Dare County, NC
Housing, jobs, water, deposits and federal obligations for this county, each figure with the release it came from. Internal point 35.61, -75.77.
Assembled 2026-10-06. Read the brief.
- 96th pct · 114th of 3,063 US counties · median $234,566
- 100th pct · 1st of 100 North Carolina counties · median $273,108
- 27th pct · 2,232nd of 3,063 US counties · median +2.9%
- 43rd pct · 57th of 100 North Carolina counties · median +1.1%
- 91st pct · 115th of 1,399 US counties · median $1,496
- 96th pct · 3rd of 63 North Carolina counties · median $1,573
- 69th pct · 984th of 3,221 US counties · median 8,232
- 53rd pct · 47th of 100 North Carolina counties · median 16,739
- 31st pct · 2,214th of 3,221 US counties · median $1,039
- 33rd pct · 67th of 100 North Carolina counties · median $984
- 98th pct · 39th of 3,063 US counties · median 4.3
- 100th pct · 1st of 100 North Carolina counties · median 5.0
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 $599,211 (Aug 2026), +0.8% over one year, +28.4% over five
- 96th pct · 114th of 3,063 US counties · median $234,566
- 100th pct · 1st of 100 North Carolina counties · median $273,108
| Item | Value | Distance |
|---|---|---|
| Dare County, NC | $599,211 · +0.8% 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 #
Typical rent $2,295/mo (Aug 2026), n/a over one year; price-to-rent 21.8
- 91st pct · 115th of 1,399 US counties · median $1,496
- 96th pct · 3rd of 63 North Carolina counties · median $1,573
| Item | Value | Distance |
|---|---|---|
| Dare County, NC | $2,295/mo · n/a 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 $3,280 a month on $599,211 at 7.28%, against an average weekly wage worth $4,147 a month: 79.1% of one job’s pay.
- payment = P·r / (1 − (1+r)^−n), P = $599,211 × 80% = $479,369, r = 7.28%/12 (Freddie Mac PMMS via FRED, 2026-10-01), n = 360 → $3,280/mo principal and interest
- wage share = payment / (avg weekly wage $957 × 52 / 12 = $4,147) = 79% of one average job's pay (BLS QCEW 2026 Q1, all covered jobs)
- years of wages = $599,211 / ($957 × 52) = 12.0
- price-to-rent = $599,211 / ($2,295 × 12) = 21.8
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 #
18,452 jobs at 2,328 employers (2026 Q1); 0.0% jobs and +1.8% average weekly wage over the year
- 69th pct · 984th of 3,221 US counties · median 8,232
- 53rd pct · 47th of 100 North Carolina counties · median 16,739
| Item | Value | Distance |
|---|---|---|
| Dare County, NC | 18,452 jobs · $957/wk · 0.0% YoY |
| NAICS sector | Jobs | Avg weekly wage | Location quotient | Jobs over the year |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Accommodation and food services | 3,943 | $579 | 2.38 | +2.8% |
| Retail trade | 3,518 | $792 | 1.96 | -1.1% |
| Real estate and rental | 1,348 | $970 | 4.76 | -2.7% |
| Construction | 1,187 | $1,073 | 1.23 | -1.3% |
| Health care and social assistance | 1,099 | $1,076 | 0.40 | +98.7% |
| Administrative and waste services | 1,007 | $1,085 | 0.96 | +3.6% |
| Professional and technical services | 719 | $1,445 | 0.56 | -10.1% |
| Other services | 505 | $792 | 0.92 | -1.6% |
| Arts, entertainment and recreation | 394 | $553 | 1.30 | +1.0% |
| Finance and insurance | 384 | $1,894 | 0.51 | -1.5% |
| Wholesale trade | 226 | $1,318 | 0.32 | -10.3% |
| Transportation and warehousing | 100 | $1,318 | 0.13 | -16.0% |
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 #
2 USGS reservoir gauges, no capacity figures to weight
Sites found: 2, 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 |
|---|---|---|
| LAKE MATTAMUSKEET E OF NC HWY 94 NR FAIRFIELD, NC | 1.83 ft (USGS, no capacity on file) | 39 km |
| LAKE MATTAMUSKEET W OF NC HWY 94 NR FAIRFIELD, NC | 1.89 ft (USGS, no capacity on file) | 45 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 #
36 gauges · 0 flooding · 0 with quality panels · 3 stale
Sites found: 36, 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 |
|---|---|---|
| Pamlico Sound at Stumpy Point (in MLLW) | no flooding | 10 km |
| Far Creek at Engelhard (in MLLW) | no flooding | 23 km |
| Pamlico Sound at Rodanthe Ferry Terminal (in MLLW) | no flooding | 27 km |
| Atlantic Coast at Rodanthe Pier | out of service | 28 km |
| Pamlico Sound at Oregon Inlet Marina (in MLLW) | no flooding | 29 km |
| Shallowbag Bay at Manteo (in MLLW) | no flooding | 35 km |
| Roanoke Sound at Pond Island | no flooding | 35 km |
| Pamlico Sound at Avon Harbor (in MLLW) | no flooding | 37 km |
| Roanoke Sound at Fort Raleigh near Manteo | observation not current | 37 km |
| Roanoke Sound at Nags Head (in MLLW) | no flooding | 39 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 #
4 wells in 1 named aquifer: Surficial aquifer system
Sites found: 4, 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 |
