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Amarillo Jobs Fell in June Despite Data Center Construction Boom
Amarillo National Bank’s June 2026 analysis shows local employment fell while construction crews outside city limits kept the wider Panhandle count higher.
How we reported this
Amarillo lost 223 workers between May 2025 and May 2026 even as data-center construction pulled the broader Panhandle total up by 750, according to Amarillo National Bank’s June 2026 Economic Analysis. The report notes that without those out-of-town projects the city would already be in a slowdown.
The drop follows Tyson’s elimination of an entire shift that removed 1,700 positions from one of the city’s largest employers. Manufacturing and health-care payrolls at two other major local firms also declined. The unemployment rate climbed four-tenths of a point to 3.5 percent, a change the bank attributes mainly to the Tyson cuts.
Retail and travel numbers diverge
Retail sales collected inside Amarillo rose 18 percent from the same month a year earlier, with year-to-date collections up 11 percent. Motel bed-tax receipts jumped 27 percent for the month, helped by higher room rates after data-center workers filled many short-term rentals. Airline boardings slipped slightly after United Airlines dropped one daily flight.
New-vehicle sales fell 4 percent and used-vehicle sales dipped 1 percent. Average weekly wages in Amarillo rose 4 percent, trailing the 8 percent gain recorded for the full Panhandle region.
Housing starts and permits surge
Residential building permits issued in Amarillo reached $59 million in the latest month, an increase of 118 percent from June 2025. Year-to-date permit value climbed 47 percent. Single-family starts totaled 68, up 94 percent from the prior June, and year-to-date starts reached 267, a 63 percent gain. Median home prices stood at $265,000, 4 percent above the year-ago level, while 30-year mortgage rates fell 50 basis points to 6.375 percent.
The bank’s analysis, posted at anb.com, also recorded three active drilling rigs in the Panhandle compared with none a year earlier. Oil traded above $75 a barrel. The report concludes that residents weighing moves into or out of the housing market should watch how long the data-center construction cycle lasts before deciding on purchases or sales.