Whitfield County, GA
Housing, jobs, water, deposits and federal obligations for this county, each figure with the release it came from. Internal point 34.80, -84.97.
Assembled 2026-10-20. Read the brief.
- 55th pct · 1,366th of 3,063 US counties · median $230,451
- 59th pct · 65th of 159 Georgia counties · median $215,610
- counties in the Dalton metro: Rank context is unavailable: the manifest lists 2 counties in the Dalton metro; fewer than 5 is too few to rank.
- 17th pct · 2,530th of 3,062 US counties · median +2.9%
- 17th pct · 132nd of 159 Georgia counties · median +2.5%
- counties in the Dalton metro: Rank context is unavailable: the manifest lists 2 counties in the Dalton metro; fewer than 5 is too few to rank.
- 45th pct · 744th of 1,358 US counties · median $1,506
- 27th pct · 50th of 69 Georgia counties · median $1,701
- counties in the Dalton metro: Rank context is unavailable: the manifest lists 2 counties in the Dalton metro; fewer than 5 is too few to rank.
- 85th pct · 476th of 3,221 US counties · median 8,232
- 90th pct · 16th of 159 Georgia counties · median 7,095
- counties in the Dalton metro: Rank context is unavailable: the manifest lists 2 counties in the Dalton metro; fewer than 5 is too few to rank.
- 60th pct · 1,285th of 3,221 US counties · median $1,039
- 74th pct · 41st of 159 Georgia counties · median $964
- counties in the Dalton metro: Rank context is unavailable: the manifest lists 2 counties in the Dalton metro; fewer than 5 is too few to rank.
- 52nd pct · 1,446th of 3,063 US counties · median 4.2
- 53rd pct · 75th of 159 Georgia counties · median 4.2
- counties in the Dalton metro: Rank context is unavailable: the manifest lists 2 counties in the Dalton 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 $245,954 (Sep 2026), -0.5% over one year, +28.7% over five
- 55th pct · 1,366th of 3,063 US counties · median $230,451
- 59th pct · 65th of 159 Georgia counties · median $215,610
- counties in the Dalton metro: Rank context is unavailable: the manifest lists 2 counties in the Dalton metro; fewer than 5 is too few to rank.
| Item | Value | Distance |
|---|---|---|
| Whitfield County, GA | $245,954 · -0.5% 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 $1,451/mo (Sep 2026), +3.0% over one year; price-to-rent 14.1
- 45th pct · 744th of 1,358 US counties · median $1,506
- 27th pct · 50th of 69 Georgia counties · median $1,701
- counties in the Dalton metro: Rank context is unavailable: the manifest lists 2 counties in the Dalton metro; fewer than 5 is too few to rank.
| Item | Value | Distance |
|---|---|---|
| Whitfield County, GA | $1,451/mo · +3.0% 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 $1,362 a month on $245,954 at 7.40%, against an average weekly wage worth $4,715 a month: 28.9% of one job’s pay.
- payment = P·r / (1 − (1+r)^−n), P = $245,954 × 80% = $196,763, r = 7.40%/12 (Freddie Mac PMMS via FRED, 2026-10-15), n = 360 → $1,362/mo principal and interest
- wage share = payment / (avg weekly wage $1,088 × 52 / 12 = $4,715) = 29% of one average job's pay (BLS QCEW 2026 Q1, all covered jobs)
- years of wages = $245,954 / ($1,088 × 52) = 4.3
- price-to-rent = $245,954 / ($1,451 × 12) = 14.1
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 #
55,650 jobs at 2,699 employers (2026 Q1); -1.5% jobs and -1.8% average weekly wage over the year
- 85th pct · 476th of 3,221 US counties · median 8,232
- 90th pct · 16th of 159 Georgia counties · median 7,095
- counties in the Dalton metro: Rank context is unavailable: the manifest lists 2 counties in the Dalton metro; fewer than 5 is too few to rank.
