Rio Blanco County, CO
Housing, jobs, water, deposits and federal obligations for this county, each figure with the release it came from. Internal point 39.97, -108.20.
Assembled 2026-10-19. Read the brief.
- 75th pct · 746th of 3,063 US counties · median $230,451
- 39th pct · 38th of 62 Colorado counties · median $448,803
- 46th pct · 1,630th of 3,062 US counties · median +2.9%
- 73rd pct · 17th of 62 Colorado counties · median -0.4%
- US counties: not published this period
- Colorado counties: not published this period
- 21st pct · 2,516th of 3,221 US counties · median 8,232
- 31st pct · 44th of 64 Colorado counties · median 4,853
- 86th pct · 445th of 3,221 US counties · median $1,039
- 76th pct · 16th of 64 Colorado counties · median $1,075
- 60th pct · 1,199th of 3,063 US counties · median 4.2
- 24th pct · 47th 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 $326,192 (Sep 2026), +2.6% over one year, +24.3% over five
- 75th pct · 746th of 3,063 US counties · median $230,451
- 39th pct · 38th of 62 Colorado counties · median $448,803
| Item | Value | Distance |
|---|---|---|
| Rio Blanco County, CO | $326,192 · +2.6% 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
- Colorado 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 $1,807 a month on $326,192 at 7.40%, against an average weekly wage worth $5,716 a month: 31.6% of one job’s pay.
- payment = P·r / (1 − (1+r)^−n), P = $326,192 × 80% = $260,954, r = 7.40%/12 (Freddie Mac PMMS via FRED, 2026-10-15), n = 360 → $1,807/mo principal and interest
- wage share = payment / (avg weekly wage $1,319 × 52 / 12 = $5,716) = 32% of one average job's pay (BLS QCEW 2026 Q1, all covered jobs)
- years of wages = $326,192 / ($1,319 × 52) = 4.8
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 #
2,677 jobs at 268 employers (2026 Q1); -5.2% jobs and +4.4% average weekly wage over the year
- 21st pct · 2,516th of 3,221 US counties · median 8,232
- 31st pct · 44th of 64 Colorado counties · median 4,853
| Item | Value | Distance |
|---|---|---|
| Rio Blanco County, CO | 2,677 jobs · $1,319/wk · -5.2% YoY |
| NAICS sector | Jobs | Avg weekly wage | Location quotient | Jobs over the year |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mining, oil and gas | 489 | $2,317 | 51.30 | -6.1% |
| Retail trade | 219 | $557 | 0.84 | +0.5% |
| Administrative and waste services | 104 | $1,283 | 0.68 | -6.3% |
| Other services | 68 | $1,059 | 0.85 | +0.0% |
| Finance and insurance | 42 | $2,422 | 0.39 | +0.0% |
| Utilities | 36 | $2,383 | 3.40 | -2.7% |
| Agriculture, forestry, fishing | 32 | $1,038 | 1.65 | -13.5% |
| Real estate and rental | 21 | $541 | 0.51 | +0.0% |
| Construction | withheld | |||
| Manufacturing | withheld | |||
| Wholesale trade | withheld | |||
| Transportation and warehousing | withheld |
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 #
D2 severe 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 #
4 USGS reservoir gauges, no capacity figures to weight
Sites found: 4, 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 |
|---|---|---|
| RIFLE GAP RESERVOIR NEAR RIFLE, CO | 1,985 Acre-ft (USGS, no capacity on file) | 54 km |
| VEGA RESERVOIR NEAR COLLBRAN, CO | 3,152 Acre-ft (USGS, no capacity on file) | 90 km |
| FRUIT GROWERS RESERVOIR NEAR ORCHARD CITY, CO | 111.6 Acre-ft (USGS, no capacity on file) | 129 km |
| PAONIA RESERVOIR NEAR BARDINE, CO | 364.4 Acre-ft (USGS, no capacity on file) | 136 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 #
54 gauges · 0 flooding · 32 with quality panels averaging 92 % · 36 stale
Sites found: 54, 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 |
|---|---|---|
| PICEANCE CREEK AT WHITE RIVER, CO | flow 3.29 ft³/s · quality 50 % (2) | 12 km |
| USGS-400712108214601 | DO 11.1 mg/l · quality 75 % (4) | 21 km |
| YELLOW CREEK NEAR WHITE RIVER, CO. | flow 0.86 ft³/s · quality 50 % (2) | 28 km |
| USGS-391953108130201 | flow 4.49 ft³/s · quality 75 % (4) | 71 km |
| DRY FORK AT UPPER STATION NEAR DE BEQUE, CO. | turb. 8.00 FNU · quality 67 % (3) · STALE | 67 km |
| PICEANCE CREEK BL RYAN GULCH, NR RIO BLANCO, CO. | flow 2.76 ft³/s · quality 50 % (2) | 10 km |
| WHITE RIVER BELOW MEEKER, CO | flow 334.0 ft³/s · quality 100 % (2) | 9 km |
