US Cities With the Highest Household Earnings
If you’re looking for US cities with the highest houehold earnings, you’ve come to the right place. While San Francisco tops the list, other California cities are also high earners. From Los Altos to San Jose, these cities are home to some of the wealthiest residents in the US.
San Francisco is the richest city in the US
Bloomberg recently compiled a list of the richest cities in the US. In addition to San Francisco, there are six other cities in the list. Most of these cities have a high-quality educational system, close proximity to a major city, and high-profile companies.
San Francisco has a high rate of education, and over half of its adult population holds a bachelor’s degree. This means that incomes in San Francisco tend to go up with educational attainment. Those with a bachelor’s degree earn an average of 32.0% more than those with only a high school diploma.
San Jose
San Jose has a high household income, but it is not the highest in the nation. In the ACS’s 1-year survey, per capita income in San Jose is $61,400 – nearly $22,000 higher than the median income in California. This means that while many San Jose families earn well above the national average, more than half of them can’t afford basic necessities.
San Jose has an ethnically diverse population. In a recent report, Trulia ranked San Jose as the most ethnically diverse metro among the nation’s 100 largest metro areas. The city is made up of 35% White residents, 28% Hispanics, and 3% of people of two or more races. The diversity of San Jose is reflected in the city council, which includes the first Vietnamese-American, Chinese-American, and Indian-American city council members.
Los Altos
Los Altos has a very high average household income and is the second highest income city among small cities in the United States. The median home value is also high, at 17.2% of median household income. This is far higher than the US average of 39.2%, and nearly twice as high as the California average.
The cost of living in Los Altos is 9% of household income, which is lower than other places in the metro area. The most expensive place in Los Altos is Loyola CDP, which has the highest cost per household income (14.9%).
Wellesley
While housing values in the Boston Metro area remain low, the median home price in Wellesley is high, and the city is one of the highest-income places in Massachusetts. The median price for a single-family home in Wellesley was $1.3 million in 2017. The city has a burgeoning real estate market and has been redeveloping a number of old homes. In fact, since 2009, the city has issued 575 demolition permits. While these projects increase the value of assets, they don’t result in a net increase in housing units.
Although the town is characterized by its wealth, it does not have much diversity in terms of racial and ethnic groups. In fact, only 17 percent of the residents are minority groups, and almost half of the population is Asian. Wellesley is also relatively homogenous, with a predominantly white population and the lowest percentage of blacks in the Boston Metro area.
Potomac
A town’s median household income is an important indicator of the level of wealth in the neighborhood. In 2013, CNNMONEY ranked Potomac as one of the wealthiest places in the United States. It also ranked among the top ten top-educated small towns. Forbes magazine ranked Potomac as the seventh most educated small town in the United States. In 2011, BLOOMBERG BUSINESSWEEK named Potomac as the 29th richest zip code in the U.S. Potomac is home to the largest population of any zip code in the country.
Potomac’s median household income is $120,748 – considerably higher than the US average of $62,500. The city’s job market grew by 0.8% last year, and job growth is projected to be 31.0% higher in the next ten years – higher than the US average of 33.5%. Income is correlated with education, and 63% of adults in Potomac have a bachelor’s degree, compared to just 31% nationwide. The median household income in Potomac varies widely, from $43,051 in some neighborhoods to $226,090 in others. Higher income areas are generally located in the center of the city, while lower-income neighborhoods are located in the northwest.
Boston
The wealth gap between the rich and poor in Boston continues to widen. A recent report from the Boston Foundation’s research arm, Boston Indicators, concludes that not everyone in Boston is benefiting from the region’s economic growth. The report uses American Community Survey census data to compare the incomes of households in different neighborhoods in Boston. It found that while the incomes of households at the 20th percentile fell, those in the 95th percentile rose eight percent.
According to the ACS, the median household income in Boston is a high $76,796 per year, but varies considerably between counties. In Suffolk County, the median household income is $61,796 while in Essex County, it is $73,900. This makes Suffolk County the most expensive neighborhood in the metro area. Rents in two-bedroom apartments in Boston are generally above half of the median household income.