Galveston County, TX
Housing, jobs, water, deposits and federal obligations for this county, each figure with the release it came from. Internal point 29.23, -94.89.
Assembled 2026-10-06. Read the brief.
- 72nd pct · 828th of 3,063 US counties · median $234,566
- 83rd pct · 42nd of 243 Texas counties · median $215,660
- 33rd pct · 7th of 10 counties in the Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands metro · median $335,489
- 12th pct · 2,685th of 3,063 US counties · median +2.9%
- 34th pct · 160th of 243 Texas counties · median +0.0%
- 55th pct · 5th of 10 counties in the Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands metro · median -1.7%
- 59th pct · 574th of 1,399 US counties · median $1,496
- 76th pct · 26th of 106 Texas counties · median $1,483
- 33rd pct · 7th of 10 counties in the Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands metro · median $1,780
- 92nd pct · 247th of 3,221 US counties · median 8,232
- 93rd pct · 18th of 254 Texas counties · median 6,022
- 66th pct · 4th of 10 counties in the Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands metro · median 76,883
- 82nd pct · 569th of 3,221 US counties · median $1,039
- 71st pct · 73rd of 254 Texas counties · median $1,115
- 22nd pct · 8th of 10 counties in the Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands metro · median $1,347
- 60th pct · 1,199th of 3,063 US counties · median 4.3
- 77th pct · 55th of 243 Texas counties · median 3.6
- 55th pct · 5th of 10 counties in the Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands metro · median 4.6
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 $317,249 (Aug 2026), -1.4% over one year, +8.9% over five
- 72nd pct · 828th of 3,063 US counties · median $234,566
- 83rd pct · 42nd of 243 Texas counties · median $215,660
- 33rd pct · 7th of 10 counties in the Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands metro · median $335,489
| Item | Value | Distance |
|---|---|---|
| Galveston County, TX | $317,249 · -1.4% 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 $1,608/mo (Aug 2026), +0.9% over one year; price-to-rent 16.4
- 59th pct · 574th of 1,399 US counties · median $1,496
- 76th pct · 26th of 106 Texas counties · median $1,483
- 33rd pct · 7th of 10 counties in the Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands metro · median $1,780
| Item | Value | Distance |
|---|---|---|
| Galveston County, TX | $1,608/mo · +0.9% 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 $1,737 a month on $317,249 at 7.28%, against an average weekly wage worth $5,499 a month: 31.6% of one job’s pay.
- payment = P·r / (1 − (1+r)^−n), P = $317,249 × 80% = $253,799, r = 7.28%/12 (Freddie Mac PMMS via FRED, 2026-10-01), n = 360 → $1,737/mo principal and interest
- wage share = payment / (avg weekly wage $1,269 × 52 / 12 = $5,499) = 32% of one average job's pay (BLS QCEW 2026 Q1, all covered jobs)
- years of wages = $317,249 / ($1,269 × 52) = 4.8
- price-to-rent = $317,249 / ($1,608 × 12) = 16.4
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 #
127,654 jobs at 6,865 employers (2026 Q1); +0.6% jobs and +4.4% average weekly wage over the year
- 92nd pct · 247th of 3,221 US counties · median 8,232
- 93rd pct · 18th of 254 Texas counties · median 6,022
- 66th pct · 4th of 10 counties in the Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands metro · median 76,883
| Item | Value | Distance |
|---|---|---|
| Galveston County, TX | 127,654 jobs · $1,269/wk · +0.6% YoY |
| NAICS sector | Jobs | Avg weekly wage | Location quotient | Jobs over the year |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Accommodation and food services | 19,203 | $489 | 1.67 | +1.0% |
| Retail trade | 13,695 | $760 | 1.10 | -0.8% |
| Health care and social assistance | 10,036 | $1,115 | 0.52 | -2.3% |
| Construction | 8,002 | $1,715 | 1.20 | +5.5% |
| Manufacturing | 6,088 | $2,851 | 0.59 | -2.5% |
| Administrative and waste services | 5,518 | $1,073 | 0.76 | +0.2% |
| Other services | 5,360 | $1,381 | 1.41 | +13.8% |
| Transportation and warehousing | 5,085 | $1,362 | 0.95 | +8.6% |
| Professional and technical services | 4,861 | $1,526 | 0.55 | +0.7% |
| Finance and insurance | 4,470 | $1,953 | 0.86 | +8.7% |
| Arts, entertainment and recreation | 2,633 | $578 | 1.25 | -5.2% |
| Wholesale trade | 2,102 | $1,842 | 0.43 | -0.6% |
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 #
D0 abnormally dry
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 #
96 % of conservation capacity, weighted over 2 TWDB reservoirs
Sites found: 6, 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 Houston | 100 % full · 132k ac-ft | 80 km |
| Lk Houston nr Sheldon, TX | 136,500 Acre-ft (USGS, no capacity on file) | 80 km |
| Addicks Res nr Addicks, TX | 13,220 Acre-ft (USGS, no capacity on file) | 94 km |
| Barker Res nr Addicks, TX | 8,536 Acre-ft (USGS, no capacity on file) | 95 km |
| Lake Conroe | 95 % full · 418k ac-ft | 141 km |
| Lk Conroe nr Conroe, TX | 398,100 Acre-ft (USGS, no capacity on file) | 141 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 #
50 gauges · 0 flooding · 14 with quality panels averaging 65 % · 7 stale
Sites found: 50, 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 |
|---|---|---|
| Brazos Rv at COE Flood Gates nr Freeport, TX | stage 1.95 ft · quality 25 % (2) | 61 km |