| White River below Meeker | no readings | 10 km |
| PICEANCE CREEK TRIBUTARY NEAR RIO BLANCO, CO. | flow 0.00 ft³/s · STALE | 16 km |
| PICEANCE CREEK BELOW RIO BLANCO, CO. | flow 15.0 ft³/s · STALE | 16 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 #
5 wells in 0 named aquifers:
Sites found: 5, 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-395755108211401 | depth 295.6 ft · 2017-10-10 | 13 km |
| USGS-395755108211400 | depth 298.2 ft · 2017-10-10 | 13 km |
| USGS-395136108210001 | depth 78.8 ft · 2017-10-10 | 18 km |
| USGS-395136108210004 | depth 60.5 ft · 2026-10-18 | 18 km |
| USGS-395136108210000 | depth 56.9 ft · 2017-10-10 | 18 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 #
moderate (0.35)
Σ wᵢ·termᵢ / Σ wᵢ = 0.35×0.50 + 0.2×0.08 / 0.55
Banks & federal dollars #
$256.5 m in deposits at 3 offices of 2 banks (SOD June 2026); HHI 5,897, highly concentrated. $41.4 m federal obligations in FY2026 (direct payments $38.0 m, contracts $1.7 m), $15,456 per covered job
| Item | Value | Distance |
|---|---|---|
| Glacier Bank | $182.5 m · 71.2% share · 2 offices | |
| Mountain Valley Bank | $73.9 m · 28.8% share · 1 office | |
| Rio Blanco, CO | $41.4 m FY2026 · $15,456/job | |
| MULTIPLE RECIPIENTS | $36.3 m · top recipient FY2026 |
| Institution | Deposits | Share | Offices |
|---|---|---|---|
| Glacier Bank | $182,533,000 | 71.2% | 2 |
| Mountain Valley Bank | $73,930,000 | 28.8% | 1 |
Deposit concentration is 5,897 across 2 banks, which the 1995 Department of Justice bank merger screen calls highly concentrated.
HHI = Σ (share %)² over 2 banks with deposits in the county = 71.2² + 28.8² = 5,897
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 | $32,713,467 |
| Department of Agriculture | $6,939,280 |
| Department of Veterans Affairs | $3,455,176 |
| Department of the Interior | $1,335,726 |
| Department of Education | $1,147,295 |
| Department of Transportation | $329,284 |
| Department of Housing and Urban Development | $192,149 |
| Small Business Administration | $103,125 |
| Department of Health and Human Services | $71,629 |
| Railroad Retirement Board | $46,181 |
| Federal Communications Commission | $42,538 |
| Department of Energy | -$5,000,000 |
That is $15,456 per covered job, against 2,677 jobs in the 2026 Q1 QCEW quarter.
per job = FY2026 obligations $41.4 m / 2,677 covered jobs (BLS QCEW 2026 Q1, all ownerships) = $15,456
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 #
Rio Blanco County, CO: 10 findings, 1 at an alert level, 3 at a watch level and 6 noted
alertRio Blanco County, CO's covered employment is -5.2% against a year earlier, an alert level here: covered employment at least 3 percent below the same quarter a year earlier (BLS QCEW over-the-year percent change, as published; 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.emp = -5.2 <= -3
BLS QCEW over-the-year percent change, as published; convention chosen for this dashboard, not an official level
watchRio Blanco County, CO's covered employment is -5.2% 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 = -5.2 < 0
BLS QCEW over-the-year percent change, as published; not an official level
watchRio Blanco County, CO's typical home value of $326,192 scores 76 on the 0-to-100 scale across US counties but 39 across Colorado counties, a gap of 36 points.
Period 2026-09.Show the arithmetic
- 36 = |76 across US counties - 39 across Colorado counties|
position among the entities that published this metric this period; not an official level
watchRio Blanco County, CO's years of wages of 4.8 scores 61 on the 0-to-100 scale across US counties but 25 across Colorado counties, a gap of 36 points.
Period 2026-09.Show the arithmetic
- 36 = |61 across US counties - 25 across Colorado counties|
- typical home value / (average weekly wage × 52); one average covered job, not a household
position among the entities that published this metric this period; not an official level
noteRio Blanco County, CO's covered employment was 5.2% 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
- -5.2 % = 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
Read all 10 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.