Hereford, TX

Micro Area Profile

18,460 residents. Jobs, income, development, climate and physical risk across the Hereford, TX micropolitan area.

47out of 100
Area Score
Bottom 16% of 834 profiles measured

How we calculate this

How this area ranks

Data updated · 9 sources
Opportunity700th of 835 metro and micro areas measured32
Schools580th of 695 metro and micro areas measured23
Growth484th of 834 metro and micro areas measured45
Housing affordabilityTop 4% of 835 metro and micro areas measured87
ClimateTop 49% of 835 metro and micro areas measured67
Physical resilience581st of 835 metro and micro areas measured41
Access595th of 835 metro and micro areas measured66
Economic stability693rd of 835 metro and micro areas measured23
The quick read

Employment conditions sit below most comparable metro and micro areas measured: unemployment is 4.1% and the Opportunity signal places Hereford in the bottom 16%.

In the public schools here, 44% of students met the state standard in mathematics, with 15.5 students for every teacher.

Housing is more affordable relative to local incomes than in most metro and micro areas measured: rent takes 24% of renter income and the median home is 1.9 times what its owners earn.

These sentences are written by fixed rules from the measurements below — a statement appears because a number crossed a stated threshold, and the values behind it are stored with it. No figure anywhere on this site is invented, estimated or inferred to fill a gap. How this works.

At a glance

Population
18,460
2024 ACS 5-Year
Median household income
$60,799
Bottom 29% nationally
Density
12/sq mi
1,496.8 sq mi of land
Median age
31.3
2024 ACS 5-Year
Area type
Micropolitan area
Texas
Nearest major airport
AMA
54 mi · Rick Husband Amarillo Intl
Median home value
$121,300
2024 ACS 5-Year

Jobs & opportunity

Unemployment of 4.1%, lower than in 53% of the 835 measured US metro and micro areas.

Employment fell 1.3% over the past year, to 8,157 employed residents.

MetricValueCompared nationallySource period
Median household income ±$5,4802024 ACS 5-Year$60,799Bottom 29%of 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Per capita income ±$1,8272024 ACS 5-Year$25,625Bottom 4%of 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Poverty rate ±5%2024 ACS 5-Year17.8%Bottom 15%of 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Average commute ±1.5 min2024 ACS 5-Year18.7 minTop 7%of 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Bachelor's degree or higher ±3%2024 ACS 5-Year11.4%Bottom 1%of 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Drove alone to work ±6%2024 ACS 5-Year76.2%42nd percentileof 9352024 ACS 5-Year
EmploymentJuly 20268,157Bottom 1%of 835July 2026
Employment change (3 years)July 2026−2.5%Bottom 21%of 835July 2026
Employment change (year over year)July 2026−1.3%Bottom 35%of 835July 2026
Labor forceJuly 20268,5031st percentileof 835July 2026
Labor force participation ±4%2024 ACS 5-Year75.3%Bottom 42%of 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Public transit to work ±0.3%2024 ACS 5-Year0.0%1st percentileof 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Unemployment change (year over year)July 2026+0.2%Bottom 26%of 835July 2026
Unemployment rateJuly 20264.1%Top 47%of 835July 2026
Worked from home ±2%2024 ACS 5-Year2.5%1st percentileof 9352024 ACS 5-Year

Unemployment rate

2021/072022/072023/072024/072025/072026/074.12.6
Monthly unemployment rate from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, most recent value 4.1% in July 2026. It has been falling, over a series running from 2020-01 to 2026-07. A break in the line is a month the Bureau of Labor Statistics did not publish for this area — it is left empty rather than estimated.

44% of students met the state standard in mathematics and 35% in reading, across the schools here that reported results.

There are 15.5 students for every full-time teacher across 9 public schools, more than in most measured places.

Public schools
9
2024-25 school year
Students per teacher
15.5
across all schools here
Math proficiency
44.2%
Bottom 27% in Texas
Reading proficiency
34.7%
Bottom 9% in Texas
All 9 public schools on record, largest first.
SchoolDistrictStudentsPer teacherMathReading
Hereford H SHEREFORD ISD1,18215.248%32%
Hereford J HHEREFORD ISD53412.142%36%
Northwest ElHEREFORD ISD47915.547%36%
Aikman ElHEREFORD ISD46420.249%44%
Bluebonnet ElHEREFORD ISD36615.931%35%
West Central ElHEREFORD ISD33115.032%22%
Hereford Preparatory AcademyHEREFORD ISD32214.047%41%
Tierra Blanca Early Childhood CenterHEREFORD ISD28619.1——
Walcott ElWALCOTT ISD14620.952%32%

79.5% of students here are eligible for free or reduced-price lunch. That describes the circumstances families arrive with, not how the schools perform, so it is shown and not scored.

