Park County, MT
Housing, jobs, water, deposits and federal obligations for this county, each figure with the release it came from. Internal point 45.46, -110.53.
Assembled 2026-10-19. Read the brief.
- 96th pct · 109th of 3,063 US counties · median $230,451
- 94th pct · 4th of 56 Montana counties · median $286,409
- 37th pct · 1,927th of 3,062 US counties · median +2.9%
- 14th pct · 48th of 56 Montana counties · median +3.9%
- 54th pct · 612th of 1,358 US counties · median $1,506
- 33rd pct · 7th of 10 Montana counties · median $1,628
- 45th pct · 1,744th of 3,221 US counties · median 8,232
- 83rd pct · 10th of 56 Montana counties · median 2,560
- 57th pct · 1,360th of 3,221 US counties · median $1,039
- 60th pct · 23rd of 56 Montana counties · median $996
- 98th pct · 60th of 3,063 US counties · median 4.2
- 92nd pct · 5th of 56 Montana counties · 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 $602,767 (Sep 2026), +1.8% over one year, +12.1% over five
- 96th pct · 109th of 3,063 US counties · median $230,451
- 94th pct · 4th of 56 Montana counties · median $286,409
| Item | Value | Distance |
|---|---|---|
| Park County, MT | $602,767 · +1.8% 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 $1,571/mo (Sep 2026), +0.0% over one year; price-to-rent 32.0
- 54th pct · 612th of 1,358 US counties · median $1,506
- 33rd pct · 7th of 10 Montana counties · median $1,628
| Item | Value | Distance |
|---|---|---|
| Park County, MT | $1,571/mo · +0.0% 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 $3,339 a month on $602,767 at 7.40%, against an average weekly wage worth $4,663 a month: 71.6% of one job’s pay.
- payment = P·r / (1 − (1+r)^−n), P = $602,767 × 80% = $482,214, r = 7.40%/12 (Freddie Mac PMMS via FRED, 2026-10-15), n = 360 → $3,339/mo principal and interest
- wage share = payment / (avg weekly wage $1,076 × 52 / 12 = $4,663) = 72% of one average job's pay (BLS QCEW 2026 Q1, all covered jobs)
- years of wages = $602,767 / ($1,076 × 52) = 10.8
- price-to-rent = $602,767 / ($1,571 × 12) = 32.0
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 #
6,976 jobs at 1,323 employers (2026 Q1); +6.4% jobs and +6.1% average weekly wage over the year
- 45th pct · 1,744th of 3,221 US counties · median 8,232
- 83rd pct · 10th of 56 Montana counties · median 2,560
| Item | Value | Distance |
|---|---|---|
| Park County, MT | 6,976 jobs · $1,076/wk · +6.4% YoY |
| NAICS sector | Jobs | Avg weekly wage | Location quotient | Jobs over the year |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Accommodation and food services | 1,611 | $778 | 2.57 | +16.1% |
| Health care and social assistance | 844 | $1,269 | 0.80 | -0.8% |
| Retail trade | 822 | $775 | 1.21 | +2.6% |
| Construction | 567 | $1,244 | 1.55 | +9.7% |
| Other services | 376 | $945 | 1.80 | +0.8% |
| Manufacturing | 336 | $1,180 | 0.60 | -9.4% |
| Professional and technical services | 288 | $1,656 | 0.60 | -2.4% |
| Arts, entertainment and recreation | 229 | $602 | 1.99 | -0.4% |
| Finance and insurance | 148 | $1,620 | 0.52 | +4.2% |
| Educational services | 94 | $546 | 0.63 | +19.0% |
| Unclassified | 87 | $2,833 | 5.86 | +141.7% |
| Wholesale trade | 81 | $2,105 | 0.30 | +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.
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 #
$587.6 m in deposits at 8 offices of 5 banks (SOD June 2026); HHI 2,507, highly concentrated. $158.9 m federal obligations in FY2026 (direct payments $113.3 m, contracts $40.3 m), $22,771 per covered job
| Item | Value | Distance |
|---|---|---|
| First Interstate Bank | $223.2 m · 38.0% share · 2 offices | |
| Bank of The Rockies | $124.5 m · 21.2% share · 3 offices | |
| American Bank | $116.7 m · 19.9% share · 1 office | |
| Park, MT | $158.9 m FY2026 · $22,771/job | |
| MULTIPLE RECIPIENTS | $112.0 m · top recipient FY2026 |
| Institution | Deposits | Share | Offices |
|---|---|---|---|
| First Interstate Bank | $223,209,000 | 38.0% | 2 |
| Bank of The Rockies | $124,513,000 | 21.2% | 3 |
| American Bank | $116,708,000 | 19.9% | 1 |
| Opportunity Bank of Montana | $63,751,000 | 10.9% | 1 |
| Wells Fargo Bank, National Association | $59,374,000 | 10.1% | 1 |
Deposit concentration is 2,507 across 5 banks, which the 1995 Department of Justice bank merger screen calls highly concentrated.
HHI = Σ (share %)² over 5 banks with deposits in the county = 38.0² + 21.2² + 19.9² + … (2 more) = 2,507
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 | $94,736,529 |
| Department of Transportation | $29,887,165 |
| Department of the Interior | $13,112,772 |
| Department of Veterans Affairs | $10,959,683 |
| Railroad Retirement Board | $6,187,904 |
| Department of Agriculture | $3,292,645 |
| Department of Education | $530,756 |
| Department of Health and Human Services | $350,000 |
| Federal Communications Commission | $131,492 |
| Department of Defense | $65,000 |
| Small Business Administration | $0 |
| Environmental Protection Agency | -$400,000 |
That is $22,771 per covered job, against 6,976 jobs in the 2026 Q1 QCEW quarter.
per job = FY2026 obligations $158.9 m / 6,976 covered jobs (BLS QCEW 2026 Q1, all ownerships) = $22,771
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 · % | 73.84 | 2026-10-19 | not published |
| 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 #
Park County, MT: 16 findings, 5 at a watch level and 11 noted
watchPark County, MT's price-to-rent ratio of 32.0 ranks 12th of 1,358 US counties, a watch level here: price-to-rent in the top tenth of US counties (position among the counties that published both ZHVI and ZORI this month; 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: priceToRent percentile = 99.18938835666913 >= 90
- typical home value / (typical rent × 12); Zillow ZHVI over ZORI, same month
position among the counties that published both ZHVI and ZORI this month; not an official level
watchPark County, MT's years of wages of 10.8 ranks 60th 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 = 98.0731548007838 >= 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
watchPark County, MT's price-to-rent ratio is 32.0, a watch level here: typical home value worth 25 or more years of typical rent (typical home value / (typical rent × 12), Zillow ZHVI over ZORI, same month; 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: priceToRent = 31.97532720915022 >= 25
- typical home value / (typical rent × 12); Zillow ZHVI over ZORI, same month
typical home value / (typical rent × 12), Zillow ZHVI over ZORI, same month; convention chosen for this dashboard, not an official level
watchPark County, MT's years of wages is 10.8, 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 = 10.772928460460587 >= 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
watchPark County, MT's covered employment of 6,976 scores 46 on the 0-to-100 scale across US counties but 84 across Montana counties, a gap of 38 points.
Period 2026 Q1.Show the arithmetic
- 38 = |46 across US counties - 84 across Montana counties|
position among the entities that published this metric this period; 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.