Milpitas Households See Drop in Median Income

Editor's note: Article updated 1:24 p.m.

Most households in Milpitas earned more than $70k last year, while about 30 percent earned less, according to data released earlier this month by the American Community Survey.

The median household income in Milpitas was $85,827 in 2009 (adjusted for inflation). The amount falls dramatically short of the $102,422 median household income in 2008. Even though the data comes from a sample of the city's population, the margin of error is not enough to disprove that Milpitas households brought in less income in 2009.

Neighborhoods that have shown the most decline in median household income since the 2000 census are Sunnyhills, the neighborhoods surrounding Cardoza Park, and those in between Jacklin and East Calaveras. The data is indicated on a map found on New York Times' Mapping America: Every City, Every Block.

Asian American households brought in the highest median income compared with other households by race in 2009, at $100,211, slightly less than the year before.

Poverty, or whether a person or household is in poverty, was determined by a dollar figure (see PDF below). In 2009, it was $21,756 annual income for a family of four, of which two were children. Based on these thresholds, only 5 percent of Milpitas residents are considered to live below the poverty level.

On the health insurance front, fewer than 10 percent of Milpitas residents are not covered. But this amounts to about 5,500 people, many in retirement age.