Hidalgo County, TX
Housing, jobs, water, deposits and federal obligations for this county, each figure with the release it came from. Internal point 26.40, -98.18.
Assembled 2026-10-20. Read the brief.
- 33rd pct · 2,037th of 3,063 US counties · median $230,451
- 41st pct · 142nd of 243 Texas counties · median $207,861
- counties in the McAllen-Edinburg-Mission metro: Rank context is unavailable: the manifest lists 1 counties in the McAllen-Edinburg-Mission metro; fewer than 5 is too few to rank.
- 18th pct · 2,506th of 3,062 US counties · median +2.9%
- 44th pct · 136th of 243 Texas counties · median +0.1%
- counties in the McAllen-Edinburg-Mission metro: Rank context is unavailable: the manifest lists 1 counties in the McAllen-Edinburg-Mission metro; fewer than 5 is too few to rank.
- 15th pct · 1,143rd of 1,358 US counties · median $1,506
- 6th pct · 92nd of 98 Texas counties · median $1,449
- counties in the McAllen-Edinburg-Mission metro: Rank context is unavailable: the manifest lists 1 counties in the McAllen-Edinburg-Mission metro; fewer than 5 is too few to rank.
- 96th pct · 107th of 3,221 US counties · median 8,232
- 96th pct · 9th of 254 Texas counties · median 6,022
- counties in the McAllen-Edinburg-Mission metro: Rank context is unavailable: the manifest lists 1 counties in the McAllen-Edinburg-Mission metro; fewer than 5 is too few to rank.
- 11th pct · 2,844th of 3,221 US counties · median $1,039
- 3rd pct · 244th of 254 Texas counties · median $1,115
- counties in the McAllen-Edinburg-Mission metro: Rank context is unavailable: the manifest lists 1 counties in the McAllen-Edinburg-Mission metro; fewer than 5 is too few to rank.
- 51st pct · 1,494th of 3,063 US counties · median 4.2
- 67th pct · 80th of 243 Texas counties · median 3.5
- counties in the McAllen-Edinburg-Mission metro: Rank context is unavailable: the manifest lists 1 counties in the McAllen-Edinburg-Mission 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 $188,974 (Sep 2026), -0.4% over one year, +28.4% over five
- 33rd pct · 2,037th of 3,063 US counties · median $230,451
- 41st pct · 142nd of 243 Texas counties · median $207,861
- counties in the McAllen-Edinburg-Mission metro: Rank context is unavailable: the manifest lists 1 counties in the McAllen-Edinburg-Mission metro; fewer than 5 is too few to rank.
| Item | Value | Distance |
|---|---|---|
| Hidalgo County, TX | $188,974 · -0.4% 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 $1,119/mo (Sep 2026), +0.9% over one year; price-to-rent 14.1
- 15th pct · 1,143rd of 1,358 US counties · median $1,506
- 6th pct · 92nd of 98 Texas counties · median $1,449
- counties in the McAllen-Edinburg-Mission metro: Rank context is unavailable: the manifest lists 1 counties in the McAllen-Edinburg-Mission metro; fewer than 5 is too few to rank.
| Item | Value | Distance |
|---|---|---|
| Hidalgo County, TX | $1,119/mo · +0.9% 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 $1,047 a month on $188,974 at 7.40%, against an average weekly wage worth $3,683 a month: 28.4% of one job’s pay.
- payment = P·r / (1 − (1+r)^−n), P = $188,974 × 80% = $151,179, r = 7.40%/12 (Freddie Mac PMMS via FRED, 2026-10-15), n = 360 → $1,047/mo principal and interest
- wage share = payment / (avg weekly wage $850 × 52 / 12 = $3,683) = 28% of one average job's pay (BLS QCEW 2026 Q1, all covered jobs)
- years of wages = $188,974 / ($850 × 52) = 4.3
- price-to-rent = $188,974 / ($1,119 × 12) = 14.1
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 #
297,416 jobs at 14,226 employers (2026 Q1); +0.3% jobs and +3.8% average weekly wage over the year
- 96th pct · 107th of 3,221 US counties · median 8,232
- 96th pct · 9th of 254 Texas counties · median 6,022
- counties in the McAllen-Edinburg-Mission metro: Rank context is unavailable: the manifest lists 1 counties in the McAllen-Edinburg-Mission metro; fewer than 5 is too few to rank.
