Clay County, MO
Housing, jobs, water, deposits and federal obligations for this county, each figure with the release it came from. Internal point 39.32, -94.42.
Assembled 2026-10-19. Read the brief.
- 74th pct · 796th of 3,063 US counties · median $230,451
- 92nd pct · 9th of 113 Missouri counties · median $221,167
- 61st pct · 6th of 14 counties in the Kansas City metro · median $277,202
- 44th pct · 1,701st of 3,062 US counties · median +2.9%
- 16th pct · 94th of 113 Missouri counties · median +4.5%
- 7th pct · 13th of 14 counties in the Kansas City metro · median +4.2%
- 53rd pct · 633rd of 1,358 US counties · median $1,506
- 85th pct · 6th of 35 Missouri counties · median $1,229
- 42nd pct · 5th of 8 counties in the Kansas City metro · median $1,574
- 91st pct · 277th of 3,221 US counties · median 8,232
- 95th pct · 6th of 115 Missouri counties · median 4,996
- 84th pct · 3rd of 14 counties in the Kansas City metro · median 15,305
- 82nd pct · 551st of 3,221 US counties · median $1,039
- 95th pct · 6th of 115 Missouri counties · median $902
- 76th pct · 4th of 14 counties in the Kansas City metro · median $1,052
- 62nd pct · 1,164th of 3,063 US counties · median 4.2
- 58th pct · 48th of 113 Missouri counties · median 4.7
- 23rd pct · 11th of 14 counties in the Kansas City metro · median 5.5
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 $318,510 (Sep 2026), +2.4% over one year, +24.1% over five
- 74th pct · 796th of 3,063 US counties · median $230,451
- 92nd pct · 9th of 113 Missouri counties · median $221,167
- 61st pct · 6th of 14 counties in the Kansas City metro · median $277,202
| Item | Value | Distance |
|---|---|---|
| Clay County, MO | $318,510 · +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 $1,546/mo (Sep 2026), +3.8% over one year; price-to-rent 17.2
- 53rd pct · 633rd of 1,358 US counties · median $1,506
- 85th pct · 6th of 35 Missouri counties · median $1,229
- 42nd pct · 5th of 8 counties in the Kansas City metro · median $1,574
| Item | Value | Distance |
|---|---|---|
| Clay County, MO | $1,546/mo · +3.8% 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 $1,764 a month on $318,510 at 7.40%, against an average weekly wage worth $5,525 a month: 31.9% of one job’s pay.
- payment = P·r / (1 − (1+r)^−n), P = $318,510 × 80% = $254,808, r = 7.40%/12 (Freddie Mac PMMS via FRED, 2026-10-15), n = 360 → $1,764/mo principal and interest
- wage share = payment / (avg weekly wage $1,275 × 52 / 12 = $5,525) = 32% of one average job's pay (BLS QCEW 2026 Q1, all covered jobs)
- years of wages = $318,510 / ($1,275 × 52) = 4.8
- price-to-rent = $318,510 / ($1,546 × 12) = 17.2
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 #
108,868 jobs at 7,156 employers (2026 Q1); -1.0% jobs and -0.2% average weekly wage over the year
- 91st pct · 277th of 3,221 US counties · median 8,232
- 95th pct · 6th of 115 Missouri counties · median 4,996
- 84th pct · 3rd of 14 counties in the Kansas City metro · median 15,305
| Item | Value | Distance |
|---|---|---|
| Clay County, MO | 108,868 jobs · $1,275/wk · -1.0% YoY |
| NAICS sector | Jobs | Avg weekly wage | Location quotient | Jobs over the year |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Manufacturing | 16,321 | $1,840 | 1.86 | +0.8% |
| Retail trade | 12,779 | $756 | 1.20 | -2.3% |
| Health care and social assistance | 12,048 | $1,230 | 0.74 | +1.9% |
| Accommodation and food services | 10,380 | $526 | 1.06 | +2.0% |
| Transportation and warehousing | 7,687 | $1,032 | 1.68 | -3.5% |
| Wholesale trade | 5,806 | $1,685 | 1.39 | -5.0% |
| Professional and technical services | 5,666 | $2,175 | 0.75 | +4.5% |
| Administrative and waste services | 5,441 | $897 | 0.88 | -10.6% |
| Construction | 4,989 | $1,891 | 0.87 | -7.9% |
| Other services | 2,922 | $908 | 0.90 | +0.1% |
| Arts, entertainment and recreation | 2,346 | $598 | 1.31 | -3.6% |
| Finance and insurance | 2,258 | $1,978 | 0.51 | -5.2% |
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.
