Potter County, TX
Housing, jobs, water, deposits and federal obligations for this county, each figure with the release it came from. Internal point 35.40, -101.89.
Assembled 2026-10-06. Read the brief.
- 16th pct · 2,556th of 3,063 US counties · median $234,566
- 23rd pct · 185th of 243 Texas counties · median $215,660
- counties in the Amarillo metro: only 4 of counties in the Amarillo metro published this metric; fewer than 5 is too few to rank
- 63rd pct · 1,112th of 3,063 US counties · median +2.9%
- 80th pct · 49th of 243 Texas counties · median +0.0%
- counties in the Amarillo metro: only 4 of counties in the Amarillo metro published this metric; fewer than 5 is too few to rank
- 14th pct · 1,201st of 1,399 US counties · median $1,496
- 5th pct · 100th of 106 Texas counties · median $1,483
- counties in the Amarillo metro: only 2 of counties in the Amarillo metro published this metric; fewer than 5 is too few to rank
- 88th pct · 365th of 3,221 US counties · median 8,232
- 89th pct · 27th of 254 Texas counties · median 6,022
- 100th pct · 1st of 5 counties in the Amarillo metro · median 6,838
- 77th pct · 720th of 3,221 US counties · median $1,039
- 64th pct · 90th of 254 Texas counties · median $1,115
- 50th pct · 3rd of 5 counties in the Amarillo metro · median $1,212
- 9th pct · 2,785th of 3,063 US counties · median 4.3
- 22nd pct · 189th of 243 Texas counties · median 3.6
- counties in the Amarillo metro: only 4 of counties in the Amarillo metro published this metric; 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 $151,937 (Aug 2026), +4.2% over one year, +25.3% over five
- 16th pct · 2,556th of 3,063 US counties · median $234,566
- 23rd pct · 185th of 243 Texas counties · median $215,660
- counties in the Amarillo metro: only 4 of counties in the Amarillo metro published this metric; fewer than 5 is too few to rank
| Item | Value | Distance |
|---|---|---|
| Potter County, TX | $151,937 · +4.2% 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 #
Typical rent $1,087/mo (Aug 2026), +5.8% over one year; price-to-rent 11.6
- 14th pct · 1,201st of 1,399 US counties · median $1,496
- 5th pct · 100th of 106 Texas counties · median $1,483
- counties in the Amarillo metro: only 2 of counties in the Amarillo metro published this metric; fewer than 5 is too few to rank
| Item | Value | Distance |
|---|---|---|
| Potter County, TX | $1,087/mo · +5.8% 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 $832 a month on $151,937 at 7.28%, against an average weekly wage worth $5,252 a month: 15.8% of one job’s pay.
- payment = P·r / (1 − (1+r)^−n), P = $151,937 × 80% = $121,549, r = 7.28%/12 (Freddie Mac PMMS via FRED, 2026-10-01), n = 360 → $832/mo principal and interest
- wage share = payment / (avg weekly wage $1,212 × 52 / 12 = $5,252) = 16% of one average job's pay (BLS QCEW 2026 Q1, all covered jobs)
- years of wages = $151,937 / ($1,212 × 52) = 2.4
- price-to-rent = $151,937 / ($1,087 × 12) = 11.6
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 #
78,002 jobs at 4,026 employers (2026 Q1); -0.2% jobs and +5.0% average weekly wage over the year
- 88th pct · 365th of 3,221 US counties · median 8,232
- 89th pct · 27th of 254 Texas counties · median 6,022
- 100th pct · 1st of 5 counties in the Amarillo metro · median 6,838
| Item | Value | Distance |
|---|---|---|
| Potter County, TX | 78,002 jobs · $1,212/wk · -0.2% YoY |
| NAICS sector | Jobs | Avg weekly wage | Location quotient | Jobs over the year |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Health care and social assistance | 13,413 | $1,298 | 1.14 | +3.2% |
| Accommodation and food services | 8,919 | $481 | 1.27 | +6.0% |
| Retail trade | 8,042 | $728 | 1.06 | +0.7% |
| Manufacturing | 5,941 | $1,290 | 0.95 | -21.2% |
| Construction | 4,742 | $1,422 | 1.16 | +19.5% |
| Professional and technical services | 3,667 | $1,550 | 0.68 | +2.4% |
| Wholesale trade | 3,354 | $1,910 | 1.12 | -0.9% |
| Transportation and warehousing | 2,971 | $1,396 | 0.90 | +6.3% |
| Finance and insurance | 2,736 | $1,957 | 0.86 | -6.4% |
| Administrative and waste services | 2,619 | $1,077 | 0.59 | -8.1% |
| Other services | 2,435 | $985 | 1.04 | -3.4% |
| Utilities | 1,175 | $2,056 | 3.81 | +0.5% |
