Morton County, ND
Housing, jobs, water, deposits and federal obligations for this county, each figure with the release it came from. Internal point 46.71, -101.31.
Assembled 2026-10-19. Read the brief.
- 75th pct · 764th of 3,063 US counties · median $230,451
- 88th pct · 6th of 43 North Dakota counties · median $196,408
- counties in the Bismarck metro: Rank context is unavailable: the manifest lists 3 counties in the Bismarck metro; fewer than 5 is too few to rank.
- 80th pct · 612th of 3,062 US counties · median +2.9%
- 45th pct · 24th of 43 North Dakota counties · median +5.9%
- counties in the Bismarck metro: Rank context is unavailable: the manifest lists 3 counties in the Bismarck metro; fewer than 5 is too few to rank.
- 42nd pct · 782nd of 1,358 US counties · median $1,506
- 100th pct · 1st of 10 North Dakota counties · median $1,235
- counties in the Bismarck metro: Rank context is unavailable: the manifest lists 3 counties in the Bismarck metro; fewer than 5 is too few to rank.
- 59th pct · 1,320th of 3,221 US counties · median 8,232
- 88th pct · 7th of 53 North Dakota counties · median 1,520
- counties in the Bismarck metro: Rank context is unavailable: the manifest lists 3 counties in the Bismarck metro; fewer than 5 is too few to rank.
- 67th pct · 1,059th of 3,221 US counties · median $1,039
- 57th pct · 23rd of 53 North Dakota counties · median $1,064
- counties in the Bismarck metro: Rank context is unavailable: the manifest lists 3 counties in the Bismarck metro; fewer than 5 is too few to rank.
- 73rd pct · 811th of 3,063 US counties · median 4.2
- 100th pct · 1st of 43 North Dakota counties · median 3.3
- counties in the Bismarck metro: Rank context is unavailable: the manifest lists 3 counties in the Bismarck metro; fewer than 5 is too few to rank.
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 $323,186 (Sep 2026), +5.7% over one year, +26.0% over five
- 75th pct · 764th of 3,063 US counties · median $230,451
- 88th pct · 6th of 43 North Dakota counties · median $196,408
- counties in the Bismarck metro: Rank context is unavailable: the manifest lists 3 counties in the Bismarck metro; fewer than 5 is too few to rank.
| Item | Value | Distance |
|---|---|---|
| Morton County, ND | $323,186 · +5.7% 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 $1,421/mo (Sep 2026), +5.4% over one year; price-to-rent 19.0
- 42nd pct · 782nd of 1,358 US counties · median $1,506
- 100th pct · 1st of 10 North Dakota counties · median $1,235
- counties in the Bismarck metro: Rank context is unavailable: the manifest lists 3 counties in the Bismarck metro; fewer than 5 is too few to rank.
| Item | Value | Distance |
|---|---|---|
| Morton County, ND | $1,421/mo · +5.4% 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 $1,790 a month on $323,186 at 7.40%, against an average weekly wage worth $4,879 a month: 36.7% of one job’s pay.
- payment = P·r / (1 − (1+r)^−n), P = $323,186 × 80% = $258,549, r = 7.40%/12 (Freddie Mac PMMS via FRED, 2026-10-15), n = 360 → $1,790/mo principal and interest
- wage share = payment / (avg weekly wage $1,126 × 52 / 12 = $4,879) = 37% of one average job's pay (BLS QCEW 2026 Q1, all covered jobs)
- years of wages = $323,186 / ($1,126 × 52) = 5.5
- price-to-rent = $323,186 / ($1,421 × 12) = 19.0
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 #
12,010 jobs at 1,233 employers (2026 Q1); -0.1% jobs and +1.1% average weekly wage over the year
- 59th pct · 1,320th of 3,221 US counties · median 8,232
- 88th pct · 7th of 53 North Dakota counties · median 1,520
- counties in the Bismarck metro: Rank context is unavailable: the manifest lists 3 counties in the Bismarck metro; fewer than 5 is too few to rank.
