Custer County, SD
Housing, jobs, water, deposits and federal obligations for this county, each figure with the release it came from. Internal point 43.68, -103.46.
Assembled 2026-10-06. Read the brief.
- 93rd pct · 199th of 3,063 US counties · median $234,566
- 100th pct · 1st of 50 South Dakota counties · median $262,610
- counties in the Rapid City metro: Rank context is unavailable: the manifest lists 3 counties in the Rapid City metro; fewer than 5 is too few to rank.
- 19th pct · 2,466th of 3,063 US counties · median +2.9%
- 14th pct · 43rd of 50 South Dakota counties · median +3.6%
- counties in the Rapid City metro: Rank context is unavailable: the manifest lists 3 counties in the Rapid City metro; fewer than 5 is too few to rank.
- US counties: not published this period
- South Dakota counties: not published this period
- counties in the Rapid City metro: Rank context is unavailable: the manifest lists 3 counties in the Rapid City metro; fewer than 5 is too few to rank.
- 18th pct · 2,631st of 3,221 US counties · median 8,232
- 56th pct · 29th of 66 South Dakota counties · median 1,825
- counties in the Rapid City metro: Rank context is unavailable: the manifest lists 3 counties in the Rapid City metro; fewer than 5 is too few to rank.
- 54th pct · 1,474th of 3,221 US counties · median $1,039
- 73rd pct · 18th of 66 South Dakota counties · median $978
- counties in the Rapid City metro: Rank context is unavailable: the manifest lists 3 counties in the Rapid City metro; fewer than 5 is too few to rank.
- 96th pct · 123rd of 3,063 US counties · median 4.3
- 100th pct · 1st of 50 South Dakota counties · median 5.1
- counties in the Rapid City metro: Rank context is unavailable: the manifest lists 3 counties in the Rapid City 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 $500,632 (Aug 2026), -0.2% over one year, +28.5% over five
- 93rd pct · 199th of 3,063 US counties · median $234,566
- 100th pct · 1st of 50 South Dakota counties · median $262,610
- counties in the Rapid City metro: Rank context is unavailable: the manifest lists 3 counties in the Rapid City metro; fewer than 5 is too few to rank.
| Item | Value | Distance |
|---|---|---|
| Custer County, SD | $500,632 · -0.2% 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
- South Dakota counties: not published this period
- counties in the Rapid City metro: Rank context is unavailable: the manifest lists 3 counties in the Rapid City metro; fewer than 5 is too few to rank.
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 $2,740 a month on $500,632 at 7.28%, against an average weekly wage worth $4,585 a month: 59.8% of one job’s pay.
- payment = P·r / (1 − (1+r)^−n), P = $500,632 × 80% = $400,506, r = 7.28%/12 (Freddie Mac PMMS via FRED, 2026-10-01), n = 360 → $2,740/mo principal and interest
- wage share = payment / (avg weekly wage $1,058 × 52 / 12 = $4,585) = 60% of one average job's pay (BLS QCEW 2026 Q1, all covered jobs)
- years of wages = $500,632 / ($1,058 × 52) = 9.1
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 #
2,255 jobs at 449 employers (2026 Q1); +2.5% jobs and +8.0% average weekly wage over the year
- 18th pct · 2,631st of 3,221 US counties · median 8,232
- 56th pct · 29th of 66 South Dakota counties · median 1,825
- counties in the Rapid City metro: Rank context is unavailable: the manifest lists 3 counties in the Rapid City metro; fewer than 5 is too few to rank.
