Author Topic: Where are the Millionaires (US)  (Read 6639 times)

Fireman

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Where are the Millionaires (US)
« on: January 22, 2014, 07:37:01 AM »
Pretty cool article in the WSJ about Millionaires per capita by US state.  There's even a chart if you scroll down.

The article goes on to jerk off North Dakota but the map and graph are pretty cool!

http://blogs.wsj.com/economics/2014/01/16/where-are-the-u-s-s-millionaires/?mod=WSJ_article_EditorsPicks

Jamesqf

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Re: Where are the Millionaires (US)
« Reply #1 on: January 22, 2014, 01:01:54 PM »
Except that going by state is way too coarse a granularity to tell much.  E.g. there are likely to be lots more millionaires per capita in the stretch of California between San Francisco and say Palo Alto, than in Richmond-Hayward on the other side of the bay.
« Last Edit: January 23, 2014, 10:01:53 PM by Jamesqf »

judgemebymyusername

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Re: Where are the Millionaires (US)
« Reply #2 on: January 23, 2014, 07:12:29 PM »
I spent a few years in Maryland and it doesn't surprise me that they have the highest percentage of millionaires. Cost of living there is outrageous as a reflection of the wealth, much of it simply due to its proximity to DC. Federal jobs and federal contracts galore.

tooqk4u22

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Re: Where are the Millionaires (US)
« Reply #3 on: January 23, 2014, 08:29:49 PM »
I spent a few years in Maryland and it doesn't surprise me that they have the highest percentage of millionaires. Cost of living there is outrageous as a reflection of the wealth, much of it simply due to its proximity to DC. Federal jobs and federal contracts galore.

I take it as further evidence that the level of government spending is excessive.....don't know how you could come to any other conclusion.

Fireman

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Re: Where are the Millionaires (US)
« Reply #4 on: January 23, 2014, 09:17:08 PM »
Except that going by state is way too coarse a granularity to tell much.  E.g. there are likely to be lots more millionaires per capita in the stretch of California between San Francisco and say Palo Alto, than in Richmond-Hayard on the other side of the bay.

Now that you mention it, same goes for Northern Virginia versus, well, the rest of it.  I'm sure greater Richmond, the Chesapeake region, and maybe Roanoke are brighter spots but they pale in comparison to the state of NOVA.

oldtoyota

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Re: Where are the Millionaires (US)
« Reply #5 on: January 26, 2014, 06:23:10 PM »
I spent a few years in Maryland and it doesn't surprise me that they have the highest percentage of millionaires. Cost of living there is outrageous as a reflection of the wealth, much of it simply due to its proximity to DC. Federal jobs and federal contracts galore.

And parts of Maryland are part of the largest contiguous super zip in the country, IIRC.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/sf/local/2013/11/09/washington-a-world-apart/


oldtoyota

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Re: Where are the Millionaires (US)
« Reply #6 on: January 26, 2014, 06:24:33 PM »
Except that going by state is way too coarse a granularity to tell much.  E.g. there are likely to be lots more millionaires per capita in the stretch of California between San Francisco and say Palo Alto, than in Richmond-Hayward on the other side of the bay.

You might like that super zip link I posted if this topic interests you...The data is more granular than state level.


Gerard

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Re: Where are the Millionaires (US)
« Reply #7 on: February 14, 2014, 06:10:55 PM »
I take it as further evidence that the level of government spending is excessive.....don't know how you could come to any other conclusion.

Well, just for fun, how about "You need an education to work in government jobs, and educated people don't piss away their money as quickly"? Or "Maryland is where all the wealthy lobbyists live"? Or "Government jobs are less susceptible to boom-bust cycles, so Maryland savings have weathered the downturn better"? Or "Baltimore, City of Opportunity"?

I'm not sure how likely any of those are (although I lean toward the first one), but the idea that we couldn't come to *any* other conclusion is a bit strong...

tooqk4u22

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Re: Where are the Millionaires (US)
« Reply #8 on: February 18, 2014, 06:09:38 PM »
You need an education to work in a lot of jobs - so that doesn't prove out your argument.

Educated piss away their money just as much if not more than less educated (although they tend to have higher incomes and more to piss away).

Lobbyists are a function of government spending.

Government jobs are less susceptible because there is no bottom line to manage to.

Please - City of Opportunity, a bit overly optimistic...just because you say it doesn't make it true.

Anyway all of your potential conclusions are derivatives of my conclusion.  The fact is without the government spending all those other things don't exist in the DC metro area.  Again, don't know who you come to any other conclusion.


dude

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Re: Where are the Millionaires (US)
« Reply #9 on: February 25, 2014, 06:51:42 AM »
I take it as further evidence that the level of government spending is excessive.....don't know how you could come to any other conclusion.

Well, just for fun, how about "You need an education to work in government jobs, and educated people don't piss away their money as quickly"? Or "Maryland is where all the wealthy lobbyists live"? Or "Government jobs are less susceptible to boom-bust cycles, so Maryland savings have weathered the downturn better"? Or "Baltimore, City of Opportunity"?

I'm not sure how likely any of those are (although I lean toward the first one), but the idea that we couldn't come to *any* other conclusion is a bit strong...

Leaving aside the waste -- which EVERY large business/corporation/government has -- it just costs an assload of money for crucial government functions.  That is the nature of the beast -- defense, homeland security, intelligence, diease control, disaster management, etc, etc, etc.  Many of the people who work in these sectors could just as easily work in the private sector -- and indeed, many do the revolving door thing back and forth as opportunities present themselves.  That the government of a nation of 325 milllion people that is the wealthiest on the planet spends a lot of money should come as no surprise.  it is what it is.  Now, as for the waste, that is another matter, but also one that I believe is way overblown.  Not non-existent or insignificant, to be clear, just way overblown by the media and various political organizations looking to inflame public opinion in their efforts to benefit themselves.

AlanStache

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Re: Where are the Millionaires (US)
« Reply #10 on: February 25, 2014, 07:20:52 AM »
Quote
That means 1 in every 20 households in the U.S. has more than $1 million in investable assets. Those figures don’t include the value of real estate.

1 in 20?  Does that sound high to anyone else?  Might they be making some mean/median type mistake?  Has anyone heard similar numbers from elsewhere?  I would guess the readers of mmm are a bit better than 1 in 20 (without real estate) but we are a highly self selected population.


MDM

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Re: Where are the Millionaires (US)
« Reply #11 on: February 26, 2014, 10:43:58 PM »
5% with investable net worth > $1 million seems "in the ballpark" based on other things I've seen, at least on an order-of-magnitude basis.  I.e., it wouldn't be 50% and probably not as low a 0.5%.

As for whether the true answer is somewhere between, say, 3% and 7%...doesn't seem unreasonable but I have no proof.

Abe

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Re: Where are the Millionaires (US)
« Reply #12 on: February 27, 2014, 06:47:27 PM »
Table A-1 in this census report shows income distribution. The top ~9.5% of households earn at least $150k a year, and it is plausible that half of them have saved a million (plus some others with lower income).

http://www.census.gov/prod/2013pubs/p60-245.pdf

AlanStache

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Re: Where are the Millionaires (US)
« Reply #13 on: February 27, 2014, 07:18:43 PM »
Quote
http://www.census.gov/prod/2013pubs/p60-245.pdf

yeah.  And for the last 20 years 15-20+% of US house holds have made 100k or more so 1 in 5 is making good money then if one or two of them are able to save that could get you there.  1 in 20 still seems high but I guess I can see it.