Public schools only, from the NCES Common Core of Data, placed by ZIP code — which schools are in this place, not which one a particular address is zoned for. A dash in a proficiency column is a gap in the federal file, not a bad result. Proficiency is measured against Texas’s own standard, so it is ranked within state. How to read school figures.

Homeowners here who pay a tax bill pay a median of $1,801 a year in real estate taxes, about 1.48% of the median home value.

HUD’s Fair Market Rent for a two-bedroom, set near the 40th percentile of recent new leases, is $1,070, some 16% above the $926 tenants already here pay.

At HUD’s Fair Market Rent of $1,070 a month for a two-bedroom, keeping rent to 30% of income takes a household income of about $42,800 a year, about 70% of the median household income here of $60,799.

The typical renter household here spends 24% of its income on rent, below the 30% threshold at which a household is considered cost-burdened. Median gross rent runs $926 a month.

A median home at $121,300 costs 1.9 times the median income of its owner-occupied households, $63,466, close to the historic benchmark for an affordable market.

Rent as a share of income
23.8%
Below the 30% cost-burdened threshold
Home price to income
1.9×
median home value ÷ owner household income
Market rent, two bedroom
$1,070
what a new lease costs · FY2026
Median gross rent
$926
what tenants now pay · 2024 ACS 5-Year
Median home value
$121,300
2024 ACS 5-Year

The figures above are measured against Hereford’s median household income of $60,799, which describes the place rather than you. Enter your own and the ratio is recomputed against it. It stays in this browser.

MetricValueCompared nationallySource period
Home price to income ±0.32024 ACS 5-Year1.9Top 8%of 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Homeownership rate ±6%2024 ACS 5-Year66.8%31st percentileof 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Housing units ±252024 ACS 5-Year6,9841st percentileof 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Market rent, one bedroomFY2026$855Top 42%of 818FY2026
Market rent, three bedroomFY2026$1,283Top 26%of 818FY2026
Market rent, two bedroomFY2026$1,070Top 43%of 818FY2026
Median gross rent ±$702024 ACS 5-Year$926Top 40%of 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Median home value ±$13,0142024 ACS 5-Year$121,3006th percentileof 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Median property taxes ±$3102024 ACS 5-Year$1,80144th percentileof 9332024 ACS 5-Year
Owner household income ±$5,4792024 ACS 5-Year$63,466Bottom 9%of 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Property tax rate ±0.30%2024 ACS 5-Year1.48%87th percentileof 9322024 ACS 5-Year
Rent as a share of income ±5%2024 ACS 5-Year23.8%Top 5%of 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Seasonal and second homes ±72024 ACS 5-Year41st percentileof 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Second homes2024 ACS 5-Year0.1%1st percentileof 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Vacancy rate2024 ACS 5-Year13.3%90th percentileof 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Vacant housing units ±1862024 ACS 5-Year9332nd percentileof 9352024 ACS 5-Year

These measures come from the same ACS release as the income they are compared with. They compare housing cost with local earnings only: transport, groceries, healthcare, insurance and taxes are not in them. How to read affordability, the two rent figures.

Development Momentum

45/ 100
Ranks 484 of 834 published metro profiles
The most recent move in permitting was upward, in a series running from 2024 to 2025.

An AreaProfile calculation combining permit volume per resident, its direction over one and three years, population change and employment growth. Permit volume alone is not the measure.

Population has been broadly flat since 2020, at 18,495 in 2024.

New construction is predominantly single-family: of 38 units permitted over the past twelve months, none were in buildings of five or more homes.

At 2.1 permitted units per 1,000 residents, building activity is below the median for measured US metro and micro areas.

Units permitted
38
12 months ending July 2026
Per 1,000 residents
2.1
Bottom 40% nationally
Year over year
+46%
vs the prior twelve months
Multifamily share
0.0%
units in 5+ unit buildings

Population, annual estimates

2020202120222023202419k18k
Census Population Estimates Program, July 1 of each year. These annual estimates are designed for year-over-year comparison, unlike the ACS five-year figure shown as this profile's population. It has been holding roughly steady, over a series running from 2020 to 2024.

Weather & climate

7 of the twelve months have a normal average temperature between 55°F and 80°F. July averages a high of 92°F and January a low of 23°F.

Normal annual precipitation is 19.3 inches, including 14.3 inches of snow.

10°30°50°70°90°JFMAMJJASOND
Solid line: normal daily high. Dashed line: normal daily low. 1991-2020 normals from NOAA station HEREFORD, 14.5 miles from this location.

