Hinsdale Gets Wealthier, While Lake Forest Slides

HINSDALE, IL – Hinsdale has long been a wealthy town. It is getting more so.

This month, a study by GOBankingRates listed the 50 wealthiest U.S. suburbs, comparing their rankings to a decade ago.

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In the new survey, Hinsdale finished 11th, based on its average household income of $367,874 in 2024. That's up from 2014's inflation-adjusted $332,988.

Hinsdale's median home value is nearly $1.1 million.

Hinsdale ranked 10th a decade ago.

Lake Forest was 35th on the list, compared with 12th a decade ago. Its average household income was $303,251 in 2024, down from an inflation-adjusted $328,102 a decade earlier.

Wilmette ranked 36th, up from 40th. Its average income was $300,005 in 2024, up from an inflation-adjusted $253,535 in 2014.

To qualify for the study, communities had to have at least 5,000 households, be part of a metropolitan statistical area, and not be a principal city in that metro area, according to GOBankingRates.

The wealthiest suburb on the list was Scarsdale, New York, as it was before. The town's average household income surged from $492,103 in inflation-adjusted dollars in 2014 to $612,591 a decade later.

Five suburbs in New York, Texas and Virginia are among the 10 wealthiest suburbs for the 2026 and 2016 studies.

The analysis noted several notable shifts over the past decade. For example:

• Three California suburbs — Los Altos, Alamo and Orinda — moved into the top 10.
• Connecticut suburbs Darien and Westport, both in the top 10 in 2016, did not make the 2026 top 50.
• Paradise Valley, Arizona, the state's only suburb in the top 50 in both decades, catapulted into fifth place in 2026. Previously, it occupied 14th place.