Custer County, OK
Housing, jobs, water, deposits and federal obligations for this county, each figure with the release it came from. Internal point 35.65, -99.00.
Assembled 2026-10-19. Read the brief.
- 28th pct · 2,190th of 3,063 US counties · median $230,451
- 59th pct · 32nd of 77 Oklahoma counties · median $164,118
- 50th pct · 1,524th of 3,062 US counties · median +2.9%
- 42nd pct · 45th of 77 Oklahoma counties · median +3.5%
- US counties: not published this period
- Oklahoma counties: not published this period
- 60th pct · 1,267th of 3,221 US counties · median 8,232
- 71st pct · 23rd of 77 Oklahoma counties · median 7,282
- 33rd pct · 2,128th of 3,221 US counties · median $1,039
- 48th pct · 40th of 77 Oklahoma counties · median $968
- 33rd pct · 2,036th of 3,063 US counties · median 4.2
- 59th pct · 32nd of 77 Oklahoma counties · median 3.3
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 $177,048 (Sep 2026), +2.9% over one year, +34.2% over five
- 28th pct · 2,190th of 3,063 US counties · median $230,451
- 59th pct · 32nd of 77 Oklahoma counties · median $164,118
| Item | Value | Distance |
|---|---|---|
| Custer County, OK | $177,048 · +2.9% 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
- Oklahoma 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 $981 a month on $177,048 at 7.40%, against an average weekly wage worth $4,190 a month: 23.4% of one job’s pay.
- payment = P·r / (1 − (1+r)^−n), P = $177,048 × 80% = $141,638, r = 7.40%/12 (Freddie Mac PMMS via FRED, 2026-10-15), n = 360 → $981/mo principal and interest
- wage share = payment / (avg weekly wage $967 × 52 / 12 = $4,190) = 23% of one average job's pay (BLS QCEW 2026 Q1, all covered jobs)
- years of wages = $177,048 / ($967 × 52) = 3.5
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 #
12,678 jobs at 993 employers (2026 Q1); -1.1% jobs and +1.4% average weekly wage over the year
- 60th pct · 1,267th of 3,221 US counties · median 8,232
- 71st pct · 23rd of 77 Oklahoma counties · median 7,282
| Item | Value | Distance |
|---|---|---|
| Custer County, OK | 12,678 jobs · $967/wk · -1.1% YoY |
| NAICS sector | Jobs | Avg weekly wage | Location quotient | Jobs over the year |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Accommodation and food services | 1,444 | $375 | 1.27 | +1.6% |
| Retail trade | 1,437 | $622 | 1.16 | +2.0% |
| Manufacturing | 1,175 | $1,099 | 1.15 | -2.8% |
| Wholesale trade | 800 | $1,178 | 1.65 | -0.7% |
| Mining, oil and gas | 718 | $2,219 | 15.91 | +0.1% |
| Construction | 625 | $1,146 | 0.94 | +3.1% |
| Finance and insurance | 354 | $1,224 | 0.69 | -4.1% |
| Professional and technical services | 332 | $978 | 0.38 | +1.5% |
| Transportation and warehousing | 331 | $1,758 | 0.62 | -1.2% |
| Other services | 274 | $572 | 0.72 | -2.1% |
| Arts, entertainment and recreation | 241 | $607 | 1.15 | -20.7% |
| Utilities | 205 | $2,457 | 4.09 | +7.3% |
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 #
D4 exceptional 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 #
severe (1.00)
Σ wᵢ·termᵢ / Σ wᵢ = 0.35×1.00 / 0.35
Banks & federal dollars #
$1.2 bn in deposits at 20 offices of 15 banks (SOD June 2026); HHI 863, unconcentrated. $193.7 m federal obligations in FY2026 (direct payments $156.8 m, grants $30.6 m), $15,279 per covered job
| Item | Value | Distance |
|---|---|---|
| Oklahoma Bank and Trust Company | $173.9 m · 15.0% share · 4 offices | |
| The Bank of the West | $126.2 m · 10.9% share · 2 offices | |
| MidFirst Bank | $121.6 m · 10.5% share · 1 office | |
| Custer, OK | $193.7 m FY2026 · $15,279/job | |
| MULTIPLE RECIPIENTS | $134.7 m · top recipient FY2026 |
| Institution | Deposits | Share | Offices |
|---|---|---|---|
| Oklahoma Bank and Trust Company | $173,904,000 | 15.0% | 4 |
| The Bank of the West | $126,167,000 | 10.9% | 2 |
| MidFirst Bank | $121,626,000 | 10.5% | 1 |
| BancFirst | $114,459,000 | 9.9% | 1 |
| Blue Sky Bank | $105,202,000 | 9.1% | 1 |
| InterBank | $78,206,000 | 6.7% | 1 |
| Southwest Bank of Weatherford | $74,987,000 | 6.5% | 1 |
| Bank of Western Oklahoma | $66,148,000 | 5.7% | 1 |
| Bank of Hydro | $59,626,000 | 5.1% | 2 |
| First Bank of Thomas | $55,674,000 | 4.8% | 1 |
Deposit concentration is 863 across 15 banks, which the 1995 Department of Justice bank merger screen calls unconcentrated.
HHI = Σ (share %)² over 15 banks with deposits in the county = 15.0² + 10.9² + 10.5² + … (12 more) = 863
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 | $116,170,582 |
| Department of Veterans Affairs | $28,143,742 |
| Department of Agriculture | $16,346,334 |
| Department of Education | $11,420,087 |
| Department of Transportation | $10,512,747 |
| Department of Housing and Urban Development | $4,885,533 |
| Department of Health and Human Services | $4,369,155 |
| Department of the Interior | $723,570 |
| Federal Communications Commission | $678,341 |
| Railroad Retirement Board | $456,590 |
That is $15,279 per covered job, against 12,678 jobs in the 2026 Q1 QCEW quarter.
per job = FY2026 obligations $193.7 m / 12,678 covered jobs (BLS QCEW 2026 Q1, all ownerships) = $15,279
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 #
Custer County, OK: 6 findings, 2 at a watch level and 4 noted
watchCuster County, OK's covered employment is -1.1% 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 = -1.1 < 0
BLS QCEW over-the-year percent change, as published; not an official level
watchCuster County, OK's typical home value of $177,048 scores 29 on the 0-to-100 scale across US counties but 59 across Oklahoma counties, a gap of 31 points.
Period 2026-09.Show the arithmetic
- 31 = |29 across US counties - 59 across Oklahoma counties|
position among the entities that published this metric this period; not an official level
noteCuster County, OK's average weekly wage was 1.4% 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
- +1.4 % = 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
noteCuster County, OK's covered employment was 1.1% 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
- -1.1 % = 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
noteThe next Unemployment rate (BLS Employment Situation, monthly) covering Custer County, OK is due between 2026-10-30 and 2026-11-13, estimated from the publisher's past release pattern.
Show the arithmetic
- window = 2026-10-30 to 2026-11-13, estimated from the publisher's past release pattern
estimated from the publisher's past release pattern; not an announced date
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.