| Item | Value | Distance |
|---|---|---|
| Hidalgo County, TX | 297,416 jobs · $850/wk · +0.3% YoY |
| NAICS sector | Jobs | Avg weekly wage | Location quotient | Jobs over the year |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Health care and social assistance | 88,237 | $651 | 1.97 | +3.1% |
| Retail trade | 36,781 | $712 | 1.27 | -0.2% |
| Accommodation and food services | 28,692 | $442 | 1.07 | +1.4% |
| Administrative and waste services | 11,539 | $844 | 0.68 | -15.4% |
| Wholesale trade | 9,036 | $1,158 | 0.79 | +1.4% |
| Construction | 8,894 | $1,033 | 0.57 | +3.3% |
| Transportation and warehousing | 8,276 | $1,020 | 0.66 | -2.3% |
| Professional and technical services | 7,738 | $1,108 | 0.38 | -2.3% |
| Manufacturing | 7,505 | $1,117 | 0.31 | +6.4% |
| Finance and insurance | 6,909 | $1,302 | 0.57 | +6.4% |
| Educational services | 5,721 | $932 | 0.89 | +4.6% |
| Other services | 5,230 | $739 | 0.59 | -0.6% |
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: 1, 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 |
|---|---|---|
| Falcon Reservoir | 20 % full · 1,562k ac-ft | 99 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 #
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 (0.64)
Σ wᵢ·termᵢ / Σ wᵢ = 0.35×0.50 + 0.3×0.80 / 0.65
Banks & federal dollars #
$16.0 bn in deposits at 152 offices of 20 banks (SOD June 2026); HHI 926, unconcentrated. $4.6 bn federal obligations in FY2026 (direct payments $3.0 bn, contracts $1.2 bn), $15,580 per covered job
| Item | Value | Distance |
|---|---|---|
| International Bank of Commerce | $2.5 bn · 15.5% share · 29 offices | |
| Lone Star National Bank | $2.3 bn · 14.1% share · 21 offices | |
| Vantage Bank Texas | $1.7 bn · 10.8% share · 10 offices | |
| Hidalgo, TX | $4.6 bn FY2026 · $15,580/job | |
| MULTIPLE RECIPIENTS | $2.7 bn · top recipient FY2026 |
| Institution | Deposits | Share | Offices |
|---|---|---|---|
| International Bank of Commerce | $2,481,200,000 | 15.5% | 29 |
| Lone Star National Bank | $2,264,513,000 | 14.1% | 21 |
| Vantage Bank Texas | $1,731,541,000 | 10.8% | 10 |
| JPMorgan Chase Bank, National Association | $1,397,916,000 | 8.7% | 7 |
| PNC Bank, National Association | $1,369,452,000 | 8.5% | 13 |
| Bank of America, National Association | $1,196,067,000 | 7.5% | 6 |
| Wells Fargo Bank, National Association | $942,028,000 | 5.9% | 7 |
| Frost Bank | $914,074,000 | 5.7% | 4 |
| Texas National Bank | $891,656,000 | 5.6% | 9 |
| PlainsCapital Bank | $806,335,000 | 5.0% | 7 |
Deposit concentration is 926 across 19 banks, which the 1995 Department of Justice bank merger screen calls unconcentrated.
HHI = Σ (share %)² over 19 banks with deposits in the county = 15.5² + 14.1² + 10.8² + … (16 more) = 926
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 | $2,228,547,976 |
| Department of Defense | $702,086,430 |
| Department of Homeland Security | $497,963,197 |
| Department of Veterans Affairs | $487,005,728 |
| Department of Education | $256,246,353 |
| Department of Transportation | $227,823,356 |
| Department of Housing and Urban Development | $71,048,977 |
| Department of Health and Human Services | $63,792,848 |
| Department of Agriculture | $43,333,393 |
| Federal Communications Commission | $21,915,996 |
| General Services Administration | $7,976,147 |
| Railroad Retirement Board | $6,645,416 |
That is $15,580 per covered job, against 297,416 jobs in the 2026 Q1 QCEW quarter.
per job = FY2026 obligations $4.6 bn / 297,416 covered jobs (BLS QCEW 2026 Q1, all ownerships) = $15,580
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 | 17.40 | 2026-10-19 | -3.1% |
| 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 | 2026-10-20 | +0.0% |
| Laredo truck crossings, monthly · trucks | 255,129.00 | 2026-09-01 | -1.4% |
| 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 | 1,221.00 | 2026-09-01 | -5.2% |
| Building permits, annual rate · thousands of units | 1,400.00 | 2026-09-01 | -0.2% |
| 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 #
Hidalgo County, TX: 10 findings, 1 at a watch level and 9 noted
watchHidalgo County, TX's typical home value is -0.4% against a year earlier, a watch level here: typical home value below a year ago (arithmetic on Zillow ZHVI, county and metro files; 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: home.yoyPct = -0.3888574467909773 < 0
arithmetic on Zillow ZHVI, county and metro files; not an official level
noteHidalgo County, TX's average weekly wage was 3.8% 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
- +3.8 % = 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
noteHidalgo County, TX's covered employment was 0.3% 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
- +0.3 % = 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
noteHidalgo County, TX's covered employment of 297,416 ranks 9th of 254 Texas counties, against a median of 6,022.
Period 2026 Q1.Show the arithmetic
- 97 on the 0-to-100 scale across 254 Texas counties that published jobs.emp
position among the entities that published this metric this period; not an official level
noteHidalgo County, TX's covered employment of 297,416 ranks 107th of 3,221 US counties, against a median of 8,232.
Period 2026 Q1.Show the arithmetic
- 97 on the 0-to-100 scale across 3221 US counties 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.