Pitkin County, CO
Housing, jobs, water, deposits and federal obligations for this county, each figure with the release it came from. Internal point 39.22, -106.92.
Assembled 2026-10-19. Read the brief.
- 99th pct · 2nd of 3,063 US counties · median $230,451
- 100th pct · 1st of 62 Colorado counties · median $448,803
- 95th pct · 145th of 3,062 US counties · median +2.9%
- 100th pct · 1st of 62 Colorado counties · median -0.4%
- 100th pct · 1st of 1,358 US counties · median $1,506
- 100th pct · 1st of 33 Colorado counties · median $1,931
- 70th pct · 956th of 3,221 US counties · median 8,232
- 74th pct · 17th of 64 Colorado counties · median 4,853
- 95th pct · 161st of 3,221 US counties · median $1,039
- 88th pct · 8th of 64 Colorado counties · median $1,075
- 99th pct · 2nd of 3,063 US counties · median 4.2
- 100th pct · 1st of 62 Colorado counties · median 6.4
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 $2.7 m (Sep 2026), +9.4% over one year, +45.4% over five
- 99th pct · 2nd of 3,063 US counties · median $230,451
- 100th pct · 1st of 62 Colorado counties · median $448,803
| Item | Value | Distance |
|---|---|---|
| Pitkin County, CO | $2.7 m · +9.4% 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 $12,105/mo (Sep 2026), +11.2% over one year; price-to-rent 18.7
- 100th pct · 1st of 1,358 US counties · median $1,506
- 100th pct · 1st of 33 Colorado counties · median $1,931
| Item | Value | Distance |
|---|---|---|
| Pitkin County, CO | $12,105/mo · +11.2% 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 $15,013 a month on $2,710,408 at 7.40%, against an average weekly wage worth $7,033 a month: 213.5% of one job’s pay.
- payment = P·r / (1 − (1+r)^−n), P = $2.7 m × 80% = $2.2 m, r = 7.40%/12 (Freddie Mac PMMS via FRED, 2026-10-15), n = 360 → $15,013/mo principal and interest
- wage share = payment / (avg weekly wage $1,623 × 52 / 12 = $7,033) = 213% of one average job's pay (BLS QCEW 2026 Q1, all covered jobs)
- years of wages = $2.7 m / ($1,623 × 52) = 32.1
- price-to-rent = $2.7 m / ($12,105 × 12) = 18.7
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 #
19,181 jobs at 2,103 employers (2026 Q1); -1.5% jobs and +5.7% average weekly wage over the year
- 70th pct · 956th of 3,221 US counties · median 8,232
- 74th pct · 17th of 64 Colorado counties · median 4,853
| Item | Value | Distance |
|---|---|---|
| Pitkin County, CO | 19,181 jobs · $1,623/wk · -1.5% YoY |
| NAICS sector | Jobs | Avg weekly wage | Location quotient | Jobs over the year |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Accommodation and food services | 5,205 | $1,288 | 3.02 | -0.6% |
| Arts, entertainment and recreation | 3,579 | $1,348 | 11.33 | -0.7% |
| Retail trade | 1,468 | $1,363 | 0.79 | -6.4% |
| Real estate and rental | 1,172 | $1,532 | 3.99 | -7.4% |
| Administrative and waste services | 867 | $1,266 | 0.80 | -5.6% |
| Other services | 838 | $1,372 | 1.46 | -1.3% |
| Professional and technical services | 834 | $2,500 | 0.63 | -4.5% |
| Construction | 733 | $2,327 | 0.73 | -1.2% |
| Transportation and warehousing | 427 | $820 | 0.53 | -3.2% |
| Health care and social assistance | 340 | $1,482 | 0.12 | -9.8% |
| Educational services | 262 | $1,641 | 0.63 | +11.5% |
| Finance and insurance | 227 | $8,971 | 0.29 | -9.9% |
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 #
$1.9 bn in deposits at 12 offices of 10 banks (SOD June 2026); HHI 2,272, highly concentrated. $130.1 m federal obligations in FY2026 (direct payments $80.5 m, grants $48.9 m), $6,785 per covered job
| Item | Value | Distance |
|---|---|---|
| Alpine Bank | $790.7 m · 41.9% share · 3 offices | |
| Wells Fargo Bank, National Association | $290.8 m · 15.4% share · 1 office | |
| Zions Bancorporation, N.A. | $173.7 m · 9.2% share · 1 office | |
| Pitkin, CO | $130.1 m FY2026 · $6,785/job | |
| MULTIPLE RECIPIENTS | $80.1 m · top recipient FY2026 |
| Institution | Deposits | Share | Offices |
