St. Louis County, MO
Housing, jobs, water, deposits and federal obligations for this county, each figure with the release it came from. Internal point 38.64, -90.45.
Assembled 2026-10-19. Read the brief.
- 66th pct · 1,017th of 3,063 US counties · median $230,451
- 86th pct · 16th of 113 Missouri counties · median $221,167
- 64th pct · 6th of 15 counties in the St. Louis metro · median $225,207
- 48th pct · 1,563rd of 3,062 US counties · median +2.9%
- 25th pct · 85th of 113 Missouri counties · median +4.5%
- 42nd pct · 9th of 15 counties in the St. Louis metro · median +3.9%
- 48th pct · 700th of 1,358 US counties · median $1,506
- 79th pct · 8th of 35 Missouri counties · median $1,229
- 77th pct · 3rd of 10 counties in the St. Louis metro · median $1,310
- 98th pct · 46th of 3,221 US counties · median 8,232
- 100th pct · 1st of 115 Missouri counties · median 4,996
- 100th pct · 1st of 15 counties in the St. Louis metro · median 12,995
- 95th pct · 142nd of 3,221 US counties · median $1,039
- 99th pct · 2nd of 115 Missouri counties · median $902
- 92nd pct · 2nd of 15 counties in the St. Louis metro · median $1,033
- 29th pct · 2,169th of 3,063 US counties · median 4.2
- 17th pct · 93rd of 113 Missouri counties · median 4.7
- 35th pct · 10th of 15 counties in the St. Louis metro · median 4.2
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 $285,675 (Sep 2026), +2.8% over one year, +24.4% over five
- 66th pct · 1,017th of 3,063 US counties · median $230,451
- 86th pct · 16th of 113 Missouri counties · median $221,167
- 64th pct · 6th of 15 counties in the St. Louis metro · median $225,207
| Item | Value | Distance |
|---|---|---|
| St. Louis County, MO | $285,675 · +2.8% 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 $1,490/mo (Sep 2026), +4.2% over one year; price-to-rent 16.0
- 48th pct · 700th of 1,358 US counties · median $1,506
- 79th pct · 8th of 35 Missouri counties · median $1,229
- 77th pct · 3rd of 10 counties in the St. Louis metro · median $1,310
| Item | Value | Distance |
|---|---|---|
| St. Louis County, MO | $1,490/mo · +4.2% 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 $1,582 a month on $285,675 at 7.40%, against an average weekly wage worth $7,167 a month: 22.1% of one job’s pay.
- payment = P·r / (1 − (1+r)^−n), P = $285,675 × 80% = $228,540, r = 7.40%/12 (Freddie Mac PMMS via FRED, 2026-10-15), n = 360 → $1,582/mo principal and interest
- wage share = payment / (avg weekly wage $1,654 × 52 / 12 = $7,167) = 22% of one average job's pay (BLS QCEW 2026 Q1, all covered jobs)
- years of wages = $285,675 / ($1,654 × 52) = 3.3
- price-to-rent = $285,675 / ($1,490 × 12) = 16.0
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 #
584,641 jobs at 48,684 employers (2026 Q1); -0.6% jobs and +4.2% average weekly wage over the year
- 98th pct · 46th of 3,221 US counties · median 8,232
- 100th pct · 1st of 115 Missouri counties · median 4,996
- 100th pct · 1st of 15 counties in the St. Louis metro · median 12,995
| Item | Value | Distance |
|---|---|---|
| St. Louis County, MO | 584,641 jobs · $1,654/wk · -0.6% YoY |
| NAICS sector | Jobs | Avg weekly wage | Location quotient | Jobs over the year |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Health care and social assistance | 100,873 | $1,251 | 1.15 | +1.4% |
| Retail trade | 55,693 | $856 | 0.98 | -0.8% |
| Manufacturing | 47,681 | $2,210 | 1.01 | -0.1% |
| Accommodation and food services | 46,194 | $560 | 0.88 | -1.2% |
| Administrative and waste services | 39,319 | $1,531 | 1.18 | -0.8% |
| Professional and technical services | 38,110 | $2,177 | 0.94 | -0.1% |
| Finance and insurance | 35,175 | $3,456 | 1.48 | -0.6% |
| Construction | 33,794 | $2,017 | 1.10 | +4.2% |
| Wholesale trade | 31,841 | $2,144 | 1.42 | -1.9% |
| Management of companies | 24,464 | $3,325 | 2.50 | -6.7% |
| Transportation and warehousing | 19,102 | $1,261 | 0.78 | +1.6% |
