Mason County, KY
Housing, jobs, water, deposits and federal obligations for this county, each figure with the release it came from. Internal point 38.59, -83.83.
Assembled 2026-10-06. Read the brief.
- 25th pct · 2,280th of 3,063 US counties · median $234,566
- 46th pct · 65th of 120 Kentucky counties · median $181,373
- 7th pct · 2,835th of 3,063 US counties · median +2.9%
- 45th pct · 66th of 120 Kentucky counties · median -2.1%
- US counties: not published this period
- Kentucky counties: not published this period
- 48th pct · 1,649th of 3,221 US counties · median 8,232
- 63rd pct · 44th of 120 Kentucky counties · median 5,237
- 48th pct · 1,665th of 3,221 US counties · median $1,039
- 62nd pct · 45th of 120 Kentucky counties · median $953
- 26th pct · 2,255th of 3,063 US counties · median 4.3
- 38th pct · 74th of 120 Kentucky counties · median 3.6
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 $174,839 (Aug 2026), -2.9% over one year, +34.5% over five
- 25th pct · 2,280th of 3,063 US counties · median $234,566
- 46th pct · 65th of 120 Kentucky counties · median $181,373
| Item | Value | Distance |
|---|---|---|
| Mason County, KY | $174,839 · -2.9% 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 #
Zillow publishes no rent index for this area (ZORI covers about 1,400 counties)
- US counties: not published this period
- Kentucky counties: not published this period
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 $957 a month on $174,839 at 7.28%, against an average weekly wage worth $4,472 a month: 21.4% of one job’s pay.
- payment = P·r / (1 − (1+r)^−n), P = $174,839 × 80% = $139,871, r = 7.28%/12 (Freddie Mac PMMS via FRED, 2026-10-01), n = 360 → $957/mo principal and interest
- wage share = payment / (avg weekly wage $1,032 × 52 / 12 = $4,472) = 21% of one average job's pay (BLS QCEW 2026 Q1, all covered jobs)
- years of wages = $174,839 / ($1,032 × 52) = 3.3
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 #
7,831 jobs at 735 employers (2026 Q1); -0.5% jobs and +4.6% average weekly wage over the year
- 48th pct · 1,649th of 3,221 US counties · median 8,232
- 63rd pct · 44th of 120 Kentucky counties · median 5,237
| Item | Value | Distance |
|---|---|---|
| Mason County, KY | 7,831 jobs · $1,032/wk · -0.5% YoY |
| NAICS sector | Jobs | Avg weekly wage | Location quotient | Jobs over the year |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Retail trade | 1,254 | $687 | 1.64 | +0.0% |
| Manufacturing | 1,011 | $1,379 | 1.60 | -3.3% |
| Accommodation and food services | 829 | $346 | 1.18 | -5.6% |
| Construction | 429 | $1,762 | 1.04 | -3.6% |
| Administrative and waste services | 276 | $657 | 0.62 | +13.6% |
| Transportation and warehousing | 251 | $1,466 | 0.76 | -9.4% |
| Other services | 185 | $516 | 0.79 | +2.8% |
| Finance and insurance | 184 | $1,224 | 0.58 | +7.0% |
| Information | 126 | $1,811 | 0.87 | +5.9% |
| Arts, entertainment and recreation | 98 | $284 | 0.76 | -18.3% |
| Real estate and rental | 39 | $910 | 0.32 | -11.4% |
| Agriculture, forestry, fishing | 9 | $676 | 0.16 | +12.5% |
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 #
No drought class at this point (USDM covers the United States only)
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 #
No reservoir gauges within 150 km (or the camera is above the gauge altitude)
Sites found: 0, 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.
