24/7 Wall St. has released its recent America's Richest Cities survey. Washington D.C. and its surrounding metropolitan area has come out number one.
Using 2011 Census Bureau American Community Survey they found out which cities had the highest and lowest incomes.
Alex Friedhoff, a Research Analyst at Brookings Institute's Metropolitan Policy Program noted to 24/7 Wall St. that the "The biggest factor in determining a city's income is the underlying industries that employ the most residents, as well as the type of jobs. High-tech jobs, particularly those related to computers and information technology
, tend to pay higher salaries and are more likely to be located in areas with affluent residents. On the other hand, most of the jobs in the lower-income metro areas tend to be in retail, service, agriculture and low-tech manufacturing."
What also was found from their research is that there is a big disparity between rich and poor cities. In cities like McAllen, Texas 24/7 Wall St. reported that more than 35 percent of its residents live below the poverty line.
Here are the top five richest American Cities according to 24/7 Wall St.
Washington DC and surrounding metropolitan areas-- Arlington-Alexandria, D.C.-Va.-Md.-W.Va.
Washington DC has a median household income of $86,680 and boasts a population of 5,703,948. The percentage of households below poverty line are 8.3 percent which is the 5th lowest and the unemployment rate is 5.8 percent, 24/7 Wall St. reports.
San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, Calif.
San Jose and its surrounding areas have a median household income of $84,012 and a population of 1,865,450. The unemployment rate is 9.9 percent and the percentage of those below the poverty line is 10.6 percent.
Bridgeport-Stamford-Norwalk, Conn.
The median household income in Bridgeport, Stamford and Norwalk, Connecticut is $77,289. The area boasts a population of 925,899 and the unemployment rate is 8.2 percent. The percentage below the poverty line is 9.4 percent.
Oxnard-Thousand Oaks-Ventura, Calif.
The Oxnard area of California has a population of 831,771 and a median household income of 474,623. The unemployment rate is at 10.1 percent and 11.3 percent lives below the poverty line.
Trenton-Ewing, N.J.
The median household income in Trenton and Ewing, New Jersey is $73,890. The population is 367,063 and the unemployment rate is at 7.7 percent. 11.4 percent live below the poverty line.
See related article:
Top Ten Poorest States in America 2012