| Item | Value | Distance |
|---|---|---|
| Whitfield County, GA | 55,650 jobs · $1,088/wk · -1.5% YoY |
| NAICS sector | Jobs | Avg weekly wage | Location quotient | Jobs over the year |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Manufacturing | 17,443 | $1,043 | 3.90 | -4.4% |
| Health care and social assistance | 5,267 | $1,291 | 0.63 | -4.3% |
| Retail trade | 4,879 | $715 | 0.90 | -2.8% |
| Professional and technical services | 4,506 | $1,662 | 1.17 | +0.9% |
| Accommodation and food services | 3,663 | $413 | 0.73 | +2.2% |
| Wholesale trade | 3,477 | $1,223 | 1.63 | +2.9% |
| Administrative and waste services | 3,319 | $680 | 1.05 | +8.2% |
| Transportation and warehousing | 2,636 | $1,227 | 1.12 | -8.7% |
| Finance and insurance | 769 | $1,515 | 0.34 | +2.9% |
| Other services | 698 | $953 | 0.42 | -12.8% |
| Management of companies | 618 | $2,622 | 0.66 | +2.7% |
| Real estate and rental | 304 | $907 | 0.36 | +4.8% |
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 #
5 USGS reservoir gauges, no capacity figures to weight
Sites found: 5, 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 |
|---|---|---|
| CARTERS RE-REGULATION LAKE NEAR CARTERS, GA | 32.6 ft (USGS, no capacity on file) | 33 km |
| CARTERS LAKE NEAR CARTERS, GA | 1,072 ft (USGS, no capacity on file) | 34 km |
| ALLATOONA LAKE NEAR CARTERSVILLE, GA | 834.8 ft (USGS, no capacity on file) | 74 km |
| CHATTAHOOCHEE RIVER AT MORGAN FALLS DAM, GA | 864.5 ft (USGS, no capacity on file) | 107 km |
| LAKE SIDNEY LANIER NEAR BUFORD, GA | 1,063 ft (USGS, no capacity on file) | 108 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 #
64 gauges · 0 flooding · 4 with quality panels averaging 100 % · 15 stale
Sites found: 64, 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 |
|---|---|---|
| MILL CREEK AT DALTON, GA | flow 14.8 ft³/s | 2 km |
| COAHULLA CREEK AT KEITHS MILL ROAD, NEAR DALTON,GA | flow 42.9 ft³/s | 10 km |
| CONASAUGA RIVER AT GA 286, NEAR ETON, GA | flow 73.8 ft³/s | 11 km |
| CONASAUGA RIVER AT TILTON, GA | flow 107.0 ft³/s | 15 km |
| USGS-03566700 | flow 32.5 ft³/s | 19 km |
| CONASAUGA RIVER AT SLOAN BRIDGE, BELOW DALTON, GA | stage -0.59 ft | 20 km |
| HOLLY CREEK NEAR CHATSWORTH, GA | flow 12.0 ft³/s | 20 km |
| MILL CREEK NEAR CRANDALL, GA | flow 1.39 ft³/s | 24 km |
| OOSTANAULA RIVER AT RESACA, GA | flow 435.0 ft³/s | 25 km |
| COOSAWATTEE RIVER AT PINE CHAPEL, GA | stage 0.88 ft | 27 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 #
11 wells in 0 named aquifers:
Sites found: 11, 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-345403085160001 | depth 14.6 ft · 2026-10-19 | 29 km |
| USGS-345848085173701 | depth 70.7 ft · 1981-06-27 | 36 km |
| USGS-342922084511601 | depth 25.0 ft · 2026-10-19 | 36 km |
| USGS-350750085045802 | depth 11.4 ft · 2026-10-19 | 38 km |
| USGS-350234085181200 | depth 16.5 ft · 1998-10-26 | 41 km |
| USGS-351115085025001 | depth 12.8 ft · 2026-10-19 | 43 km |
| USGS-351146085122701 | depth 70.1 ft · 2026-10-19 | 49 km |
| USGS-351428085003600 | depth 25.8 ft · 2026-10-19 | 49 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 #
$2.8 bn in deposits at 20 offices of 10 banks (SOD June 2026); HHI 1,359, moderately concentrated. $496.4 m federal obligations in FY2026 (direct payments $486.3 m, grants $9.9 m), $8,921 per covered job
| Item | Value | Distance |
|---|---|---|
| Truist Bank | $549.7 m · 20.0% share · 2 offices | |
| Wells Fargo Bank, National Association | $480.8 m · 17.5% share · 3 offices | |
| Bank OZK | $431.1 m · 15.7% share · 1 office | |
| Whitfield, GA | $496.4 m FY2026 · $8,921/job | |
| MULTIPLE RECIPIENTS | $466.3 m · top recipient FY2026 |
