Stearns County, MN
Housing, jobs, water, deposits and federal obligations for this county, each figure with the release it came from. Internal point 45.56, -94.61.
Assembled 2026-10-19. Read the brief.
- 72nd pct · 857th of 3,063 US counties · median $230,451
- 66th pct · 30th of 87 Minnesota counties · median $270,028
- counties in the St. Cloud metro: Rank context is unavailable: the manifest lists 2 counties in the St. Cloud metro; fewer than 5 is too few to rank.
- 43rd pct · 1,725th of 3,062 US counties · median +2.9%
- 24th pct · 66th of 87 Minnesota counties · median +3.5%
- counties in the St. Cloud metro: Rank context is unavailable: the manifest lists 2 counties in the St. Cloud metro; fewer than 5 is too few to rank.
- 26th pct · 1,004th of 1,358 US counties · median $1,506
- 37th pct · 21st of 33 Minnesota counties · median $1,370
- counties in the St. Cloud metro: Rank context is unavailable: the manifest lists 2 counties in the St. Cloud metro; fewer than 5 is too few to rank.
- 89th pct · 344th of 3,221 US counties · median 8,232
- 91st pct · 8th of 87 Minnesota counties · median 7,739
- counties in the St. Cloud metro: Rank context is unavailable: the manifest lists 2 counties in the St. Cloud metro; fewer than 5 is too few to rank.
- 83rd pct · 517th of 3,221 US counties · median $1,039
- 89th pct · 10th of 87 Minnesota counties · median $1,102
- counties in the St. Cloud metro: Rank context is unavailable: the manifest lists 2 counties in the St. Cloud metro; fewer than 5 is too few to rank.
- 58th pct · 1,268th of 3,063 US counties · median 4.2
- 52nd pct · 42nd of 87 Minnesota counties · median 4.6
- counties in the St. Cloud metro: Rank context is unavailable: the manifest lists 2 counties in the St. Cloud 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 $310,038 (Sep 2026), +2.4% over one year, +23.7% over five
- 72nd pct · 857th of 3,063 US counties · median $230,451
- 66th pct · 30th of 87 Minnesota counties · median $270,028
- counties in the St. Cloud metro: Rank context is unavailable: the manifest lists 2 counties in the St. Cloud metro; fewer than 5 is too few to rank.
| Item | Value | Distance |
|---|---|---|
| Stearns County, MN | $310,038 · +2.4% 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 $1,259/mo (Sep 2026), +5.3% over one year; price-to-rent 20.5
- 26th pct · 1,004th of 1,358 US counties · median $1,506
- 37th pct · 21st of 33 Minnesota counties · median $1,370
- counties in the St. Cloud metro: Rank context is unavailable: the manifest lists 2 counties in the St. Cloud metro; fewer than 5 is too few to rank.
| Item | Value | Distance |
|---|---|---|
| Stearns County, MN | $1,259/mo · +5.3% 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 $1,717 a month on $310,038 at 7.40%, against an average weekly wage worth $5,581 a month: 30.8% of one job’s pay.
- payment = P·r / (1 − (1+r)^−n), P = $310,038 × 80% = $248,030, r = 7.40%/12 (Freddie Mac PMMS via FRED, 2026-10-15), n = 360 → $1,717/mo principal and interest
- wage share = payment / (avg weekly wage $1,288 × 52 / 12 = $5,581) = 31% of one average job's pay (BLS QCEW 2026 Q1, all covered jobs)
- years of wages = $310,038 / ($1,288 × 52) = 4.6
- price-to-rent = $310,038 / ($1,259 × 12) = 20.5
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 #
85,208 jobs at 4,598 employers (2026 Q1); -0.9% jobs and +2.5% average weekly wage over the year
- 89th pct · 344th of 3,221 US counties · median 8,232
- 91st pct · 8th of 87 Minnesota counties · median 7,739
- counties in the St. Cloud metro: Rank context is unavailable: the manifest lists 2 counties in the St. Cloud metro; fewer than 5 is too few to rank.
| Item | Value | Distance |
|---|---|---|
| Stearns County, MN | 85,208 jobs · $1,288/wk · -0.9% YoY |
| NAICS sector | Jobs | Avg weekly wage | Location quotient | Jobs over the year |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Health care and social assistance | 16,305 | $1,286 | 1.27 | -2.7% |
| Manufacturing | 11,573 | $1,436 | 1.69 | +1.3% |
| Retail trade | 11,157 | $818 | 1.34 | -1.9% |
| Accommodation and food services | 6,163 | $411 | 0.81 | +3.5% |
| Construction | 4,685 | $2,308 | 1.05 | -2.5% |
| Wholesale trade | 3,925 | $1,514 | 1.20 | -1.4% |
| Finance and insurance | 3,505 | $2,353 | 1.01 | -2.5% |
| Transportation and warehousing | 3,400 | $1,247 | 0.95 | +3.8% |
| Other services | 2,756 | $803 | 1.08 | -2.2% |
| Administrative and waste services | 2,159 | $1,090 | 0.45 | -0.6% |
| Professional and technical services | 1,651 | $1,802 | 0.28 | -4.4% |
| Educational services | 1,570 | $1,005 | 0.86 | +1.3% |
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 #
D1 moderate 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: 0, 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.
