HomeSouth DakotaCodington CountyWatertown
Watertown, South Dakota: commercial real estate data.
Watertown is a Census city of 23,044 people across 18.44 square miles of land, in Codington County. Median household income is $69,600, 65.3 percent of occupied homes are owned, and the SBA record carries 42 7(a) approvals to borrowers here worth $31.1 m since FY2020.
Underlined figures are computed by MMCG Analytics, not published by the agency.
Watertown
What Watertown is
- Census place typecity
- Land area18.44 sq mi
- Water area7.98 sq mi
- Population per square mile of land1,250
- County holding the largest share of its areaCodington County, 100.0 percent
US Census Bureau, cartographic boundary file, places, 2024 vintage. US Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates, place level, 2020-2024 5-year.
Watertown
How many people live in Watertown
- Population23,044
- Median age39.5
- Population under 185,039
- Share under 1821.9 percent
- Population 65 and over4,553
- Share 65 and over19.8 percent
- Households10,394
- Family households5,749
- Share of households that are families55.3 percent
US Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates, place level, 2020-2024 5-year.
Watertown
Income and work in Watertown
- Median household income$69,600
- Per capita income$39,939
- Civilian labor force12,570
- Employed12,344
- Unemployed226 plus or minus 129
- Unemployment rate1.8 percent plus or minus 1.0
- Adults 25 and over15,732
- Adults 25 and over with a high school diploma or higher93.3 percent
- Adults 25 and over with a bachelor degree or higher21.6 percent
- Adults 25 and over with a graduate degree6.1 percent plus or minus 1.6
US Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates, place level, 2020-2024 5-year.
Watertown
Housing in Watertown
- Housing units11,110
- Occupied units10,394
- Vacant units716 plus or minus 244
- Vacancy rate6.4 percent plus or minus 2.2
- Owner occupied6,783
- Renter occupied3,611
- Ownership rate65.3 percent
- Median owner-occupied home value$229,400
- Median gross rent, monthly$942
- Annual rent as a share of median income16.2 percent
- Single family units7,946
- Share single family71.5 percent
- Units in buildings of two or more2,433
- Share in buildings of two or more21.9 percent
- Mobile homes731 plus or minus 202
- Median year structure built1979
US Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates, place level, 2020-2024 5-year.
Watertown
How Watertown gets to work
- Workers 16 and over who commute11,728
- Commuting under 15 minutes8,673
- Share commuting under 15 minutes74.0 percent
- Commuting 30 minutes or more955 plus or minus 256
- Share commuting 30 minutes or more8.1 percent plus or minus 2.2
- Drove alone83.8 percent
- Carpooled9.1 percent plus or minus 2.6
- Public transport0.6 percent plus or minus 0.5
- Walked1.1 percent plus or minus 0.7
- Worked from home4.8 percent plus or minus 1.4
US Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates, place level, 2020-2024 5-year.
Watertown
SBA loans in Watertown (7(a))
- Approvals42
- Gross approval$31,094,400
- Average approval$740,343
- Median approval$380,000
- Ninetieth percentile approval$1,796,050
- Largest approval$2,877,800
- Jobs supported333
- Jobs per approval7.9
- Loans with a final outcome8
- Paid in full8
- Charged off0
- Median term120 months
- Share on real estate terms of 20 years or more16.7 percent
- Share to franchises7.1 percent
- Distinct lenders21
- Distinct industries by NAICS31
Counted by borrower city: approvals to borrowers whose address is in Watertown, in any county, FY2020 to FY2026. Only 8 loans have reached a final outcome, fewer than the 30 a charge-off rate needs, so no rate is published.
US Small Business Administration, 7(a) FOIA release, FY2020 to FY2026 year to date, as of 2026-06-30.
Watertown
SBA loans in Watertown (504)
- Approvals45
- Gross approval$19,406,000
- Average approval$431,244
- Median approval$319,000
- Largest approval$1,237,000
- Jobs supported244
- Loans with a final outcome18
- Charged off1
- Median term240 months
- Distinct CDCs3
Counted by borrower city: approvals to borrowers whose address is in Watertown, in any county, FY2010 to FY2026. Only 18 loans have reached a final outcome, fewer than the 30 a charge-off rate needs, so no rate is published.
US Small Business Administration, 504 FOIA release, FY2010 to FY2026 year to date, as of 2026-06-30.
Watertown
Flood risk in Watertown
- NFIP communityCity of Watertown
- NFIP community number460016
- Participating in the NFIPYes
- Community Rating System classClass 7
- Currently effective map date01/16/09
The City of Watertown participates in the National Flood Insurance Program as community 460016 and carries Community Rating System class 7, a flood insurance premium discount for policies written there.
Federal Emergency Management Agency, NFIP Community Status Book (OpenFEMA), as of 2026-09-26.
Codington County, not Watertown
Codington County context, not Watertown figures
- Establishments in Codington County1,210
- Covered employment, Codington County17,261
- Average annual pay, Codington County$52,139
- Housing units permitted, Codington County159
Every figure in this section is published for Codington County as a whole and is not a measurement of Watertown.
All Codington County figures →
US Census Bureau, County Business Patterns, 2023. US Bureau of Labor Statistics, Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages, 2024 annual averages. US Census Bureau, Building Permits Survey, 2024 annual.
Coverage
What this page does not hold.
Parcel detail, zoning and the flood zone at an address are not on this page; they resolve at the address in the platform. How this page was built →
Common questions
Watertown questions, answered from the record.
How many people live in Watertown, South Dakota?
23,044, in 10,394 households. Watertown city covers 18.44 square miles of land, which is 1,250 people per square mile. Source: US Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates, place level, 2020-2024 5-year.
What county is Watertown in?
Codington County, which holds 100.0 percent of the place by area. Source: US Census Bureau, cartographic boundary file, places, 2024 vintage.
What is the median household income in Watertown?
$69,600. The median owner-occupied home is valued at $229,400. Median gross rent is $942 per month. Source: US Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates, place level, 2020-2024 5-year.
How much SBA lending goes to Watertown businesses?
42 7(a) approvals totaling $31.1 m since FY2020, across 21 lenders, median approval $380,000, plus 45 504 approvals worth $19.4 m since FY2010. These count approvals to borrowers whose address is in Watertown, not projects sited inside the place boundary, and they are approvals recorded in the release rather than loans disbursed.
Do SBA loans to Watertown borrowers get paid back?
No rate is published for Watertown. Only 8 loans have reached a final outcome, fewer than the 30 a charge-off rate needs, so no rate is published. The counts are shown instead.
Is Watertown in the National Flood Insurance Program?
Yes. Watertown appears in the FEMA Community Status Book as Watertown, city of, community 460016, carrying Community Rating System class 7, which is a premium discount for exceeding the program minimum. Whether a specific parcel sits in a mapped special flood hazard area is an address level question the platform answers.
Are the county figures on this page Watertown figures?
No, and they are labeled so. County Business Patterns, QCEW, the Building Permits Survey, BEA product and IRS migration are published for Codington County as a whole and there is no place level equivalent. They appear in one clearly marked section as context and are never presented as measurements of Watertown.
Is zoning published for Watertown?
No. Nothing on this page presents parcel level zoning.
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