| Item | Value | Distance |
|---|---|---|
| Custer County, SD | 2,255 jobs · $1,058/wk · +2.5% YoY |
| NAICS sector | Jobs | Avg weekly wage | Location quotient | Jobs over the year |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Health care and social assistance | 289 | $1,240 | 0.85 | +4.7% |
| Retail trade | 245 | $553 | 1.11 | -7.9% |
| Construction | 179 | $930 | 1.51 | +2.9% |
| Professional and technical services | 111 | $1,723 | 0.71 | +13.3% |
| Other services | 95 | $765 | 1.41 | +13.1% |
| Finance and insurance | 52 | $1,903 | 0.57 | -5.5% |
| Real estate and rental | 38 | $966 | 1.10 | +22.6% |
| Wholesale trade | 34 | $1,872 | 0.39 | -5.6% |
| Educational services | 24 | $1,053 | 0.49 | +26.3% |
| Information | 19 | $1,488 | 0.46 | +18.8% |
| Mining, oil and gas | 8 | $1,813 | 1.00 | -33.3% |
| Manufacturing | 8 | $260 | 0.04 | +100.0% |
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 #
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 #
88 gauges · 0 flooding · 2 with quality panels averaging 88 % · 35 stale
Sites found: 88, 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 |
|---|---|---|
| CHEYENNE RIVER AT RED SHIRT, SD | flow 51.8 ft³/s · quality 75 % (4) · no flooding | 46 km |
| French Creek near Blue Bell | out of service | 4 km |
| FRENCH CREEK ABOVE FAIRBURN, SD | flow 1.47 ft³/s | 8 km |
| Beaver Creek (SD) near Pringle | out of service | 12 km |
| GRACE COOLIDGE CREEK NR GAME LODGE NR CUSTER, SD | flow 0.65 ft³/s · no flooding | 12 km |
| FRENCH CREEK BELOW CUSTER, SD | flow 0.15 ft³/s · STALE | 12 km |
| GRACE COOLIDGE CREEK NEAR HAYWARD, SD | flow 1.20 ft³/s · STALE | 13 km |
| BEAR GULCH NEAR HAYWARD, SD | flow 0.94 ft³/s · STALE | 15 km |
| BEAVER CREEK ABOVE BUFFALO GAP, SD | flow 13.0 ft³/s · STALE | 20 km |
| GRIZZLY BEAR CREEK NEAR KEYSTONE, SD | stage 2.21 ft · no flooding | 22 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 0 named 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-433114103281601 | depth 458.7 ft · 2024-08-13 | 18 km |
| USGS-435300103265001 | depth 50.7 ft · 2025-06-10 | 22 km |
| USGS-435302103270501 | depth 40.1 ft · 2025-06-10 | 22 km |
| USGS-440149103164901 | depth 244.2 ft · 2026-08-19 | 41 km |
| USGS-440310103173801 | depth 25.3 ft · 2026-10-05 | 43 km |
| USGS-440326103180702 | depth -24.5 ft · 2026-10-05 | 43 km |
| USGS-440430103160202 | depth -110.7 ft · 2026-10-05 | 46 km |
| USGS-440544103180002 | depth 44.4 ft · 2026-10-05 | 47 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 (0.20)
Σ wᵢ·termᵢ / Σ wᵢ = 0.35×0.25 + 0.2×0.13 / 0.55
Banks & federal dollars #
$147.6 m in deposits at 3 offices of 2 banks (SOD June 2026); HHI 6,354, highly concentrated. $115.5 m federal obligations in FY2026 (direct payments $94.3 m, grants $15.2 m), $51,236 per covered job
| Item | Value | Distance |
|---|---|---|
| First Interstate Bank | $112.2 m · 76.0% share · 2 offices | |
| Dacotah Bank | $35.4 m · 24.0% share · 1 office | |
| Custer, SD | $115.5 m FY2026 · $51,236/job | |
| MULTIPLE RECIPIENTS | $85.7 m · top recipient FY2026 |
| Institution | Deposits | Share | Offices |
|---|---|---|---|
| First Interstate Bank | $112,197,000 | 76.0% | 2 |
| Dacotah Bank | $35,402,000 | 24.0% | 1 |
Deposit concentration is 6,354 across 2 banks, which the 1995 Department of Justice bank merger screen calls highly concentrated.
HHI = Σ (share %)² over 2 banks with deposits in the county = 76.0² + 24.0² = 6,354
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 | $69,997,405 |
| Department of Transportation | $13,987,832 |
| Department of Agriculture | $13,413,311 |
| Department of Veterans Affairs | $12,804,556 |
| Railroad Retirement Board | $2,971,672 |
| Department of Housing and Urban Development | $823,873 |
| Department of the Interior | $787,983 |
| Department of Education | $701,225 |
| Department of Health and Human Services | $33,372 |
| Department of Defense | $14,244 |
| Federal Communications Commission | $789 |
| Small Business Administration | $0 |
That is $51,236 per covered job, against 2,255 jobs in the 2026 Q1 QCEW quarter.
per job = FY2026 obligations $115.5 m / 2,255 covered jobs (BLS QCEW 2026 Q1, all ownerships) = $51,236
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 | -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 #
Custer County, SD: 9 findings, 3 at a watch level and 6 noted
watchCuster County, SD's years of wages of 9.1 ranks 123rd 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 = 96.01567602873938 >= 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
watchCuster County, SD's typical home value is -0.2% 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 = -0.1765631827826506 < 0
arithmetic on Zillow ZHVI, county and metro files; not an official level
watchCuster County, SD's covered employment of 2,255 scores 18 on the 0-to-100 scale across US counties but 57 across South Dakota counties, a gap of 39 points.
Period 2026 Q1.Show the arithmetic
- 39 = |18 across US counties - 57 across South Dakota counties|
position among the entities that published this metric this period; not an official level
noteCuster County, SD's average weekly wage was 8.0% 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
- +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
noteCuster County, SD's covered employment was 2.5% 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
- +2.5 % = 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
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.