|---|---|---|---|
| Alpine Bank | $790,668,000 | 41.9% | 3 |
| Wells Fargo Bank, National Association | $290,834,000 | 15.4% | 1 |
| Zions Bancorporation, N.A. | $173,691,000 | 9.2% | 1 |
| Timberline Bank | $151,729,000 | 8.0% | 1 |
| U.S. Bank National Association | $121,564,000 | 6.4% | 1 |
| JPMorgan Chase Bank, National Association | $113,548,000 | 6.0% | 1 |
| NBH Bank | $95,251,000 | 5.0% | 1 |
| ANB Bank | $85,615,000 | 4.5% | 1 |
| PNC Bank, National Association | $37,709,000 | 2.0% | 1 |
| First Western Trust Bank | $26,710,000 | 1.4% | 1 |
Deposit concentration is 2,272 across 10 banks, which the 1995 Department of Justice bank merger screen calls highly concentrated.
HHI = Σ (share %)² over 10 banks with deposits in the county = 41.9² + 15.4² + 9.2² + … (7 more) = 2,272
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 | $78,677,829 |
| Department of Transportation | $47,771,255 |
| Department of Veterans Affairs | $1,407,861 |
| Department of the Interior | $942,189 |
| Department of Justice | $486,884 |
| Department of Agriculture | $313,395 |
| National Science Foundation | $309,375 |
| Federal Communications Commission | $206,521 |
| Department of Health and Human Services | $15,000 |
| Department of Defense | $10,000 |
| Small Business Administration | $0 |
| Department of Commerce | $0 |
That is $6,785 per covered job, against 19,181 jobs in the 2026 Q1 QCEW quarter.
per job = FY2026 obligations $130.1 m / 19,181 covered jobs (BLS QCEW 2026 Q1, all ownerships) = $6,785
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 #
Pitkin County, CO: 21 findings, 6 at a watch level and 15 noted
watchPitkin County, CO's years of wages is 32.1, a watch level here: typical home value worth 10 or more years of one average covered wage (typical home value / (average weekly wage × 52), one average covered job rather than a household; 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 2026-09.Show the arithmetic
- test: yearsOfWages = 32.11536364123323 >= 10
- typical home value / (average weekly wage × 52); one average covered job, not a household
typical home value / (average weekly wage × 52), one average covered job rather than a household; convention chosen for this dashboard, not an official level
watchPitkin County, CO's years of wages of 32.1 ranks 2nd of 3,063 US counties, a watch level here: years of wages in the top tenth of US counties (position among the counties that published both a ZHVI value and a QCEW average weekly wage; 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: yearsOfWages percentile = 99.96734160679294 >= 90
- typical home value / (average weekly wage × 52); one average covered job, not a household
position among the counties that published both a ZHVI value and a QCEW average weekly wage; not an official level
watchPitkin County, CO's typical asking rent is +11.2% against a year earlier, a watch level here: typical asking rent at least 8 percent above a year ago (arithmetic on Zillow ZORI; 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 2026-09.Show the arithmetic
- test: rent.yoyPct = 11.213932803945447 >= 8
arithmetic on Zillow ZORI; convention chosen for this dashboard, not an official level
watchPitkin County, CO'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
watchPitkin County, CO's typical asking rent is -1.6% against the previous month, a watch level here: typical asking rent at least 1 percent below the previous month (arithmetic on the Zillow ZORI month columns; 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 2026-09.Show the arithmetic
- test: rent.momPct = -1.5773881646126502 <= -1
- month-over-month percent change = (newest month − previous month) / |previous month| × 100, from Zillow's own published month columns
arithmetic on the Zillow ZORI month columns; convention chosen for this dashboard, not an official level
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.