That is a disc around a point, not the area itself: sites outside the boundary are included, and sites inside it further than 150 km away are not.
| Site | Reading | Distance |
|---|---|---|
| WALTER F. GEORGE RESERVOIR NEAR FORT GAINES, GA | 189.1 ft (USGS, no capacity on file) | 89 km |
| CHATTAHOOCHEE RIVER NEAR COLUMBIA, AL | 102.5 ft (USGS, no capacity on file) | 111 km |
| LAKE SEMINOLE NEAR CHATTAHOOCHEE, FL | 77.4 ft (USGS, no capacity on file) | 141 km |
Σ(capacity × percent full) / Σ capacity over TWDB reservoirs within 150 km. Texas only; elsewhere USGS reservoir elevation/storage is listed without a capacity to normalise by.
Stream gauges #
26 gauges · 0 flooding · 4 with quality panels averaging 88 % · 5 stale
Sites found: 26, searched within 75 km of this place’s internal point. That is a disc around a point, not the area itself: sites outside the boundary are included, and sites inside it further than 75 km away are not.
| Site | Reading | Distance |
|---|---|---|
| MUCKALEE CREEK AT GA 195, NEAR LEESBURG, GA | flow 246.0 ft³/s | 5 km |
| KINCHAFOONEE CREEK AT PINEWOOD ROAD, NR DAWSON, GA | flow 325.0 ft³/s · quality 100 % (1) | 12 km |
| FLINT RIVER AT GA 32, NEAR OAKFIELD, GA | flow 3,080 ft³/s | 16 km |
| CHOKEE CREEK AT NEW YORK ROAD, NEAR LEESBURG, GA | stage 9.67 ft | 16 km |
| KINCHAFOONEE CREEK AT CENTURY RD,NEAR LEESBURG,GA | stage 4.86 ft | 16 km |
| MUCKALEE CREEK AT FORRESTER PKWY NEAR LEESBURG, GA | stage 6.85 ft | 18 km |
| FLINT RIVER AT ALBANY, GA | flow 3,880 ft³/s · quality 50 % (1) | 25 km |
| LIME CREEK NEAR COBB, GA | flow 14.0 ft³/s · STALE | 28 km |
| MUCKALEE CREEK NEAR AMERICUS, GA | flow 148.0 ft³/s | 31 km |
| CHICKASAWHATCHEE CREEK NEAR ALBANY, GA | flow 111.0 ft³/s | 38 km |
USGS latest readings screened against EPA freshwater criteria (DO ≥ 5 mg/L, pH 6.5–9, conductance, turbidity, temperature); NWS flood categories where a NWPS gauge is co-located.
Groundwater #
111 wells in 0 named aquifers:
Sites found: 111, searched within 75 km of this place’s internal point. That is a disc around a point, not the area itself: sites outside the boundary are included, and sites inside it further than 75 km away are not.
| Site | Reading | Distance |
|---|---|---|
| USGS-314236084091401 | depth 17.3 ft · 1989-08-20 | 12 km |
| USGS-314330084005402 | depth 13.5 ft · 2026-10-05 | 16 km |
| USGS-314330084005401 | depth 30.4 ft · 2026-10-05 | 16 km |
| USGS-314330084005403 | depth 11.0 ft · 2026-10-05 | 16 km |
| USGS-314013084032501 | depth 17.1 ft · 1988-11-20 | 19 km |
| USGS-314011084032902 | depth 18.6 ft · 1988-11-14 | 19 km |
| USGS-314010084033101 | depth 22.8 ft · 1988-11-21 | 19 km |
| USGS-314013084032301 | depth 16.7 ft · 1988-11-14 | 19 km |
USGS latest daily water levels. A single latest reading says where the table is, not which way it is moving; select a well for its 365-day trace.
Water stress #
low (0.05)
Σ wᵢ·termᵢ / Σ wᵢ = 0.35×0.00 + 0.2×0.13 / 0.55
Banks & federal dollars #
$477.6 m in deposits at 6 offices of 6 banks (SOD June 2026); HHI 3,368, highly concentrated. $205.8 m federal obligations in FY2026 (direct payments $204.1 m, grants $1.6 m), $28,129 per covered job
| Item | Value | Distance |
|---|---|---|
| Pinnacle Bank | $229.6 m · 48.1% share · 1 office | |
| Colony Bank | $121.4 m · 25.4% share · 1 office | |
| Renasant Bank | $94.4 m · 19.8% share · 1 office | |
| Lee, GA | $205.8 m FY2026 · $28,129/job | |
| MULTIPLE RECIPIENTS | $190.5 m · top recipient FY2026 |
| Institution | Deposits | Share | Offices |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pinnacle Bank | $229,634,000 | 48.1% | 1 |
| Colony Bank | $121,419,000 | 25.4% | 1 |
| Renasant Bank | $94,444,000 | 19.8% | 1 |
| First State Bank of Blakely | $18,314,000 | 3.8% | 1 |
| PeoplesSouth Bank | $9,040,000 | 1.9% | 1 |
| First National Bank of Decatur County | $4,796,000 | 1.0% | 1 |
Deposit concentration is 3,368 across 6 banks, which the 1995 Department of Justice bank merger screen calls highly concentrated.
HHI = Σ (share %)² over 6 banks with deposits in the county = 48.1² + 25.4² + 19.8² + … (3 more) = 3,368
FDIC Summary of Deposits: deposits at every insured office as of June 30, annual; HHI is the sum of squared county deposit shares (DOJ 1995 bank merger screen: 1000 / 1800). USAspending: obligations by place of performance for the latest complete federal fiscal year (Oct 1 to Sep 30), what agencies committed, not what they paid out; recipients are legal entities. Per-job divides obligations by BLS QCEW covered employment.
