Wayne County, MS
Housing, jobs, water, deposits and federal obligations for this county, each figure with the release it came from. Internal point 31.64, -88.68.
Assembled 2026-10-06. Read the brief.
- 16th pct · 2,563rd of 3,063 US counties · median $234,566
- 49th pct · 41st of 80 Mississippi counties · median $151,974
- 99th pct · 5th of 3,063 US counties · median +2.9%
- 100th pct · 1st of 80 Mississippi counties · median +1.3%
- US counties: not published this period
- Mississippi counties: not published this period
- 36th pct · 2,035th of 3,221 US counties · median 8,232
- 38th pct · 51st of 82 Mississippi counties · median 6,322
- 11th pct · 2,836th of 3,221 US counties · median $1,039
- 33rd pct · 55th of 82 Mississippi counties · median $903
- 29th pct · 2,147th of 3,063 US counties · median 4.3
- 56th pct · 35th of 80 Mississippi counties · median 3.3
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 $151,449 (Aug 2026), +18.8% over one year, +12.1% over five
- 16th pct · 2,563rd of 3,063 US counties · median $234,566
- 49th pct · 41st of 80 Mississippi counties · median $151,974
| Item | Value | Distance |
|---|---|---|
| Wayne County, MS | $151,449 · +18.8% 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
- Mississippi 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 $829 a month on $151,449 at 7.28%, against an average weekly wage worth $3,692 a month: 22.5% of one job’s pay.
- payment = P·r / (1 − (1+r)^−n), P = $151,449 × 80% = $121,159, r = 7.28%/12 (Freddie Mac PMMS via FRED, 2026-10-01), n = 360 → $829/mo principal and interest
- wage share = payment / (avg weekly wage $852 × 52 / 12 = $3,692) = 22% of one average job's pay (BLS QCEW 2026 Q1, all covered jobs)
- years of wages = $151,449 / ($852 × 52) = 3.4
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 #
4,915 jobs at 390 employers (2026 Q1); +2.1% jobs and +3.3% average weekly wage over the year
- 36th pct · 2,035th of 3,221 US counties · median 8,232
- 38th pct · 51st of 82 Mississippi counties · median 6,322
| Item | Value | Distance |
|---|---|---|
| Wayne County, MS | 4,915 jobs · $852/wk · +2.1% YoY |
| NAICS sector | Jobs | Avg weekly wage | Location quotient | Jobs over the year |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Retail trade | 824 | $580 | 1.72 | +2.9% |
| Manufacturing | 509 | $1,191 | 1.29 | +6.7% |
| Wholesale trade | 210 | $1,566 | 1.12 | +1.4% |
| Agriculture, forestry, fishing | 209 | $967 | 5.89 | +11.8% |
| Management of companies | 160 | $1,537 | 1.94 | +2.6% |
| Administrative and waste services | 152 | $824 | 0.54 | +11.8% |
| Transportation and warehousing | 147 | $1,282 | 0.71 | -9.3% |
| Finance and insurance | 94 | $1,086 | 0.47 | -5.1% |
| Professional and technical services | 62 | $751 | 0.18 | -15.1% |
| Utilities | 34 | $1,050 | 1.75 | -2.9% |
| Real estate and rental | 21 | $778 | 0.28 | +10.5% |
| Mining, oil and gas | 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 #
D1 moderate drought
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 #
27 gauges · 0 flooding · 1 with quality panels averaging 100 % · 6 stale
Sites found: 27, 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 |
|---|---|---|
| CHICKASAWHAY RIVER NR WAYNESBORO, MS | flow 262.0 ft³/s · no flooding | 4 km |
| Chickasawhay River at Shubuta | observation not current | 24 km |
| Tallahala Creek at Sharon/Sandersville | observation not current | 41 km |
| TALLAHALA CREEK AT LAUREL, MS | flow 23.1 ft³/s · observation not current · STALE | 42 km |
| BOGUE HOMO NR RICHTON, MS | flow 24,400 ft³/s · STALE | 42 km |
| CHICKASAWHAY RIVER AT QUITMAN, MS | flow 727.0 ft³/s | 45 km |
| TALLAHOMA CREEK AT FLYNT ROAD | observation not current | 47 km |
| Tallahala Creek at Morriston Road | observation not current | 51 km |
| TOMBIGBEE R AT COFFEEVILLE L&D NR COFFEEVILLE, AL. | flow 4,050 ft³/s · no flooding | 54 km |
| TALLAHALA CREEK NR RUNNELSTOWN, MS | flow 114.0 ft³/s · STALE | 54 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 #