| Item | Value | Distance |
|---|---|---|
| Morton County, ND | 12,010 jobs · $1,126/wk · -0.1% YoY |
| NAICS sector | Jobs | Avg weekly wage | Location quotient | Jobs over the year |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Retail trade | 1,394 | $879 | 1.19 | +0.1% |
| Manufacturing | 1,129 | $1,643 | 1.17 | +7.6% |
| Accommodation and food services | 958 | $395 | 0.89 | -2.5% |
| Professional and technical services | 743 | $1,632 | 0.90 | +2.6% |
| Construction | 674 | $1,108 | 1.07 | -17.0% |
| Wholesale trade | 665 | $1,306 | 1.45 | -4.9% |
| Administrative and waste services | 479 | $1,294 | 0.70 | -15.2% |
| Finance and insurance | 467 | $2,017 | 0.95 | -8.6% |
| Other services | 402 | $991 | 1.12 | -2.9% |
| Arts, entertainment and recreation | 365 | $256 | 1.85 | +26.7% |
| Transportation and warehousing | 265 | $1,244 | 0.52 | +0.4% |
| Real estate and rental | 116 | $1,042 | 0.63 | +18.4% |
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 #
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 #
high (0.50)
Σ wᵢ·termᵢ / Σ wᵢ = 0.35×0.50 / 0.35
Banks & federal dollars #
$1.3 bn in deposits at 14 offices of 10 banks (SOD June 2026); HHI 2,232, highly concentrated. $194.5 m federal obligations in FY2026 (direct payments $179.4 m, grants $13.1 m), $16,192 per covered job
| Item | Value | Distance |
|---|---|---|
| Starion Bank | $498.0 m · 38.1% share · 1 office | |
| Dakota Community Bank & Trust, National Association | $303.8 m · 23.3% share · 3 offices | |
| Security First Bank of North Dakota | $132.7 m · 10.2% share · 3 offices | |
| Morton, ND | $194.5 m FY2026 · $16,192/job | |
| MULTIPLE RECIPIENTS | $172.2 m · top recipient FY2026 |
| Institution | Deposits | Share | Offices |
|---|---|---|---|
| Starion Bank | $497,998,000 | 38.1% | 1 |
| Dakota Community Bank & Trust, National Association | $303,784,000 | 23.3% | 3 |
| Security First Bank of North Dakota | $132,722,000 | 10.2% | 3 |
| Gate City Bank | $84,431,000 | 6.5% | 1 |
| Wells Fargo Bank, National Association | $73,006,000 | 5.6% | 1 |
| The Union Bank | $61,438,000 | 4.7% | 1 |
| First International Bank & Trust | $49,951,000 | 3.8% | 1 |
| BNC National Bank | $47,968,000 | 3.7% | 1 |
| Bravera Bank | $41,595,000 | 3.2% | 1 |
| Grant County State Bank | $13,222,000 | 1.0% | 1 |
Deposit concentration is 2,232 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 = 38.1² + 23.3² + 10.2² + … (7 more) = 2,232
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 | $145,859,271 |
| Department of Veterans Affairs | $18,696,219 |
| Department of Transportation | $9,776,434 |
| Railroad Retirement Board | $7,785,490 |
| Department of Agriculture | $5,129,633 |
| Department of Housing and Urban Development | $4,480,474 |
| Department of Health and Human Services | $2,182,709 |
| Department of Justice | $340,918 |
| Department of the Interior | $334,459 |
| Department of Education | $199,815 |
| Federal Communications Commission | $23,400 |
| Department of Defense | $6,822 |
That is $16,192 per covered job, against 12,010 jobs in the 2026 Q1 QCEW quarter.
per job = FY2026 obligations $194.5 m / 12,010 covered jobs (BLS QCEW 2026 Q1, all ownerships) = $16,192
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 #
Morton County, ND: 12 findings, 4 at a watch level and 8 noted
watchMorton County, ND's covered employment is -0.1% 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 = -0.1 < 0
BLS QCEW over-the-year percent change, as published; not an official level
watchMorton County, ND's typical asking rent of $1,421 scores 42 on the 0-to-100 scale across US counties but 100 across North Dakota counties, a gap of 58 points.
Period 2026-09.Show the arithmetic
- 58 = |42 across US counties - 100 across North Dakota counties|
position among the entities that published this metric this period; not an official level
watchMorton County, ND's price-to-rent ratio of 19.0 scores 67 on the 0-to-100 scale across US counties but 22 across North Dakota counties, a gap of 45 points.
Period 2026-09.Show the arithmetic
- 45 = |67 across US counties - 22 across North Dakota counties|
- typical home value / (typical rent × 12); Zillow ZHVI over ZORI, same month
position among the entities that published this metric this period; not an official level
watchMorton County, ND's typical home value of +5.7% scores 80 on the 0-to-100 scale across US counties but 45 across North Dakota counties, a gap of 35 points.
Period 2026-09.Show the arithmetic
- 35 = |80 across US counties - 45 across North Dakota counties|
position among the entities that published this metric this period; not an official level
noteMorton County, ND's average weekly wage was 1.1% 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
- +1.1 % = 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
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.