Federal obligations #
USAspending place-of-performance obligations for FY2026, by awarding agency.
| Awarding agency | Obligations |
|---|---|
| Social Security Administration | $142,189,264 |
| Department of Veterans Affairs | $47,022,894 |
| Department of Agriculture | $13,640,204 |
| Department of Transportation | $1,583,671 |
| Railroad Retirement Board | $1,097,697 |
| Department of Health and Human Services | $225,000 |
| Department of Defense | $78,841 |
| Department of Housing and Urban Development | $9,714 |
| Small Business Administration | $0 |
That is $28,129 per covered job, against 7,318 jobs in the 2026 Q1 QCEW quarter.
per job = FY2026 obligations $205.8 m / 7,318 covered jobs (BLS QCEW 2026 Q1, all ownerships) = $28,129
USAspending obligations are recorded where the work is performed, so a prime award performed here is counted here even when the recipient is headquartered elsewhere. Recipients are legal entities, never people.
National context, not this county #
These are United States, single-gauge, single-state and port series. None of them is keyed to this county.
| Series | Latest | As of | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mississippi River at Memphis, stage · ft | not published | not published | |
| Mississippi River at St. Louis, stage · ft | not published | not published | |
| Ohio River at Louisville, stage · ft | 12.69 | 2026-10-05 | +3.3% |
| Missouri River at St. Joseph, stage · ft | not published | not published | |
| Colorado River below Hoover Dam, flow (Hoover releases) · ft³/s | 5,170.00 | 2026-02-05 | -25.3% |
| Texas reservoirs, statewide percent full · % | 72.60 | 2026-10-06 | +0.0% |
| Laredo truck crossings, monthly · trucks | 258,700.00 | 2026-08-01 | -0.4% |
| Los Angeles + Long Beach container volume, annual · TEU | 10,513,167.00 | 2023-01-01 | -13.5% |
| Containerships waiting for a berth, all US ports · ships | 6.00 | 2026-09-22 | -14.3% |
| Shanghai to Los Angeles container rate · $ per 40 ft box | 6,830.00 | 2026-08-01 | +7.4% |
| US diesel retail price · $ per gallon | unavailable | not published | |
| WTI crude oil, spot · $ per barrel | 96.16 | 2026-09-29 | -3.2% |
| 30-year fixed mortgage rate · % | 7.28 | 2026-10-01 | +3.6% |
| Housing starts, annual rate · thousands of units | 1,275.00 | 2026-08-01 | -2.6% |
| Building permits, annual rate · thousands of units | 1,403.00 | 2026-08-01 | -2.1% |
| Case-Shiller US home price index · index, Jan 2000 = 100 | 337.31 | 2026-07-01 | +0.1% |
| Unemployment rate · % | 4.20 | 2026-09-01 | +2.4% |
| US goods and services trade balance, monthly · $ millions | -88,576.00 | 2026-07-01 | -24.4% |
| Retail sales excluding food services, monthly · $ millions | 646,347.00 | 2026-08-01 | +1.1% |
The indicator registry has no county-keyed series and no geographic selection: every entry is national, a named gauge, a single state or a port. They are here as the backdrop the county's own numbers move against, and they are never this county's readings.
What changed #
Lee County, GA: 7 findings, 1 at an alert level, 1 at a watch level and 5 noted
alertLee County, GA's covered employment is -3.5% against a year earlier, an alert level here: covered employment at least 3 percent below the same quarter a year earlier (BLS QCEW over-the-year percent change, as published; convention chosen for this dashboard, not an official level). The previous published period is not in this table, so this is a standing level rather than a change.
Period 2026 Q1.Show the arithmetic
- test: jobs.yoy.emp = -3.5 <= -3
BLS QCEW over-the-year percent change, as published; convention chosen for this dashboard, not an official level
watchLee County, GA's covered employment is -3.5% against a year earlier, a watch level here: covered employment below the same quarter a year earlier (BLS QCEW over-the-year percent change, as published; not an official level). The previous published period is not in this table, so this is a standing level rather than a change.
Period 2026 Q1.Show the arithmetic
- test: jobs.yoy.emp = -3.5 < 0
BLS QCEW over-the-year percent change, as published; not an official level
noteLee County, GA's covered employment was 3.5% lower than the same quarter a year earlier in 2026 Q1, on BLS QCEW's published over-the-year change.
Period 2026 Q1.Show the arithmetic
- -3.5 % = BLS QCEW over-the-year percent change for 2026 Q1, as published
- the newest QCEW file carries no year-earlier level, so no move from one level to another is printed
BLS QCEW over-the-year percent change, as published
noteLee County, GA's average weekly wage was 3.1% higher than the same quarter a year earlier in 2026 Q1, on BLS QCEW's published over-the-year change.
Period 2026 Q1.Show the arithmetic
- +3.1 % = BLS QCEW over-the-year percent change for 2026 Q1, as published
- the newest QCEW file carries no year-earlier level, so no move from one level to another is printed
BLS QCEW over-the-year percent change, as published
noteLee County, GA's typical asking rent rose 0.8% from $1,391 in July 2026 to $1,403 in August 2026, on Zillow ZORI.
Period 2026-08.Show the arithmetic
- +0.8% = (1402.5555555555557 - 1390.7840798701661) / 1390.7840798701661 × 100
- 1402.5555555555557 = Zillow ZORI, 2026-08
- 1390.7840798701661 = Zillow ZORI, 2026-07
Read all 7 findings in the full brief
Every finding is produced by a fixed rule table and a fixed sentence for each rule. Nothing here is generated prose.