Union County, TN
Housing, jobs, water, deposits and federal obligations for this county, each figure with the release it came from. Internal point 36.28, -83.84.
Assembled 2026-10-06. Read the brief.
- 68th pct · 952nd of 3,063 US counties · median $234,566
- 64th pct · 34th of 95 Tennessee counties · median $259,021
- 37th pct · 6th of 9 counties in the Knoxville metro · median $302,780
- 49th pct · 1,550th of 3,063 US counties · median +2.9%
- 42nd pct · 55th of 95 Tennessee counties · median +3.2%
- 37th pct · 6th of 9 counties in the Knoxville metro · median +3.5%
- US counties: not published this period
- Tennessee counties: not published this period
- counties in the Knoxville metro: not published this period
- 21st pct · 2,529th of 3,221 US counties · median 8,232
- 15th pct · 80th of 95 Tennessee counties · median 8,576
- 0th pct · 9th of 9 counties in the Knoxville metro · median 18,137
- 24th pct · 2,433rd of 3,221 US counties · median $1,039
- 24th pct · 71st of 95 Tennessee counties · median $1,030
- 12th pct · 8th of 9 counties in the Knoxville metro · median $1,098
- 80th pct · 588th of 3,063 US counties · median 4.3
- 82nd pct · 17th of 95 Tennessee counties · median 5.0
- 75th pct · 3rd of 9 counties in the Knoxville metro · median 5.5
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 $297,647 (Aug 2026), +2.9% over one year, +38.4% over five
- 68th pct · 952nd of 3,063 US counties · median $234,566
- 64th pct · 34th of 95 Tennessee counties · median $259,021
- 37th pct · 6th of 9 counties in the Knoxville metro · median $302,780
| Item | Value | Distance |
|---|---|---|
| Union County, TN | $297,647 · +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
- Tennessee counties: not published this period
- counties in the Knoxville metro: 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 $1,629 a month on $297,647 at 7.28%, against an average weekly wage worth $4,013 a month: 40.6% of one job’s pay.
- payment = P·r / (1 − (1+r)^−n), P = $297,647 × 80% = $238,118, r = 7.28%/12 (Freddie Mac PMMS via FRED, 2026-10-01), n = 360 → $1,629/mo principal and interest
- wage share = payment / (avg weekly wage $926 × 52 / 12 = $4,013) = 41% of one average job's pay (BLS QCEW 2026 Q1, all covered jobs)
- years of wages = $297,647 / ($926 × 52) = 6.2
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 #
2,640 jobs at 297 employers (2026 Q1); -2.0% jobs and +3.3% average weekly wage over the year
- 21st pct · 2,529th of 3,221 US counties · median 8,232
- 15th pct · 80th of 95 Tennessee counties · median 8,576
- 0th pct · 9th of 9 counties in the Knoxville metro · median 18,137
| Item | Value | Distance |
|---|---|---|
| Union County, TN | 2,640 jobs · $926/wk · -2.0% YoY |
| NAICS sector | Jobs | Avg weekly wage | Location quotient | Jobs over the year |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Manufacturing | 477 | $1,402 | 2.25 | -2.1% |
| Retail trade | 448 | $538 | 1.74 | -3.2% |
| Health care and social assistance | 219 | $1,038 | 0.55 | +3.8% |
| Accommodation and food services | 188 | $341 | 0.79 | -13.0% |
| Construction | 159 | $1,114 | 1.15 | +0.0% |
| Wholesale trade | 67 | $1,158 | 0.66 | +1.5% |
| Finance and insurance | 56 | $1,174 | 0.52 | +9.8% |
| Other services | 41 | $836 | 0.52 | +0.0% |
| Professional and technical services | 40 | $1,066 | 0.22 | +0.0% |
| Transportation and warehousing | 38 | $685 | 0.34 | +0.0% |
| Arts, entertainment and recreation | 31 | $869 | 0.71 | +29.2% |
| Real estate and rental | 17 | $801 | 0.42 | -15.0% |
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 #
1 USGS reservoir gauges, no capacity figures to weight
Sites found: 1, 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 LOGAN AT DAM NEAR HAZELWOOD, NC | 52.9 ft (USGS, no capacity on file) | 126 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 #
54 gauges · 0 flooding · 4 with quality panels averaging 100 % · 28 stale
Sites found: 54, 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 |
|---|---|---|
| BULLRUN CREEK NEAR HALLS CROSSROADS, TN | flow 15.0 ft³/s | 23 km |