| Other services | 16,471 | $983 | 0.94 | -1.5% |
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 #
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 #
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 #
low (0.00)
Σ wᵢ·termᵢ / Σ wᵢ = 0.35×0.00 / 0.35
Banks & federal dollars #
$48.5 bn in deposits at 303 offices of 55 banks (SOD June 2026); HHI 696, unconcentrated. $15.5 bn federal obligations in FY2026 (contracts $7.8 bn, direct payments $7.2 bn), $26,518 per covered job
| Item | Value | Distance |
|---|---|---|
| Commerce Bank | $6.0 bn · 12.4% share · 22 offices | |
| Bank of America, National Association | $6.0 bn · 12.4% share · 19 offices | |
| U.S. Bank National Association | $5.9 bn · 12.2% share · 31 offices | |
| St. Louis, MO | $15.5 bn FY2026 · $26,518/job | |
| MULTIPLE RECIPIENTS | $7.0 bn · top recipient FY2026 |
| Institution | Deposits | Share | Offices |
|---|---|---|---|
| Commerce Bank | $6,036,539,000 | 12.4% | 22 |
| Bank of America, National Association | $6,024,903,000 | 12.4% | 19 |
| U.S. Bank National Association | $5,927,801,000 | 12.2% | 31 |
| Enterprise Bank & Trust | $4,442,982,000 | 9.2% | 7 |
| Regions Bank | $2,874,288,000 | 5.9% | 22 |
| PNC Bank, National Association | $2,670,137,000 | 5.5% | 14 |
| First Bank | $2,263,743,000 | 4.7% | 17 |
| Midwest BankCentre | $1,788,967,000 | 3.7% | 9 |
| The Central Trust Bank | $1,512,237,000 | 3.1% | 10 |
| Cass Commercial Bank | $1,060,190,000 | 2.2% | 2 |
Deposit concentration is 696 across 53 banks, which the 1995 Department of Justice bank merger screen calls unconcentrated.
HHI = Σ (share %)² over 53 banks with deposits in the county = 12.4² + 12.4² + 12.2² + … (50 more) = 696
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 Defense | $7,598,084,394 |
| Social Security Administration | $5,373,574,314 |
| Department of Health and Human Services | $1,292,102,946 |
| Department of Veterans Affairs | $504,466,886 |
| Department of Transportation | $260,661,971 |
| Department of Housing and Urban Development | $109,897,234 |
| Department of Justice | $73,791,864 |
| Department of Education | $65,257,612 |
| Department of Agriculture | $57,562,805 |
| General Services Administration | $36,086,249 |
| Department of Energy | $23,683,494 |
| Federal Communications Commission | $22,494,947 |
That is $26,518 per covered job, against 584,641 jobs in the 2026 Q1 QCEW quarter.
per job = FY2026 obligations $15.5 bn / 584,641 covered jobs (BLS QCEW 2026 Q1, all ownerships) = $26,518
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 #
St. Louis County, MO: 15 findings, 2 at a watch level and 13 noted
watchSt. Louis County, MO's covered employment is -0.6% 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 = -0.6 < 0
BLS QCEW over-the-year percent change, as published; not an official level
watchSt. Louis County, MO's typical asking rent of $1,490 scores 48 on the 0-to-100 scale across US counties but 79 across Missouri counties, a gap of 31 points.
Period 2026-09.Show the arithmetic
- 31 = |48 across US counties - 79 across Missouri counties|
position among the entities that published this metric this period; not an official level
noteSt. Louis County, MO's average weekly wage was 4.2% 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
- +4.2 % = 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
noteSt. Louis County, MO's covered employment was 0.6% 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
- -0.6 % = 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
noteSt. Louis County, MO's typical home value rose 0.3% from $284,761 in August 2026 to $285,675 in September 2026, on Zillow ZHVI.
Period 2026-09.Show the arithmetic
- +0.3% = (285675.1799220591 - 284761.38542283885) / 284761.38542283885 × 100
- 285675.1799220591 = Zillow ZHVI, 2026-09
- 284761.38542283885 = Zillow ZHVI, 2026-08
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.