Haven't completed Dragon Rising on my new character.
Lol I thought you said you completed all the prerequisite quests?

You can't become Thane of Whiterun until you've completed Dragon Rising. When you return from completing it, Balgruuf will make you Thane immediately, there are no other requirements but that one must be met otherwise you will not be made Thane.
If you haven't completed Dragon Rising, then you also can't have advanced the CW questline past Message to Whiterun, which means you can't become Thane of Eastmarch because that requires you to advance the CW even further (if you play Stormcloak) or finish it completely (if you play Imperial). You must also buy Hjerim first, which is likewise not possible unless you do the CW questline.
I'm not sure what you meant when you said you'd done all the necessary favors, if you mean the three or five favors you must do for citizens of the hold, that will not be enough. Every Jarl has something you must do for him/her personally before they will offer you the opportunity to become Thane.