Knox County, TN
Housing, jobs, water, deposits and federal obligations for this county, each figure with the release it came from. Internal point 35.99, -83.94.
Assembled 2026-10-19. Read the brief.
- 83rd pct · 507th of 3,063 US counties · median $230,451
- 89th pct · 11th of 95 Tennessee counties · median $252,394
- 75th pct · 3rd of 9 counties in the Knoxville metro · median $296,784
- 31st pct · 2,101st of 3,062 US counties · median +2.9%
- 21st pct · 75th of 95 Tennessee counties · median +2.9%
- 0th pct · 9th of 9 counties in the Knoxville metro · median +3.0%
- 67th pct · 448th of 1,358 US counties · median $1,506
- 80th pct · 10th of 46 Tennessee counties · median $1,477
- 50th pct · 3rd of 5 counties in the Knoxville metro · median $1,729
- 96th pct · 127th of 3,221 US counties · median 8,232
- 97th pct · 3rd of 95 Tennessee counties · median 8,576
- 100th pct · 1st of 9 counties in the Knoxville metro · median 18,137
- 85th pct · 452nd of 3,221 US counties · median $1,039
- 88th pct · 12th of 95 Tennessee counties · median $1,030
- 75th pct · 3rd of 9 counties in the Knoxville metro · median $1,098
- 73rd pct · 820th of 3,063 US counties · median 4.2
- 68th pct · 31st of 95 Tennessee counties · median 5.0
- 50th pct · 5th of 9 counties in the Knoxville 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 $376,337 (Sep 2026), +1.2% over one year, +41.9% over five
- 83rd pct · 507th of 3,063 US counties · median $230,451
- 89th pct · 11th of 95 Tennessee counties · median $252,394
- 75th pct · 3rd of 9 counties in the Knoxville metro · median $296,784
| Item | Value | Distance |
|---|---|---|
| Knox County, TN | $376,337 · +1.2% 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 $1,729/mo (Sep 2026), +0.8% over one year; price-to-rent 18.1
- 67th pct · 448th of 1,358 US counties · median $1,506
- 80th pct · 10th of 46 Tennessee counties · median $1,477
- 50th pct · 3rd of 5 counties in the Knoxville metro · median $1,729
| Item | Value | Distance |
|---|---|---|
| Knox County, TN | $1,729/mo · +0.8% 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 $2,085 a month on $376,337 at 7.40%, against an average weekly wage worth $5,703 a month: 36.6% of one job’s pay.
- payment = P·r / (1 − (1+r)^−n), P = $376,337 × 80% = $301,070, r = 7.40%/12 (Freddie Mac PMMS via FRED, 2026-10-15), n = 360 → $2,085/mo principal and interest
- wage share = payment / (avg weekly wage $1,316 × 52 / 12 = $5,703) = 37% of one average job's pay (BLS QCEW 2026 Q1, all covered jobs)
- years of wages = $376,337 / ($1,316 × 52) = 5.5
- price-to-rent = $376,337 / ($1,729 × 12) = 18.1
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 #
259,373 jobs at 16,509 employers (2026 Q1); -0.9% jobs and +2.8% average weekly wage over the year
- 96th pct · 127th of 3,221 US counties · median 8,232
- 97th pct · 3rd of 95 Tennessee counties · median 8,576
- 100th pct · 1st of 9 counties in the Knoxville metro · median 18,137
| Item | Value | Distance |
|---|---|---|
| Knox County, TN | 259,373 jobs · $1,316/wk · -0.9% YoY |
| NAICS sector | Jobs | Avg weekly wage | Location quotient | Jobs over the year |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Health care and social assistance | 42,337 | $1,363 | 1.08 | +2.5% |
| Retail trade | 31,268 | $849 | 1.24 | -1.5% |
| Accommodation and food services | 28,284 | $513 | 1.21 | +0.6% |
| Administrative and waste services | 17,811 | $1,148 | 1.21 | -5.7% |
| Construction | 14,563 | $1,472 | 1.07 | +0.1% |
| Professional and technical services | 13,340 | $1,911 | 0.75 | -6.1% |
| Wholesale trade | 13,096 | $1,858 | 1.32 | -1.6% |
| Manufacturing | 12,564 | $1,485 | 0.60 | -2.7% |
| Transportation and warehousing | 11,463 | $1,330 | 1.05 | -3.3% |
| Finance and insurance | 9,676 | $2,501 | 0.92 | +0.3% |
