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GOBankingRates
What the Middle Class Makes in 30 Ultra-Wealthy American Towns
By Nicole Spector,
3 hours ago
Art Wager / Getty Images
Achieving middle-class status isn’t as easy as it was, say, 50 years ago. According to Pew Research Center data published in 2022, the share of adults who live in middle-class households fell from 61% in 1971 to 50% in 2021. Among the chief reasons it’s difficult to make the middle-class cut: widening income gaps and the rise of mega businesses that put smaller businesses in economically precarious positions.
Whether you’re middle class or not depends, in part, on where you live. For example, what qualifies you as middle class in Williamson, West Virginia, certainly won’t qualify you as such in San Francisco, where the cost of living is much higher.
To get an in-depth understanding of what the American middle class makes in ultra-wealthy towns, GOBankingRates analyzed cities across the U.S. to find those where a $250,000 income is considered middle class. The cities were sorted to show the highest minimum and maximum income range, representing cities with the wealthiest middle-class families in the country.
Maximum income considered middle class: $1,079,900
Household mean income: $539,950
Monthly cost of living: $31,994
Methodology: For this study, GOBankingRates analyzed cities across the United States to find the cities where a $250,000 income is considered middle class. First, GOBankingRates found basic information for cities with at least 10,000 residents, including total population, population ages 65 and over, total households, household median income and household mean income — all sourced from the U.S. Census American Community Survey. Cost of living was sourced from Sperling’s BestPlaces, the livability index was sourced from AreaVibes and the average single family home value was sourced from Zillow Home Value Index for July 2024. Assuming a 10% down payment and using the national average 30-year fixed mortgage rate, as sourced from the Federal Reserve Economic Data, the average mortgage cost was calculated. Using the cost-of-living indexes and using the national average expenditure costs for all residents, as sourced from the Bureau of Labor Statistics Consumer Expenditure Survey, the average expenditure costs were calculated. The expenditure and mortgage costs were used to calculate the total cost of living for each city. Pew Research Center defines the middle class by using the average income, with the minimum income being two-thirds the average and the maximum being doubled the average. Using the mean household income, the middle-class income range was calculated for each city. The cities were sorted to show the highest minimum and maximum income range, representing cities with the wealthiest “middle-class” families in the country. All data was collected on and is up to date as of Aug. 29, 2024.
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