Precipitation

JFMAMJJASOND3.3"
Normal monthly precipitation, in inches.
MetricValueSource period
Annual precipitation1991-2020 Normals19.3"1991-2020 Normals
Annual snowfall1991-2020 Normals14.3"1991-2020 Normals
Average January low1991-2020 Normals23°F1991-2020 Normals
Average July high1991-2020 Normals92°F1991-2020 Normals
Comfortable months1991-2020 Normals71991-2020 Normals
Seasonal temperature swing1991-2020 Normals42°F1991-2020 Normals

Climate figures are thirty-year normals, not current conditions. How to read climate and air quality.

Physical risk

41 / 100
Physical resilience

The hazards accounting for most of this area's expected annual loss are cold wave, hail and drought, with cold wave alone responsible for 24% of it.

DroughtModerate
HailHigh
Winter weatherModerate
Cold waveHigh
WildfireElevated
Strong windElevated
TornadoModerate
Heat waveModerate

Low or minimal exposure: earthquake, lightning, ice storm, inland flooding, landslide, hurricane, avalanche, tsunami, volcanic activity, coastal flooding.

Hazard ratings are AreaProfile calculations derived from the FEMA National Risk Index v1.20.0 (December 2025). FEMA publishes at county level. This value is the population-weighted mean of all component counties; expected annual loss is their sum. FEMA does not endorse this presentation. Higher physical resilience means lower exposure.

What this profile does not cover

Each of these is absent for a reason, not by oversight. The Area Score is calculated without them; the weighting is on the methodology page.

Reported crime
Offenses reported to police are published by department rather than by town, so AreaProfile shows a rate only on city profiles, and only where that city’s department submitted every month of a year. City profiles inside this area carry their own figure where their department reported a full year. A partial year is never scaled up to look complete, and arrest counts or news volume are never substituted for it.
Cost of living
Price parities are published for metropolitan areas, and this place lies outside one.
Death-certificate rates
The CDC publishes these rates by county, so a metropolitan area carries none of its own. The county profiles inside it do.
Air quality
The EPA publishes an air-quality index by county, and only where a monitor sits, so a metropolitan area carries none of its own. The county profiles inside it show it where one exists.
Taxes
Income and sales taxes are not published: no source covers them nationally with a method open enough to check. Property taxes are shown in the housing section but are not part of the score. Cost of living is published where the Bureau of Economic Analysis measures it, though not for this place. Nothing here is individualized tax advice.
Anything about a specific address
Every figure describes an area, not a street or a house.

Access

2 major airports lie within 100 miles, the nearest Rick Husband Amarillo Intl at 54 miles.

MetricValueCompared nationallySource period
Broadband access ±5%2024 ACS 5-Year79.9%Bottom 5%of 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Distance to major airportNASR current cycle54 miBottom 32%of 835NASR current cycle
Major airports within 100 milesNASR current cycle2Bottom 16%of 835NASR current cycle
No internet access ±4%2024 ACS 5-Year18.0%Bottom 4%of 9352024 ACS 5-Year
AirportCodeDistanceLongest runway
Rick Husband Amarillo IntlAMA54 mi13,502 ft
Lubbock Preston Smith IntlLBB99 mi11,500 ft
Las Vegas MuniLVS151 mi8,199 ft

Airport identity, position and runway data come from the FAA. “Major airport” is an AreaProfile classification — a public-use civil airport with a paved runway of at least 8,000 feet — not an FAA hub designation. Distances are straight-line, not driving distance.

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Area Score
47
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Data & methodology

Used forSourceSource period
AccessFederal Aviation Administration
Airports (NASR) — Aeronautical Data Delivery Service
NASR current cycle
Physical riskFederal Emergency Management Agency
National Risk Index
National Risk Index December 2025 (v1.20.0)
ClimateNOAA National Centers for Environmental Information
U.S. Climate Normals 1991–2020 (Monthly)
1991-2020 Normals
JobsU.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
Local Area Unemployment Statistics
July 2026
DemographicsU.S. Census Bureau
Population Estimates Program
July 1, 2024 estimate
DevelopmentU.S. Census Bureau
Building Permits Survey
12 months ending July 2026
Access, Demographics, Housing, Income, JobsU.S. Census Bureau
American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates (Table-Based Summary File)
2024 ACS 5-Year
SchoolsU.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics
Common Core of Data and EDFacts assessments
2018-19 school year; 2024-25 school year
HousingU.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, Office of Policy Development and Research
Fair Market Rents
FY2026
Current conditionsNOAA National Weather Service
National Weather Service current conditions
Live observation, read when the page opens

Profile recalculated October 8, 2026. Recalculation is not the same as new source data — each figure above shows the period its source actually covers. Read the full methodology, or every source with how often each updates.

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