| Institution | Deposits | Share | Offices |
|---|---|---|---|
| Truist Bank | $549,739,000 | 20.0% | 2 |
| Wells Fargo Bank, National Association | $480,822,000 | 17.5% | 3 |
| Bank OZK | $431,054,000 | 15.7% | 1 |
| Regions Bank | $333,595,000 | 12.1% | 2 |
| FirstBank | $285,921,000 | 10.4% | 2 |
| Builtwell Bank | $261,900,000 | 9.5% | 5 |
| Bank of America, National Association | $132,315,000 | 4.8% | 1 |
| Pinnacle Bank | $119,442,000 | 4.3% | 1 |
| First National Community Bank | $118,739,000 | 4.3% | 2 |
| Millennium Bank | $37,179,000 | 1.4% | 1 |
Deposit concentration is 1,359 across 10 banks, which the 1995 Department of Justice bank merger screen calls moderately concentrated.
HHI = Σ (share %)² over 10 banks with deposits in the county = 20.0² + 17.5² + 15.7² + … (7 more) = 1,359
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 | $425,121,537 |
| Department of Veterans Affairs | $40,372,329 |
| Department of Education | $18,567,590 |
| Department of Transportation | $7,273,878 |
| Federal Communications Commission | $1,309,850 |
| Department of Health and Human Services | $978,384 |
| Railroad Retirement Board | $963,016 |
| Department of Housing and Urban Development | $780,404 |
| Department of Commerce | $482,250 |
| Department of Agriculture | $362,503 |
| National Science Foundation | $206,392 |
| Department of State | $14,390 |
That is $8,921 per covered job, against 55,650 jobs in the 2026 Q1 QCEW quarter.
per job = FY2026 obligations $496.4 m / 55,650 covered jobs (BLS QCEW 2026 Q1, all ownerships) = $8,921
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 | 17.40 | 2026-10-19 | -3.1% |
| 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 · % | 72.20 | 2026-10-20 | +0.0% |
| Laredo truck crossings, monthly · trucks | 255,129.00 | 2026-09-01 | -1.4% |
| 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 | 7.00 | 2026-10-13 | +133.3% |
| Shanghai to Los Angeles container rate · $ per 40 ft box | 7,848.00 | 2026-09-01 | +14.9% |
| US diesel retail price · $ per gallon | unavailable | not published | |
| WTI crude oil, spot · $ per barrel | 101.91 | 2026-10-14 | +1.0% |
| 30-year fixed mortgage rate · % | 7.40 | 2026-10-15 | +0.0% |
| Housing starts, annual rate · thousands of units | 1,221.00 | 2026-09-01 | -5.2% |
| Building permits, annual rate · thousands of units | 1,400.00 | 2026-09-01 | -0.2% |
| 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 | 652,115.00 | 2026-09-01 | +0.7% |
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 #
Whitfield County, GA: 12 findings, 3 at a watch level and 9 noted
watchWhitfield County, GA's average weekly wage is -1.8% 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 = -1.8 < 0
BLS QCEW over-the-year percent change, as published, nominal dollars; convention chosen for this dashboard, not an official level
watchWhitfield County, GA's covered employment is -1.5% 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 = -1.5 < 0
BLS QCEW over-the-year percent change, as published; not an official level
watchWhitfield County, GA's typical home value is -0.5% 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 2026-09.Show the arithmetic
- test: home.yoyPct = -0.49440409127745993 < 0
arithmetic on Zillow ZHVI, county and metro files; not an official level
noteWhitfield County, GA's average weekly wage was 1.8% 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
- -1.8 % = 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
noteWhitfield County, GA's covered employment was 1.5% 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
- -1.5 % = 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 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.