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 #
41 gauges · 0 flooding · 5 with quality panels averaging 98 % · 12 stale
Sites found: 41, 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 |
|---|---|---|
| NORTH FORK LICKING RIVER NEAR LEWISBURG, KY | flow 1.60 ft³/s · STALE | 6 km |
| OHIO RIVER AT MAYSVILLE, KY | stage 33.7 ft | 11 km |
| NORTH FORK LICKING RIVER NEAR MT OLIVET, KY | flow 0.63 ft³/s | 17 km |
| LICKING RIVER AT BLUE LICK SPRINGS, KY | flow 117.0 ft³/s | 24 km |
| CABIN CREEK NEAR TOLLESBORO, KY | flow 142.0 ft³/s · STALE | 25 km |
| White Oak Creek near Georgetown OH | flow 82.0 ft³/s · STALE | 31 km |
| White Oak Creek above Georgetown OH | flow 43.7 ft³/s | 37 km |
| LICKING RIVER AT MCKINNEYSBURG, KY | flow 131.0 ft³/s | 38 km |
| Ohio Brush Creek near West Union OH | flow 30.3 ft³/s | 42 km |
| HINKSTON CREEK NEAR CARLISLE, KY | flow 2.31 ft³/s | 43 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 #
16 wells in 1 named aquifer: Silurian-Devonian aquifers
Sites found: 16, 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-381543083341501 | depth 4.93 ft · 2009-07-06 | 43 km |
| USGS-381540083342002 | depth 12.4 ft · 2009-07-06 | 43 km |
| USGS-381541083341701 | depth 10.3 ft · 2009-07-06 | 43 km |
| USGS-381540083341801 | depth 14.6 ft · 2009-07-06 | 43 km |
| USGS-381539083342001 | depth 11.9 ft · 2009-07-06 | 43 km |
| USGS-381539083341902 | depth 10.7 ft · 2009-07-06 | 43 km |
| USGS-381539083341901 | depth 14.4 ft · 2009-07-06 | 43 km |
| USGS-381538083342005 | depth 14.1 ft · 2009-07-06 | 43 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 (0.01)
Σ wᵢ·termᵢ / Σ wᵢ = 0.35×0.00 + 0.2×0.02 / 0.55
Banks & federal dollars #
$539.3 m in deposits at 11 offices of 6 banks (SOD June 2026); HHI 2,408, highly concentrated. $122.4 m federal obligations in FY2026 (direct payments $115.0 m, grants $7.3 m), $15,630 per covered job
| Item | Value | Distance |
|---|---|---|
| U.S. Bank National Association | $191.9 m · 35.6% share · 1 office | |
| Bank of Maysville | $133.7 m · 24.8% share · 3 offices | |
| Peoples Bank of Kentucky, Inc. | $94.2 m · 17.5% share · 2 offices | |
| Mason, KY | $122.4 m FY2026 · $15,630/job | |
| MULTIPLE RECIPIENTS | $103.6 m · top recipient FY2026 |
| Institution | Deposits | Share | Offices |
|---|---|---|---|
| U.S. Bank National Association | $191,919,000 | 35.6% | 1 |
| Bank of Maysville | $133,730,000 | 24.8% | 3 |
| Peoples Bank of Kentucky, Inc. | $94,168,000 | 17.5% | 2 |
| Security Bank and Trust Co. | $60,311,000 | 11.2% | 3 |
| Peoples Bank | $52,723,000 | 9.8% | 1 |
| First State Bank | $6,491,000 | 1.2% | 1 |
Deposit concentration is 2,408 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 = 35.6² + 24.8² + 17.5² + … (3 more) = 2,408
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 | $95,428,755 |
| Department of Education | $10,743,136 |
| Department of Veterans Affairs | $7,719,405 |
| Department of Transportation | $5,191,459 |
| Department of Housing and Urban Development | $2,033,026 |
| Department of Agriculture | $733,885 |
| Railroad Retirement Board | $439,113 |
| Department of the Interior | $67,622 |
| Department of Health and Human Services | $42,333 |
| Department of Defense | $1,996 |
| National Science Foundation | $0 |
| Department of Energy | $0 |
That is $15,630 per covered job, against 7,831 jobs in the 2026 Q1 QCEW quarter.
per job = FY2026 obligations $122.4 m / 7,831 covered jobs (BLS QCEW 2026 Q1, all ownerships) = $15,630
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 | 3.00 | 2026-10-06 | -50.0% |
| Shanghai to Los Angeles container rate · $ per 40 ft box | 7,848.00 | 2026-09-01 | +14.9% |
| 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 | -105,572.00 | 2026-08-01 | -13.7% |
| 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 #
Mason County, KY: 8 findings, 3 at a watch level and 5 noted
watchMason County, KY's typical home value is -2.9% against a year earlier, a watch level here: typical home value below a year ago (arithmetic on Zillow ZHVI, county and metro files; not an official level). The previous published period is not in this table, so this is a standing level rather than a change.
Period 2026-08.Show the arithmetic
- test: home.yoyPct = -2.927747958339485 < 0
arithmetic on Zillow ZHVI, county and metro files; not an official level
watchMason County, KY's covered employment is -0.5% 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 = -0.5 < 0
BLS QCEW over-the-year percent change, as published; not an official level
watchMason County, KY's typical home value of -2.9% scores 7 on the 0-to-100 scale across US counties but 45 across Kentucky counties, a gap of 38 points.
Period 2026-08.Show the arithmetic
- 38 = |7 across US counties - 45 across Kentucky counties|
position among the entities that published this metric this period; not an official level
noteMason County, KY's average weekly wage was 4.6% 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
- +4.6 % = 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
noteMason County, KY's typical home value rose 0.6% from $173,756 in July 2026 to $174,839 in August 2026, on Zillow ZHVI.
Period 2026-08.Show the arithmetic
- +0.6% = (174839.32334478883 - 173755.6795887167) / 173755.6795887167 × 100
- 174839.32334478883 = Zillow ZHVI, 2026-08
- 173755.6795887167 = Zillow ZHVI, 2026-07
Read all 8 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.