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 #
moderate (0.25)
Σ wᵢ·termᵢ / Σ wᵢ = 0.35×0.25 / 0.35
Banks & federal dollars #
$7.1 bn in deposits at 48 offices of 29 banks (SOD June 2026); HHI 1,122, moderately concentrated. $1.1 bn federal obligations in FY2026 (direct payments $952.2 m, contracts $118.9 m), $12,949 per covered job
| Item | Value | Distance |
|---|---|---|
| Stearns Bank National Association | $2.0 bn · 27.7% share · 3 offices | |
| Old National Bank | $785.6 m · 11.0% share · 2 offices | |
| Wells Fargo Bank, National Association | $435.7 m · 6.1% share · 2 offices | |
| Stearns, MN | $1.1 bn FY2026 · $12,949/job | |
| MULTIPLE RECIPIENTS | $834.5 m · top recipient FY2026 |
| Institution | Deposits | Share | Offices |
|---|---|---|---|
| Stearns Bank National Association | $1,975,552,000 | 27.7% | 3 |
| Old National Bank | $785,560,000 | 11.0% | 2 |
| Wells Fargo Bank, National Association | $435,677,000 | 6.1% | 2 |
| U.S. Bank National Association | $430,763,000 | 6.0% | 3 |
| Falcon National Bank | $413,993,000 | 5.8% | 2 |
| Sentry Bank | $365,032,000 | 5.1% | 4 |
| American Heritage National Bank | $298,345,000 | 4.2% | 2 |
| BankVista | $257,413,000 | 3.6% | 1 |
| Deerwood Bank | $242,308,000 | 3.4% | 2 |
| Liberty Bank Minnesota | $222,036,000 | 3.1% | 4 |
Deposit concentration is 1,122 across 28 banks, which the 1995 Department of Justice bank merger screen calls moderately concentrated.
HHI = Σ (share %)² over 28 banks with deposits in the county = 27.7² + 11.0² + 6.1² + … (25 more) = 1,122
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 | $726,261,696 |
| Department of Veterans Affairs | $142,927,947 |
| Department of Education | $88,906,936 |
| Department of Agriculture | $79,820,066 |
| Department of Housing and Urban Development | $18,946,690 |
| Department of Transportation | $17,911,542 |
| General Services Administration | $12,044,226 |
| Railroad Retirement Board | $7,376,318 |
| Department of Health and Human Services | $4,621,004 |
| Environmental Protection Agency | $3,500,000 |
| Federal Communications Commission | $731,027 |
| Department of Defense | $211,598 |
That is $12,949 per covered job, against 85,208 jobs in the 2026 Q1 QCEW quarter.
per job = FY2026 obligations $1.1 bn / 85,208 covered jobs (BLS QCEW 2026 Q1, all ownerships) = $12,949
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 | 17.95 | 2026-10-18 | -2.6% |
| 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 | 2026-10-19 | +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 | 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 | 1,275.00 | 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 | 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 #
Stearns County, MN: 8 findings, 1 at a watch level and 7 noted
watchStearns County, MN's covered employment is -0.9% 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 = -0.9 < 0
BLS QCEW over-the-year percent change, as published; not an official level
noteStearns County, MN's average weekly wage was 2.5% 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
- +2.5 % = 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
noteStearns County, MN's covered employment was 0.9% 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
- -0.9 % = 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
noteStearns County, MN's typical asking rent rose 0.7% from $1,250 in August 2026 to $1,259 in September 2026, on Zillow ZORI.
Period 2026-09.Show the arithmetic
- +0.7% = (1258.780864197531 - 1249.7860862155956) / 1249.7860862155956 × 100
- 1258.780864197531 = Zillow ZORI, 2026-09
- 1249.7860862155956 = Zillow ZORI, 2026-08
noteStearns County, MN's covered employment of 85,208 ranks 8th of 87 Minnesota counties, against a median of 7,739.
Period 2026 Q1.Show the arithmetic
- 92 on the 0-to-100 scale across 87 Minnesota counties that published jobs.emp
position among the entities that published this metric this period; not an official level
Read all 8 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.