5 wells in 0 named aquifers:
Sites found: 5, 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-314115088392301 | depth 19.8 ft · 2026-10-04 | 5 km |
| USGS-314210089084401 | depth 193.0 ft · 1993-09-29 | 45 km |
| USGS-313928089103001 | depth 153.4 ft · 1994-09-29 | 47 km |
| USGS-311137089110501 | depth 132.1 ft · 1968-05-31 | 69 km |
| USGS-312115089193601 | depth 35.4 ft · 1993-08-16 | 69 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 (0.16)
Σ wᵢ·termᵢ / Σ wᵢ = 0.35×0.25 + 0.2×0.00 / 0.55
Banks & federal dollars #
$507.8 m in deposits at 11 offices of 5 banks (SOD June 2026); HHI 4,786, highly concentrated. $115.4 m federal obligations in FY2026 (direct payments $114.9 m, grants $471,498), $23,470 per covered job
| Item | Value | Distance |
|---|---|---|
| First State Bank | $339.3 m · 66.8% share · 7 offices | |
| BankPlus | $64.1 m · 12.6% share · 1 office | |
| Great Southern Bank | $48.0 m · 9.5% share · 1 office | |
| Wayne, MS | $115.4 m FY2026 · $23,470/job | |
| MULTIPLE RECIPIENTS | $114.4 m · top recipient FY2026 |
| Institution | Deposits | Share | Offices |
|---|---|---|---|
| First State Bank | $339,276,000 | 66.8% | 7 |
| BankPlus | $64,061,000 | 12.6% | 1 |
| Great Southern Bank | $48,050,000 | 9.5% | 1 |
| The Huntington National Bank | $40,244,000 | 7.9% | 1 |
| The Citizens National Bank of Meridian | $16,144,000 | 3.2% | 1 |
Deposit concentration is 4,786 across 5 banks, which the 1995 Department of Justice bank merger screen calls highly concentrated.
HHI = Σ (share %)² over 5 banks with deposits in the county = 66.8² + 12.6² + 9.5² + … (2 more) = 4,786
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 | $105,287,566 |
| Department of Veterans Affairs | $8,704,496 |
| Department of Housing and Urban Development | $650,341 |
| Railroad Retirement Board | $396,900 |
| Department of Health and Human Services | $187,569 |
| Department of Agriculture | $130,153 |
| Department of Transportation | -$1 |
That is $23,470 per covered job, against 4,915 jobs in the 2026 Q1 QCEW quarter.
per job = FY2026 obligations $115.4 m / 4,915 covered jobs (BLS QCEW 2026 Q1, all ownerships) = $23,470
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 | 12.28 | 2026-10-04 | -0.1% |
| 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 | 2026-10-05 | +0.1% |
| 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 #
Wayne County, MS: 10 findings, 2 at a watch level and 8 noted
watchWayne County, MS' typical home value is +18.8% against a year earlier, a watch level here: typical home value at least 15 percent above a year ago (arithmetic on Zillow ZHVI, county and metro files; 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 2026-08.Show the arithmetic
- test: home.yoyPct = 18.830889520901085 >= 15
arithmetic on Zillow ZHVI, county and metro files; convention chosen for this dashboard, not an official level
watchWayne County, MS' typical home value of $151,449 scores 16 on the 0-to-100 scale across US counties but 49 across Mississippi counties, a gap of 33 points.
Period 2026-08.Show the arithmetic
- 33 = |16 across US counties - 49 across Mississippi counties|
position among the entities that published this metric this period; not an official level
noteWayne County, MS' average weekly wage was 3.3% 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
- +3.3 % = 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
noteWayne County, MS' covered employment was 2.1% 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
- +2.1 % = 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
noteWayne County, MS' typical home value rose 1.6% from $149,072 in July 2026 to $151,449 in August 2026, on Zillow ZHVI.
Period 2026-08.Show the arithmetic
- +1.6% = (151449.05044350517 - 149071.92961469016) / 149071.92961469016 × 100
- 151449.05044350517 = Zillow ZHVI, 2026-08
- 149071.92961469016 = Zillow ZHVI, 2026-07
Read all 10 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.