| Galveston Bay site BOLI nr Galveston, TX | temp 29.9 °C · quality 67 % (3) · STALE | 16 km |
| Trinity Bay site FISH nr Baytown, TX | DO 3.80 mg/l · quality 50 % (4) · STALE | 49 km |
| Trinity Rv at IH 10 nr Wallisville, TX | flow 324.0 ft³/s · quality 67 % (3) | 68 km |
| Galveston Bay site EAGLEP nr Bacliff, TX | DO 4.30 mg/l · quality 63 % (4) | 28 km |
| Old Rv at Buckeye Island nr Anahuac, TX | temp 26.7 °C · quality 50 % (2) | 65 km |
| West Bay site WBAY nr Galveston, TX | DO 5.50 mg/l · quality 63 % (4) · STALE | 16 km |
| Old Brazos Estuary site SURF nr Freeport, TX | temp 30.2 °C · quality 50 % (3) · STALE | 52 km |
| Brazos Rv at GIWW Flood Gates nr Freeport, TX | flow 1,090 ft³/s · quality 25 % (2) | 61 km |
| Highland Bayou at FM 646 nr Santa Fe, TX | stage 9.97 ft | 25 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 #
7 wells in 1 named aquifer: Coastal lowlands aquifer system
Sites found: 7, 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 |
|---|---|---|
| Coastal lowlands aquifer system | depth 47.1 ft · 2026-10-05 | 20 km |
| Coastal lowlands aquifer system | depth 93.8 ft · 2024-05-29 | 28 km |
| Coastal lowlands aquifer system | depth 100.5 ft · 2026-10-05 | 39 km |
| Coastal lowlands aquifer system | depth 100.0 ft · 2023-08-09 | 41 km |
| Coastal lowlands aquifer system | depth 127.9 ft · 2026-10-05 | 43 km |
| Coastal lowlands aquifer system | depth 109.9 ft · 2026-10-05 | 60 km |
| Coastal lowlands aquifer system | depth 111.3 ft · 2026-10-05 | 60 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 (0.10)
Σ wᵢ·termᵢ / Σ wᵢ = 0.35×0.00 + 0.3×0.04 + 0.2×0.35 / 0.85
Banks & federal dollars #
$6.9 bn in deposits at 66 offices of 19 banks (SOD June 2026); HHI 1,054, moderately concentrated. $5.9 bn federal obligations in FY2026 (contracts $3.7 bn, direct payments $2.1 bn), $46,000 per covered job
| Item | Value | Distance |
|---|---|---|
| JPMorgan Chase Bank, National Association | $1.1 bn · 16.2% share · 5 offices | |
| Texas First Bank | $1.1 bn · 16.0% share · 13 offices | |
| The Moody National Bank | $978.3 m · 14.3% share · 6 offices | |
| Galveston, TX | $5.9 bn FY2026 · $46,000/job | |
| DAVIE DEFENSE INC. | $3.5 bn · top recipient FY2026 |
| Institution | Deposits | Share | Offices |
|---|---|---|---|
| JPMorgan Chase Bank, National Association | $1,111,634,000 | 16.2% | 5 |
| Texas First Bank | $1,096,063,000 | 16.0% | 13 |
| The Moody National Bank | $978,270,000 | 14.3% | 6 |
| HomeTown Bank, National Association | $654,226,000 | 9.5% | 4 |
| Bank of America, National Association | $533,438,000 | 7.8% | 3 |
| Wells Fargo Bank, National Association | $519,966,000 | 7.6% | 3 |
| Zions Bancorporation, N.A. | $494,839,000 | 7.2% | 7 |
| Frost Bank | $385,087,000 | 5.6% | 5 |
| PNC Bank, National Association | $331,040,000 | 4.8% | 5 |
| Prosperity Bank | $132,496,000 | 1.9% | 2 |
Deposit concentration is 1,054 across 19 banks, which the 1995 Department of Justice bank merger screen calls moderately concentrated.
HHI = Σ (share %)² over 19 banks with deposits in the county = 16.2² + 16.0² + 14.3² + … (16 more) = 1,054
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 |
|---|---|
| Department of Homeland Security | $3,503,713,822 |
| Social Security Administration | $1,666,317,281 |
| Department of Veterans Affairs | $318,381,205 |
| Department of Defense | $151,908,074 |
| Department of Health and Human Services | $108,990,982 |
| Department of Housing and Urban Development | $43,880,893 |
| Department of Transportation | $25,297,430 |
| Department of Education | $18,991,908 |
| Railroad Retirement Board | $13,339,306 |
| Federal Communications Commission | $6,771,942 |
| Department of Commerce | $5,250,613 |
| Department of Justice | $3,378,924 |
That is $46,000 per covered job, against 127,654 jobs in the 2026 Q1 QCEW quarter.
per job = FY2026 obligations $5.9 bn / 127,654 covered jobs (BLS QCEW 2026 Q1, all ownerships) = $46,000
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 #
Galveston County, TX: 7 findings, 1 at a watch level and 6 noted
watchGalveston County, TX's typical home value is -1.4% 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 = -1.44317723910331 < 0
arithmetic on Zillow ZHVI, county and metro files; not an official level
noteGalveston County, TX's average weekly wage was 4.4% 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
- +4.4 % = 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
noteGalveston County, TX's covered employment was 0.6% 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
- +0.6 % = 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
noteGalveston County, TX's covered employment of 127,654 ranks 18th of 254 Texas counties, against a median of 6,022.
Period 2026 Q1.Show the arithmetic
- 93 on the 0-to-100 scale across 254 Texas counties that published jobs.emp
position among the entities that published this metric this period; not an official level
noteGalveston County, TX's covered employment of 127,654 ranks 247th of 3,221 US counties, against a median of 8,232.
Period 2026 Q1.Show the arithmetic
- 92 on the 0-to-100 scale across 3221 US counties that published jobs.emp
position among the entities that published this metric this period; not an official level
Read all 7 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.