| Other services | 7,707 | $908 | 0.99 | -0.7% |
| Management of companies | 6,913 | $2,183 | 1.59 | -1.5% |
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 #
No drought class at this point (USDM covers the United States only)
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 #
$18.9 bn in deposits at 132 offices of 31 banks (SOD June 2026); HHI 1,201, moderately concentrated. $3.6 bn federal obligations in FY2026 (direct payments $3.0 bn, contracts $355.4 m), $13,909 per covered job
| Item | Value | Distance |
|---|---|---|
| First Horizon Bank | $3.7 bn · 19.5% share · 19 offices | |
| Truist Bank | $3.2 bn · 16.6% share · 11 offices | |
| Pinnacle Bank | $3.0 bn · 16.1% share · 5 offices | |
| Knox, TN | $3.6 bn FY2026 · $13,909/job | |
| MULTIPLE RECIPIENTS | $2.7 bn · top recipient FY2026 |
| Institution | Deposits | Share | Offices |
|---|---|---|---|
| First Horizon Bank | $3,688,666,000 | 19.5% | 19 |
| Truist Bank | $3,151,858,000 | 16.6% | 11 |
| Pinnacle Bank | $3,044,813,000 | 16.1% | 5 |
| Regions Bank | $1,893,727,000 | 10.0% | 16 |
| Home Federal Bank of Tennessee | $1,819,764,000 | 9.6% | 17 |
| SouthEast Bank | $1,372,250,000 | 7.2% | 5 |
| FirstBank | $713,405,000 | 3.8% | 4 |
| Bank of America, National Association | $648,437,000 | 3.4% | 3 |
| SmartBank | $463,251,000 | 2.4% | 3 |
| Fifth Third Bank, National Association | $289,927,000 | 1.5% | 4 |
Deposit concentration is 1,201 across 31 banks, which the 1995 Department of Justice bank merger screen calls moderately concentrated.
HHI = Σ (share %)² over 31 banks with deposits in the county = 19.5² + 16.6² + 16.1² + … (28 more) = 1,201
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 | $2,315,932,651 |
| Department of Education | $445,926,030 |
| Department of Veterans Affairs | $358,196,493 |
| Department of Housing and Urban Development | $157,997,707 |
| Department of Transportation | $86,504,494 |
| Department of Defense | $44,821,924 |
| Department of Health and Human Services | $36,578,532 |
| Department of Agriculture | $31,562,212 |
| National Science Foundation | $25,242,462 |
| Railroad Retirement Board | $23,206,524 |
| General Services Administration | $22,192,273 |
| Department of Energy | $22,067,881 |
That is $13,909 per covered job, against 259,373 jobs in the 2026 Q1 QCEW quarter.
per job = FY2026 obligations $3.6 bn / 259,373 covered jobs (BLS QCEW 2026 Q1, all ownerships) = $13,909
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 #
Knox County, TN: 10 findings, 1 at a watch level and 9 noted
watchKnox County, TN's covered employment is -0.9% 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 = -0.9 < 0
BLS QCEW over-the-year percent change, as published; not an official level
noteKnox County, TN's average weekly wage was 2.8% 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
- +2.8 % = 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
noteKnox County, TN's covered employment was 0.9% 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
- -0.9 % = 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
noteKnox County, TN's typical home value of +1.2% ranks 9th of 9 counties in the Knoxville metro, against a median of +3.0%.
Period 2026-09.Show the arithmetic
- 0 on the 0-to-100 scale across 9 counties in the Knoxville metro that published home.yoyPct
position among the entities that published this metric this period; not an official level
noteKnox County, TN's covered employment of 259,373 ranks 1st of 9 counties in the Knoxville metro, against a median of 18,137.
Period 2026 Q1.Show the arithmetic
- 100 on the 0-to-100 scale across 9 counties in the Knoxville metro that published jobs.emp
position among the entities that published this metric this period; not an official level
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.