Home & Garden

Here's The Richest Town In Every State

In other words, here's where all those Beamers, Benzes and Bentleys come from.

There are only a dozen towns nationwide where the typical household earns over $200,000 a year, according to a new report that determined the wealthiest town in every state.

The financial news and opinion site 24/7 Wall St. reviewed median household incomes in every town, city, village, borough or census designated place with a population between 1,000 and 25,000, using data from the U.S. Census Bureau’s American Community Survey. In nearly every state, regardless of wealth, at least one town has people who earn significantly more than a typical resident in the state and the typical American, the authors wrote.

Here are some of the wealthiest towns, organized by highest median household income:

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  • Los Altos Hills, California
    • Median household income: $243,701
  • Sands Point, New York
    • Median household income: $231,667
  • Great Falls, Virginia
    • Median household income: $230,304
  • Travilah, Maryland
    • Median household income: $215,688
  • Darien, Connecticut
    • Median household income: $208,125
  • Winnetka, Illinois
    • Median household income: $207,857
  • The Village of Indian Hill, Ohio
    • Median household income: $205,221

Most of the richest towns have a relatively large number of college-educated people, the authors wrote. This is partly because at least a four-year college degree is required to qualify for many high-paying jobs. In all but four towns on the list, the share of adults with at least a bachelor’s degree was greater than the statewide share and the nationwide share of 30.3 percent. The town with the highest median income was also often a pretty pricey place to live, the authors wrote.

“Not only can higher income individuals afford more expensive real estate, but high real estate costs also drive up median incomes as they attract higher income residents and are often often prohibitively expensive for most Americans,” the authors wrote.

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All but three towns on the list have higher median home values than the typical U.S., home, which is worth $184,700, the site said. Each “richest” town also had higher median home value than the state. Many of the wealthiest towns are located near large cities and are “well within” commuting distance of a major urban center.

“Major urban areas are more likely to offer a wide range of high-paying jobs as well as a high concentration of cultural amenities like museums, theatres, concert venues, and professional sports teams,” the authors wrote.

Some small towns where the margin of error was too high weren’t included, the authors wrote. Click here to read the full methodology.

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