Surry County, NC
Housing, jobs, water, deposits and federal obligations for this county, each figure with the release it came from. Internal point 36.42, -80.69.
Assembled 2026-10-06. Read the brief.
- 54th pct · 1,406th of 3,063 US counties · median $234,566
- 39th pct · 61st of 100 North Carolina counties · median $273,108
- 72nd pct · 837th of 3,063 US counties · median +2.9%
- 86th pct · 14th of 100 North Carolina counties · median +1.1%
- US counties: not published this period
- North Carolina counties: not published this period
- 77th pct · 737th of 3,221 US counties · median 8,232
- 66th pct · 34th of 100 North Carolina counties · median 16,739
- 32nd pct · 2,158th of 3,221 US counties · median $1,039
- 36th pct · 63rd of 100 North Carolina counties · median $984
- 62nd pct · 1,137th of 3,063 US counties · median 4.3
- 48th pct · 52nd 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 $245,358 (Aug 2026), +5.1% over one year, +33.3% over five
- 54th pct · 1,406th of 3,063 US counties · median $234,566
- 39th pct · 61st of 100 North Carolina counties · median $273,108
| Item | Value | Distance |
|---|---|---|
| Surry County, NC | $245,358 · +5.1% 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
- North Carolina 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 $1,343 a month on $245,358 at 7.28%, against an average weekly wage worth $4,177 a month: 32.2% of one job’s pay.
- payment = P·r / (1 − (1+r)^−n), P = $245,358 × 80% = $196,286, r = 7.28%/12 (Freddie Mac PMMS via FRED, 2026-10-01), n = 360 → $1,343/mo principal and interest
- wage share = payment / (avg weekly wage $964 × 52 / 12 = $4,177) = 32% of one average job's pay (BLS QCEW 2026 Q1, all covered jobs)
- years of wages = $245,358 / ($964 × 52) = 4.9
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 #
28,858 jobs at 2,010 employers (2026 Q1); +0.5% jobs and -4.0% average weekly wage over the year
- 77th pct · 737th of 3,221 US counties · median 8,232
- 66th pct · 34th of 100 North Carolina counties · median 16,739
| Item | Value | Distance |
|---|---|---|
| Surry County, NC | 28,858 jobs · $964/wk · +0.5% YoY |
| NAICS sector | Jobs | Avg weekly wage | Location quotient | Jobs over the year |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Retail trade | 4,106 | $713 | 1.46 | +0.0% |
| Manufacturing | 4,035 | $1,060 | 1.74 | +1.9% |
| Construction | 3,507 | $1,333 | 2.32 | +0.0% |
| Accommodation and food services | 2,829 | $381 | 1.09 | +1.4% |
| Transportation and warehousing | 1,354 | $1,024 | 1.11 | +5.1% |
| Professional and technical services | 1,003 | $1,383 | 0.50 | +13.8% |
| Wholesale trade | 949 | $1,078 | 0.86 | -3.7% |
| Other services | 806 | $886 | 0.93 | -4.4% |
| Administrative and waste services | 723 | $748 | 0.44 | -13.4% |
| Finance and insurance | 380 | $1,391 | 0.32 | -3.3% |
| Management of companies | 314 | $1,806 | 0.65 | -7.4% |
| Real estate and rental | 155 | $855 | 0.35 | -3.1% |
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 #
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 |
|---|---|---|
| W. KERR SCOTT RESERVOIR AT DAM NR WILKESBORO, NC | 30.1 ft (USGS, no capacity on file) | 58 km |
| LITTLE RIVER RESERVOIR NEAR RADFORD, VA | 231.0 Acre-ft (USGS, no capacity on file) | 74 km |
| HYCO LAKE AT DAM NR ROXBORO, NC | 8.00 ft (USGS, no capacity on file) | 147 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 #
65 gauges · 0 flooding · 2 with quality panels averaging 100 % · 9 stale
Sites found: 65, 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 |
|---|---|---|
| FISHER RIVER NEAR COPELAND, NC | flow 177.0 ft³/s · STALE | 8 km |
| ARARAT RIVER AT ARARAT, NC | flow 134.0 ft³/s · no flooding | 11 km |
| Ararat River at Mt Airy | no flooding | 14 km |
| MITCHELL RIVER NEAR STATE ROAD, NC | flow 57.4 ft³/s · STALE | 16 km |
| YADKIN RIVER AT SILOAM, NC | flow 1,060 ft³/s · STALE | 19 km |
| YADKIN RIVER AT ELKIN, NC | flow 667.0 ft³/s · no flooding | 24 km |
| Little Yadkin River near Dalton | no flooding | 26 km |
| LITTLE YADKIN RIVER AT DALTON, NC | flow 6.91 ft³/s | 28 km |
| CHESTNUT CREEK AT GALAX, VA | flow 42.6 ft³/s · no flooding | 33 km |
| Little River at NC18 near Blevins Crossroads | no flooding | 33 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 0 named aquifers:
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 |
|---|---|---|
| USGS-361307080293101 | depth 15.1 ft · 2014-02-17 | 28 km |
| USGS-355359080331701 | depth 19.0 ft · 2026-10-05 | 59 km |
| USGS-364732080070301 | depth 24.1 ft · 2026-10-05 | 66 km |
| USGS-361011079595401 | depth 20.3 ft · 2024-02-25 | 67 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 #
$1.6 bn in deposits at 20 offices of 11 banks (SOD June 2026); HHI 1,502, moderately concentrated. $469.1 m federal obligations in FY2026 (direct payments $461.8 m, grants $6.7 m), $16,257 per covered job
| Item | Value | Distance |
|---|---|---|
| First Community Bank | $345.5 m · 22.1% share · 5 offices | |
| Truist Bank | $323.2 m · 20.6% share · 3 offices | |
| Wells Fargo Bank, National Association | $249.1 m · 15.9% share · 2 offices | |
| Surry, NC | $469.1 m FY2026 · $16,257/job | |
| MULTIPLE RECIPIENTS | $450.3 m · top recipient FY2026 |
| Institution | Deposits | Share | Offices |
|---|---|---|---|
| First Community Bank | $345,500,000 | 22.1% | 5 |
| Truist Bank | $323,158,000 | 20.6% | 3 |
| Wells Fargo Bank, National Association | $249,064,000 | 15.9% | 2 |
| First National Bank of Pennsylvania | $173,014,000 | 11.0% | 1 |
| First-Citizens Bank & Trust Company | $163,419,000 | 10.4% | 2 |
| First Horizon Bank | $122,953,000 | 7.8% | 2 |
| PNC Bank, National Association | $72,857,000 | 4.6% | 1 |
| Carter Bank & Trust | $70,390,000 | 4.5% | 1 |
| BlueHarbor Bank | $24,468,000 | 1.6% | 1 |
| The First Bank and Trust Company | $16,859,000 | 1.1% | 1 |
Deposit concentration is 1,502 across 11 banks, which the 1995 Department of Justice bank merger screen calls moderately concentrated.
HHI = Σ (share %)² over 11 banks with deposits in the county = 22.1² + 20.6² + 15.9² + … (8 more) = 1,502
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 | $398,400,541 |
| Department of Veterans Affairs | $50,321,570 |
| Department of Education | $7,711,010 |
| Department of Agriculture | $3,935,677 |
| Department of Housing and Urban Development | $3,361,423 |
| Department of Transportation | $2,230,978 |
| Railroad Retirement Board | $1,468,908 |
| Federal Communications Commission | $1,288,007 |
| Department of Defense | $665,435 |
| Department of Health and Human Services | $100,000 |
| Small Business Administration | $0 |
| Department of Justice | $0 |
That is $16,257 per covered job, against 28,858 jobs in the 2026 Q1 QCEW quarter.
per job = FY2026 obligations $469.1 m / 28,858 covered jobs (BLS QCEW 2026 Q1, all ownerships) = $16,257
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 #
Surry County, NC: 5 findings, 1 at a watch level and 4 noted
watchSurry County, NC's average weekly wage is -4.0% against a year earlier, a watch level here: average weekly wage below the same quarter a year earlier, before inflation (BLS QCEW over-the-year percent change, as published, nominal dollars; 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.avgWeeklyWage = -4 < 0
BLS QCEW over-the-year percent change, as published, nominal dollars; convention chosen for this dashboard, not an official level
noteSurry County, NC's average weekly wage was 4.0% 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
- -4 % = 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
noteSurry County, NC's typical home value rose 0.6% from $243,784 in July 2026 to $245,358 in August 2026, on Zillow ZHVI.
Period 2026-08.Show the arithmetic
- +0.6% = (245357.64913035266 - 243783.7823968886) / 243783.7823968886 × 100
- 245357.64913035266 = Zillow ZHVI, 2026-08
- 243783.7823968886 = Zillow ZHVI, 2026-07
noteSurry County, NC's covered employment was 0.5% 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
- +0.5 % = 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
noteThe next Zillow ZHVI typical home value (monthly) covering Surry County, NC is due between 2026-10-14 and 2026-10-21, estimated from the publisher's past release pattern.
Show the arithmetic
- window = 2026-10-14 to 2026-10-21, estimated from the publisher's past release pattern
estimated from the publisher's past release pattern; not an announced date
Every finding is produced by a fixed rule table and a fixed sentence for each rule. Nothing here is generated prose.