Limestone County, TX
Housing, jobs, water, deposits and federal obligations for this county, each figure with the release it came from. Internal point 31.55, -96.59.
Assembled 2026-10-06. Read the brief.
- 27th pct · 2,231st of 3,063 US counties · median $234,566
- 34th pct · 160th of 243 Texas counties · median $215,660
- 10th pct · 2,751st of 3,063 US counties · median +2.9%
- 28th pct · 174th of 243 Texas counties · median +0.0%
- US counties: not published this period
- Texas counties: not published this period
- 51st pct · 1,559th of 3,221 US counties · median 8,232
- 60th pct · 101st of 254 Texas counties · median 6,022
- 84th pct · 507th of 3,221 US counties · median $1,039
- 74th pct · 66th of 254 Texas counties · median $1,115
- 13th pct · 2,664th of 3,063 US counties · median 4.3
- 27th pct · 176th of 243 Texas counties · median 3.6
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 $177,963 (Aug 2026), -2.0% over one year, +10.4% over five
- 27th pct · 2,231st of 3,063 US counties · median $234,566
- 34th pct · 160th of 243 Texas counties · median $215,660
| Item | Value | Distance |
|---|---|---|
| Limestone County, TX | $177,963 · -2.0% 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
- Texas 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 $974 a month on $177,963 at 7.28%, against an average weekly wage worth $5,603 a month: 17.4% of one job’s pay.
- payment = P·r / (1 − (1+r)^−n), P = $177,963 × 80% = $142,370, r = 7.28%/12 (Freddie Mac PMMS via FRED, 2026-10-01), n = 360 → $974/mo principal and interest
- wage share = payment / (avg weekly wage $1,293 × 52 / 12 = $5,603) = 17% of one average job's pay (BLS QCEW 2026 Q1, all covered jobs)
- years of wages = $177,963 / ($1,293 × 52) = 2.6
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 #
8,654 jobs at 388 employers (2026 Q1); +1.7% jobs and -1.4% average weekly wage over the year
- 51st pct · 1,559th of 3,221 US counties · median 8,232
- 60th pct · 101st of 254 Texas counties · median 6,022
| Item | Value | Distance |
|---|---|---|
| Limestone County, TX | 8,654 jobs · $1,293/wk · +1.7% YoY |
| NAICS sector | Jobs | Avg weekly wage | Location quotient | Jobs over the year |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Retail trade | 806 | $691 | 0.96 | +2.0% |
| Professional and technical services | 783 | $1,883 | 1.31 | +53.8% |
| Mining, oil and gas | 772 | $3,410 | 25.05 | -2.4% |
| Manufacturing | 501 | $1,144 | 0.72 | +5.3% |
| Wholesale trade | 323 | $1,020 | 0.97 | +6.6% |
| Utilities | 215 | $4,013 | 6.29 | +0.0% |
| Finance and insurance | 200 | $1,234 | 0.57 | -7.4% |
| Construction | 161 | $930 | 0.35 | -9.6% |
| Other services | 107 | $928 | 0.41 | +9.2% |
| Transportation and warehousing | 60 | $1,438 | 0.16 | +9.1% |
| Agriculture, forestry, fishing | 43 | $947 | 0.69 | -27.1% |
| Real estate and rental | 37 | $718 | 0.28 | +0.0% |
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 #
D2 severe 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 #
89 % of conservation capacity, weighted over 29 TWDB reservoirs
Sites found: 32, 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 Limestone | 85 % full · 204k ac-ft | 36 km |
| Navarro Mills Lake | 83 % full · 50k ac-ft | 46 km |
| Waco Lake | 89 % full · 189k ac-ft | 57 km |
| Halbert Lake | 77 % full · 6k ac-ft | 61 km |
| Richland-Chambers Res nr Kerens, TX | 1,032,000 Acre-ft (USGS, no capacity on file) | 66 km |
| Richland-Chambers Reservoir | 91 % full · 1,099k ac-ft | 66 km |
| Aquilla Lake | 84 % full · 43k ac-ft | 70 km |
| Bardwell Lake | 89 % full · 44k ac-ft | 78 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 #
34 gauges · 0 flooding · 0 with quality panels · 1 stale
Sites found: 34, 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 |
|---|---|---|
| Navasota Rv abv Groesbeck, TX | flow 0.00 ft³/s · no flooding | 8 km |
| North Texas Lakes at Lake Mexia | no readings | 11 km |
| Big Ck nr Freestone, TX | flow 0.42 ft³/s | 26 km |
| North Texas Lakes at Lake Limestone | no readings | 36 km |
| Tehuacana Ck at Hwy 6 nr Waco, TX | flow 609.0 ft³/s | 42 km |
| Little Brazos Rv at SH 6 nr Reagan, TX | stage 314.5 ft | 44 km |
| Tehuacana Ck nr Streetman, TX | flow 0.01 ft³/s | 44 km |
| Richland Ck nr Dawson, TX | flow 0.79 ft³/s | 44 km |
| Brazos Rv at Waco, TX | flow 19.6 ft³/s · no flooding | 45 km |
| North Texas Lakes at Navarro Mills Lake | no readings | 46 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 #
No USGS monitoring wells within 75 km (or above 1,500 km)
Sites found: 0, 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.