|---|---|---|
| TY-156 AT POCOSIN LAKES NWR SURFICIAL | depth 3.24 ft · 2026-10-05 | 57 km |
| Surficial aquifer system | depth 2.24 ft · 2026-10-05 | 63 km |
| Surficial aquifer system | depth 0.97 ft · 2026-10-05 | 66 km |
| Surficial aquifer system | depth 2.23 ft · 2026-10-05 | 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 (0.00)
Σ wᵢ·termᵢ / Σ wᵢ = 0.35×0.00 / 0.35
Banks & federal dollars #
$2.0 bn in deposits at 20 offices of 9 banks (SOD June 2026); HHI 1,501, moderately concentrated. $522.9 m federal obligations in FY2026 (direct payments $291.4 m, grants $188.5 m), $28,336 per covered job
| Item | Value | Distance |
|---|---|---|
| TowneBank | $477.3 m · 24.4% share · 3 offices | |
| First National Bank of Pennsylvania | $359.7 m · 18.4% share · 5 offices | |
| Southern Bank and Trust Company | $257.5 m · 13.2% share · 3 offices | |
| Dare, NC | $522.9 m FY2026 · $28,336/job | |
| MULTIPLE RECIPIENTS | $290.2 m · top recipient FY2026 |
| Institution | Deposits | Share | Offices |
|---|---|---|---|
| TowneBank | $477,268,000 | 24.4% | 3 |
| First National Bank of Pennsylvania | $359,720,000 | 18.4% | 5 |
| Southern Bank and Trust Company | $257,451,000 | 13.2% | 3 |
| PNC Bank, National Association | $245,664,000 | 12.6% | 2 |
| Wells Fargo Bank, National Association | $223,690,000 | 11.4% | 2 |
| Truist Bank | $121,993,000 | 6.2% | 1 |
| Atlantic Union Bank | $105,676,000 | 5.4% | 1 |
| United Bank | $96,527,000 | 4.9% | 2 |
| First Bank | $67,204,000 | 3.4% | 1 |
Deposit concentration is 1,501 across 9 banks, which the 1995 Department of Justice bank merger screen calls moderately concentrated.
HHI = Σ (share %)² over 9 banks with deposits in the county = 24.4² + 18.4² + 13.2² + … (6 more) = 1,501
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 | $264,161,726 |
| Department of Transportation | $188,654,592 |
| Department of Defense | $26,335,969 |
| Department of Veterans Affairs | $25,424,061 |
| Department of the Interior | $13,943,626 |
| Department of Homeland Security | $2,423,067 |
| Railroad Retirement Board | $822,902 |
| Department of Agriculture | $789,703 |
| Federal Communications Commission | $602,299 |
| General Services Administration | $38,304 |
| Department of Housing and Urban Development | $33,471 |
| Small Business Administration | $0 |
That is $28,336 per covered job, against 18,452 jobs in the 2026 Q1 QCEW quarter.
per job = FY2026 obligations $522.9 m / 18,452 covered jobs (BLS QCEW 2026 Q1, all ownerships) = $28,336
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 | 2026-10-06 | +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 #
Dare County, NC: 9 findings, 2 at a watch level and 7 noted
watchDare County, NC's years of wages of 12.0 ranks 39th of 3,063 US counties, a watch level here: years of wages in the top tenth of US counties (position among the counties that published both a ZHVI value and a QCEW average weekly wage; 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: yearsOfWages percentile = 98.75898105813195 >= 90
- typical home value / (average weekly wage × 52); one average covered job, not a household
position among the counties that published both a ZHVI value and a QCEW average weekly wage; not an official level
watchDare County, NC's years of wages is 12.0, a watch level here: typical home value worth 10 or more years of one average covered wage (typical home value / (average weekly wage × 52), one average covered job rather than a household; 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: yearsOfWages = 12.041058274548346 >= 10
- typical home value / (average weekly wage × 52); one average covered job, not a household
typical home value / (average weekly wage × 52), one average covered job rather than a household; convention chosen for this dashboard, not an official level
noteDare County, NC's average weekly wage was 1.8% 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
- +1.8 % = 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
noteDare County, NC's typical home value of $599,211 ranks 1st of 100 North Carolina counties, against a median of $273,108.
Period 2026-08.Show the arithmetic
- 100 on the 0-to-100 scale across 100 North Carolina counties that published home.latest
position among the entities that published this metric this period; not an official level
noteDare County, NC's typical asking rent of $2,295 ranks 3rd of 63 North Carolina counties, against a median of $1,573.
Period 2026-08.Show the arithmetic
- 97 on the 0-to-100 scale across 63 North Carolina counties that published rent.latest
position among the entities that published this metric this period; not an official level
Read all 9 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.