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 #
Surface water layer not loaded
Sites found: 4, 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 Meredith | 44 % full · 500k ac-ft | 47 km |
| Greenbelt Lake | 5 % full · 60k ac-ft | 101 km |
| Mackenzie Reservoir | 11 % full · 46k ac-ft | 104 km |
| Palo Duro Reservoir | 0 % full · 61k ac-ft | 124 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 #
Surface water layer not loaded
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 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 #
high (0.57)
Σ wᵢ·termᵢ / Σ wᵢ = 0.35×0.50 + 0.3×0.66 / 0.65
Banks & federal dollars #
$7.9 bn in deposits at 30 offices of 12 banks (SOD June 2026); HHI 5,356, highly concentrated. $3.7 bn federal obligations in FY2026 (contracts $3.0 bn, direct payments $588.9 m), $47,022 per covered job
| Item | Value | Distance |
|---|---|---|
| Amarillo National Bank | $5.7 bn · 72.1% share · 11 offices | |
| FirstBank Southwest | $733.3 m · 9.3% share · 3 offices | |
| Centennial Bank | $499.9 m · 6.3% share · 6 offices | |
| Potter, TX | $3.7 bn FY2026 · $47,022/job | |
| PANTEXAS DETERRENCE, LLC | $1.6 bn · top recipient FY2026 |
| Institution | Deposits | Share | Offices |
|---|---|---|---|
| Amarillo National Bank | $5,687,585,000 | 72.1% | 11 |
| FirstBank Southwest | $733,274,000 | 9.3% | 3 |
| Centennial Bank | $499,855,000 | 6.3% | 6 |
| Bank of America, National Association | $295,002,000 | 3.7% | 1 |
| JPMorgan Chase Bank, National Association | $198,843,000 | 2.5% | 1 |
| Herring Bank | $173,231,000 | 2.2% | 2 |
| Wells Fargo Bank, National Association | $153,600,000 | 1.9% | 1 |
| BOC Bank | $122,495,000 | 1.6% | 1 |
| First State Bank | $16,420,000 | 0.2% | 1 |
| Woodforest National Bank | $3,505,000 | 0.0% | 1 |
Deposit concentration is 5,356 across 12 banks, which the 1995 Department of Justice bank merger screen calls highly concentrated.
HHI = Σ (share %)² over 12 banks with deposits in the county = 72.1² + 9.3² + 6.3² + … (9 more) = 5,356
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 Energy | $1,663,367,266 |
| Department of Defense | $1,328,693,890 |
| Social Security Administration | $426,771,640 |
| Department of Veterans Affairs | $94,425,257 |
| Department of Transportation | $51,141,771 |
| Railroad Retirement Board | $32,385,978 |
| Department of Housing and Urban Development | $26,904,423 |
| Department of Education | $25,601,970 |
| Department of Agriculture | $6,889,240 |
| Department of Health and Human Services | $6,557,461 |
| General Services Administration | $2,900,932 |
| Federal Communications Commission | $1,795,819 |
That is $47,022 per covered job, against 78,002 jobs in the 2026 Q1 QCEW quarter.
per job = FY2026 obligations $3.7 bn / 78,002 covered jobs (BLS QCEW 2026 Q1, all ownerships) = $47,022
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 #
Potter County, TX: 13 findings, 1 at a watch level and 12 noted
watchPotter County, TX's covered employment is -0.2% 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 = -0.2 < 0
BLS QCEW over-the-year percent change, as published; not an official level
notePotter County, TX's average weekly wage was 5.0% 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
- +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
notePotter County, TX's typical asking rent rose 0.8% from $1,079 in July 2026 to $1,087 in August 2026, on Zillow ZORI.
Period 2026-08.Show the arithmetic
- +0.8% = (1087.3693488529016 - 1078.992759849265) / 1078.992759849265 × 100
- 1087.3693488529016 = Zillow ZORI, 2026-08
- 1078.992759849265 = Zillow ZORI, 2026-07
notePotter County, TX's typical home value rose 0.4% from $151,284 in July 2026 to $151,937 in August 2026, on Zillow ZHVI.
Period 2026-08.Show the arithmetic
- +0.4% = (151936.69035790698 - 151284.37654981742) / 151284.37654981742 × 100
- 151936.69035790698 = Zillow ZHVI, 2026-08
- 151284.37654981742 = Zillow ZHVI, 2026-07
notePotter County, TX's covered employment was 0.2% 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
- -0.2 % = 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
Read all 12 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.