| ROSEBERRY CREEK AT HWY11W NR MASCOT, TN | flow 25.3 ft³/s · STALE | 24 km |
| BEAVER CR NR WILLOW FORK AT HALLS CROSSROADS, TN | flow 9.50 ft³/s · STALE | 24 km |
| FLAT CREEK NEAR MASCOT, TN | flow 94.1 ft³/s | 24 km |
| HOLSTON RIVER NEAR KNOXVILLE, TN | flow 7,140 ft³/s · STALE | 30 km |
| POWELL RIVER NEAR ARTHUR, TN | flow 317.0 ft³/s | 34 km |
| BEAVER C NR POWELL TENN | flow 18.9 ft³/s | 35 km |
| BENNETTS FORK AT MIDDLESBORO, KY | flow 112.0 ft³/s · STALE | 36 km |
| STONY FORK NEAR MOUTH AT MIDDLESBORO, KY | flow 2.30 ft³/s · STALE | 37 km |
| CLINCH RIVER ABOVE TAZEWELL, TN | flow 552.0 ft³/s | 42 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-363749083430701 | depth 7.12 ft · 2026-10-06 | 40 km |
| USGS-364326083383101 | depth 31.8 ft · 1984-08-19 | 52 km |
| USGS-360543084343101 | depth 3.74 ft · 2026-10-05 | 70 km |
| USGS-353922083345600 | depth 9.24 ft · 2026-10-05 | 73 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 + 0.2×0.00 / 0.55
Banks & federal dollars #
$271.1 m in deposits at 4 offices of 3 banks (SOD June 2026); HHI 3,899, highly concentrated. $131.5 m federal obligations in FY2026 (direct payments $130.3 m, contracts $1.3 m), $49,823 per covered job
| Item | Value | Distance |
|---|---|---|
| Commercial Bank | $138.5 m · 51.1% share · 2 offices | |
| First Century Bank | $84.8 m · 31.3% share · 1 office | |
| FirstBank | $47.8 m · 17.6% share · 1 office | |
| Union, TN | $131.5 m FY2026 · $49,823/job | |
| MULTIPLE RECIPIENTS | $129.7 m · top recipient FY2026 |
| Institution | Deposits | Share | Offices |
|---|---|---|---|
| Commercial Bank | $138,467,000 | 51.1% | 2 |
| First Century Bank | $84,809,000 | 31.3% | 1 |
| FirstBank | $47,810,000 | 17.6% | 1 |
Deposit concentration is 3,899 across 3 banks, which the 1995 Department of Justice bank merger screen calls highly concentrated.
HHI = Σ (share %)² over 3 banks with deposits in the county = 51.1² + 31.3² + 17.6² = 3,899
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 | $114,133,974 |
| Department of Veterans Affairs | $14,278,694 |
| General Services Administration | $1,301,298 |
| Railroad Retirement Board | $1,195,019 |
| Department of Agriculture | $582,320 |
| Department of Health and Human Services | $100,000 |
| Department of Transportation | -$59,259 |
That is $49,823 per covered job, against 2,640 jobs in the 2026 Q1 QCEW quarter.
per job = FY2026 obligations $131.5 m / 2,640 covered jobs (BLS QCEW 2026 Q1, all ownerships) = $49,823
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 | -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 #
Union County, TN: 6 findings, 1 at a watch level and 5 noted
watchUnion County, TN's covered employment is -2.0% 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 = -2 < 0
BLS QCEW over-the-year percent change, as published; not an official level
noteUnion County, TN's 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
noteUnion County, TN's covered employment was 2.0% 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
- -2 % = 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
noteUnion County, TN's covered employment of 2,640 ranks 9th of 9 counties in the Knoxville metro, against a median of 18,137.
Period 2026 Q1.Show the arithmetic
- 0 on the 0-to-100 scale across 9 counties in the Knoxville metro that published jobs.emp
position among the entities that published this metric this period; not an official level
noteUnion County, TN's momentum index of 0.03 ranks 9th of 9 counties in the Knoxville metro, against a median of 0.41.
Period 2026-08.Show the arithmetic
- 0 on the 0-to-100 scale across 9 counties in the Knoxville metro that published momentum
- momentum = Σ wᵢ · clip(changeᵢ / scaleᵢ, −1, 1) / Σ wᵢ over the terms present; weights and scales: home value 1-yr change 0.3 (±10%), rent 1-yr change 0.15 (±10%), jobs over-the-year change 0.3 (±3%), avg weekly wage over-the-year change 0.25 (±6%)
position among the entities that published this metric this period; not an official level
Read all 6 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.