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 #
moderate (0.32)
Σ wᵢ·termᵢ / Σ wᵢ = 0.35×0.50 + 0.3×0.11 / 0.65
Banks & federal dollars #
$420.9 m in deposits at 9 offices of 6 banks (SOD June 2026); HHI 2,482, highly concentrated. $145.8 m federal obligations in FY2026 (direct payments $139.1 m, grants $6.6 m), $16,845 per covered job
| Item | Value | Distance |
|---|---|---|
| Incommons Bank, N.A. | $144.2 m · 34.3% share · 2 offices | |
| Farmers State Bank | $125.8 m · 29.9% share · 3 offices | |
| The Huntington National Bank | $71.6 m · 17.0% share · 1 office | |
| Limestone, TX | $145.8 m FY2026 · $16,845/job | |
| MULTIPLE RECIPIENTS | $135.2 m · top recipient FY2026 |
| Institution | Deposits | Share | Offices |
|---|---|---|---|
| Incommons Bank, N.A. | $144,208,000 | 34.3% | 2 |
| Farmers State Bank | $125,762,000 | 29.9% | 3 |
| The Huntington National Bank | $71,630,000 | 17.0% | 1 |
| VeraBank, National Association | $33,274,000 | 7.9% | 1 |
| PNC Bank, National Association | $28,325,000 | 6.7% | 1 |
| Woodforest National Bank | $17,717,000 | 4.2% | 1 |
Deposit concentration is 2,482 across 6 banks, which the 1995 Department of Justice bank merger screen calls highly concentrated.
HHI = Σ (share %)² over 6 banks with deposits in the county = 34.3² + 29.9² + 17.0² + … (3 more) = 2,482
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 | $116,979,942 |
| Department of Veterans Affairs | $16,526,228 |
| Department of Transportation | $5,934,639 |
| Department of Agriculture | $3,774,175 |
| Railroad Retirement Board | $1,653,915 |
| Department of Housing and Urban Development | $593,844 |
| Federal Communications Commission | $216,671 |
| Department of Health and Human Services | $75,000 |
| Department of Education | $24,740 |
| Small Business Administration | $0 |
That is $16,845 per covered job, against 8,654 jobs in the 2026 Q1 QCEW quarter.
per job = FY2026 obligations $145.8 m / 8,654 covered jobs (BLS QCEW 2026 Q1, all ownerships) = $16,845
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 #
Limestone County, TX: 6 findings, 2 at a watch level and 4 noted
watchLimestone County, TX's typical home value is -2.0% 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 = -2.0105999572291853 < 0
arithmetic on Zillow ZHVI, county and metro files; not an official level
watchLimestone County, TX's average weekly wage is -1.4% 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 = -1.4 < 0
BLS QCEW over-the-year percent change, as published, nominal dollars; convention chosen for this dashboard, not an official level
noteLimestone County, TX's covered employment was 1.7% 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
- +1.7 % = 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
noteLimestone County, TX's average weekly wage was 1.4% 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
- -1.4 % = 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
noteLimestone County, TX's typical home value fell 0.6% from $178,959 in July 2026 to $177,963 in August 2026, on Zillow ZHVI.
Period 2026-08.Show the arithmetic
- -0.6% = (177963.1127393214 - 178958.95094344195) / 178958.95094344195 × 100
- 177963.1127393214 = Zillow ZHVI, 2026-08
- 178958.95094344195 = Zillow ZHVI, 2026-07
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.