Water #
Banks & federal dollars #
$5.9 bn in deposits at 65 offices of 26 banks (SOD June 2026); HHI 710, unconcentrated. $1.5 bn federal obligations in FY2026 (direct payments $1.4 bn, grants $87.3 m), $13,671 per covered job
| Item | Value | Distance |
|---|---|---|
| Bank of America, National Association | $802.6 m · 13.7% share · 3 offices | |
| Commerce Bank | $667.6 m · 11.4% share · 4 offices | |
| The Central Trust Bank | $541.5 m · 9.2% share · 9 offices | |
| Clay, MO | $1.5 bn FY2026 · $13,671/job | |
| MULTIPLE RECIPIENTS | $1.3 bn · top recipient FY2026 |
| Institution | Deposits | Share | Offices |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bank of America, National Association | $802,628,000 | 13.7% | 3 |
| Commerce Bank | $667,639,000 | 11.4% | 4 |
| The Central Trust Bank | $541,457,000 | 9.2% | 9 |
| NBH Bank | $384,230,000 | 6.5% | 3 |
| UMB Bank, National Association | $376,289,000 | 6.4% | 3 |
| Verimore Bank | $343,822,000 | 5.9% | 5 |
| North American Savings Bank, F.S.B. | $334,485,000 | 5.7% | 2 |
| Security Bank of Kansas City | $331,838,000 | 5.7% | 4 |
| Pony Express Bank | $316,632,000 | 5.4% | 1 |
| U.S. Bank National Association | $309,435,000 | 5.3% | 3 |
Deposit concentration is 710 across 26 banks, which the 1995 Department of Justice bank merger screen calls unconcentrated.
HHI = Σ (share %)² over 26 banks with deposits in the county = 13.7² + 11.4² + 9.2² + … (23 more) = 710
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 | $1,150,653,420 |
| Department of Veterans Affairs | $165,831,144 |
| Department of Transportation | $49,430,294 |
| Department of Health and Human Services | $40,932,228 |
| Railroad Retirement Board | $20,208,535 |
| Department of Labor | $16,058,286 |
| Department of Agriculture | $15,472,546 |
| Department of Housing and Urban Development | $12,939,919 |
| Department of Defense | $5,262,890 |
| Department of Education | $4,749,019 |
| Federal Communications Commission | $1,915,822 |
| Department of Homeland Security | $1,327,940 |
That is $13,671 per covered job, against 108,868 jobs in the 2026 Q1 QCEW quarter.
per job = FY2026 obligations $1.5 bn / 108,868 covered jobs (BLS QCEW 2026 Q1, all ownerships) = $13,671
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 #
Clay County, MO: 17 findings, 3 at a watch level and 14 noted
watchClay County, MO's covered employment is -1.0% 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 < 0
BLS QCEW over-the-year percent change, as published; not an official level
watchClay County, MO's average weekly wage is -0.2% against a year earlier, a watch level here: average weekly wage below the same quarter a year earlier, before inflation (BLS QCEW over-the-year percent change, as published, nominal dollars; 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.avgWeeklyWage = -0.2 < 0
BLS QCEW over-the-year percent change, as published, nominal dollars; convention chosen for this dashboard, not an official level
watchClay County, MO's typical asking rent of $1,546 scores 53 on the 0-to-100 scale across US counties but 85 across Missouri counties, a gap of 32 points.
Period 2026-09.Show the arithmetic
- 32 = |53 across US counties - 85 across Missouri counties|
position among the entities that published this metric this period; not an official level
noteClay County, MO's covered employment was 1.0% 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 % = 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
noteClay County, MO's typical home value rose 0.5% from $317,069 in August 2026 to $318,510 in September 2026, on Zillow ZHVI.
Period 2026-09.Show the arithmetic
- +0.5% = (318509.53167865117 - 317068.82711400493) / 317068.82711400493 × 100
- 318509.53167865117 = Zillow ZHVI, 2026-09
- 317068.82711400493 = 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.