Big city living comes at a cost, and it seems that more and more people are heading to the suburbs for quiet living and more space. But many of these smaller towns give the larger cities a run for their money when it comes to a high average home value and income.
So, which suburbs offer the most bang for your buck? To find out, GOBankingRates looked at cities with 5,000 or more households and highlighted the top 50 cities with the highest average household income. Granted, not every suburb is wealthy, and you can often find lower rent and lower monthly mortgage payments outside of the city. Plus you can cut some costs on parking and city transportation while having enough room for a shed in your backyard.
Take a look at the top 20 suburbs that are among the wealthiest in the United States.
1. Scarsdale, New York
Scarsdale is a suburb of New York, NY. As of the 2020 census, Scarsdale's population was 18,253. It is the richest town on the East Coast for the second year in a row, according to Bloomberg's 2020 "Richest Places" annual index with an average household income of $568,942. With a typical home value of $1,413,514, Scarsdale has a quiet village atmosphere, top-rated schools, and easy proximity to New York City.
2. Rye, New York
Like Scarsdale, Rye is a suburb of New York, NY. The population was 49,613 at the 2020 United States census. The average household income in the town of Rye is $405,074 and a typical home will cost you over $2 million. The average rent price is $4,023, according to Redfin.com. Rye offers many opportunities to explore the outdoors as well as numerous museums and nature centers.
3. West University Place, Texas
West University Place is a suburb of Houston, Texas. It has appealing tree-lined streets and beautiful (and expensive) homes, and attracts business professionals and their families looking for a suburban feel close to downtown Houston. The average household income is nearly $404,000, and the value of a typical house is $1,606,049. Median rent in 2022 was $3,553. Although it is one of the wealthiest suburbs in the U.S., it is also one of the safest, according to City Data.
4. Los Altos, California
Los Altos, hidden in the forested hills outside San Jose-Santa Clara, CA, had a population of 30,424 in 2022. A typical home today costs $4,451,059, and the average household income is just about $401,000 per year according to GoBankingRates data. In 2022, the cost-of-living index in Los Altos was 129.9 (the U.S. average is 100), which makes Los Altos a pricey suburb for people looking to escape the hustle and bustle of big city living.
5. Paradise Valley, Arizona
Paradise Valley is an oasis in the desert outside the booming metropolis of Phoenix, AZ. The population in 2022 was only 12,606, according to CityData. Today, the average household income is $385,643 and the value of a typical home in Paradise Valley is $3,449,905, but many homes sell for much more. In fact, in 2022, a Paradise Valley home sold for $21 million, making it the most expensive house sold in the state, according to a real estate listing service.
6. University Park, Texas
Like West University Place (which earned the third spot in the report), University Park TX is also a wealthy suburb of Dallas. The value of a typical home is $2,305,281 with an average household income of $381,235. Median gross rent in 2022 was $2,799. According to the Dallas Observer, Texas is home to a mind-blogging number of millionaires (68,600, to be exact), so it comes as no surprise that the suburb of University Park earned number six in GoBankingRates report.
7. Hinsdale, Illinois
The historic town of Hinsdale is a suburb of Chicago, IL, in the northeastern part of Illinois, about 20 miles west of Chicago. The population of Hinsdale in 2022 was 17,235. Today, the average household income is $380,479 and the value of a typical home is nearly $1,100,000, which garnered Hinsdale the number seven spot. As one of Chicago’s most desirable suburbs, most families say that the school system is the number one reason for living in Hinsdale.
8. Great Falls, Virginia
Great Falls, VA, located on the Potomac River, is a picturesque suburb of Washington-Arlington- Alexandria, DC-VA-MD. It is a tree-studded refuge for the power players that brave the Beltway every morning during their commute into the city. The current population of Great Falls is 15,143. The average household income is about $374,000 and the average home value is $1,564,775. It’s worth mentioning that 94.8% of the population of this wealthy suburb own their home.
9. Orinda, California
Orinda is located in northern California and is a suburb of San Francisco, CA. The current population of this wealthy suburb is 19,314. But over the past several years, Orinda has seen a decline in population (-0.26%), primarily due to skyrocketing housing prices and paychecks that don’t go as far as they used to. The current average household income is $370,203 and the typical home value is $2,078,615, earning Orinda the number nine spot in the report.
10. Wellesley, Massachusetts
Wellesley is a quaint suburb of Boston, MA with a population of 30,856. The average household income in Wellesley is $367,801, and a typical home will set you back about $2,000,000. It is home to Wellesley College, Babson College, and a campus of Massachusetts Bay Community College. Wellesley is smack dab in the middle of the Boston Marathon route as runners traverse the course from Hopkinton to Boston.
11. Palm Beach, Florida
Palm Beach, one of the most coveted vacation spots in all of Florida, is a suburb of Miami-Fort Lauderdale, FL. The average Palm Beach home value is $2,125,639, up 3.8% over the past year, and the average household income is $365,991. Palm Beach is home to Florida’s oldest golf course, The Breakers, many resorts, historic hotels and oh, the beaches.
12. McLean, Virginia
McLean is a suburb of Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD. Like Great Falls, VA, McLean is a getaway from big city living. The average household income in McLean is $364,093 and the typical home value stands at $1,541,929. The average rent in McLean was 2,240 in 2022. The current population is 50,141.
13. Southlake, Texas
Southlake is a wealthy suburb of the Dallas-Fort Worth, TX area. As of the 2020 census, it had a population of 31,265. The average household income is $360,078, and the typical home value is $1,240,766. To put that into perspective, the average cost of a home in Dallas is $429,900.
14. Palos Verdes Estates, California
Palos Verdes Estates is located just outside the Los Angeles, CA area. It is a coastal city situated on the Palos Verdes Peninsula and neighboring Rancho Palos Verdes and Rolling Hills Estates. The average household income in Palos Verdes Estates is $342,463 and the typical home value is nearly $3,000,000. (The median home price in America is about $400,000).
15. Saratoga, California
Like Los Altos, Saratoga is located in the grassy hills just outside San Jose-Santa Clara, CA. It is an arty community with dozens of opportunities to explore outdoor living and break away from the chaos of the city. The average household income is $329,142, with a typical home value of nearly $4,000,000. The medium rent in Saratoga is a staggering $5,795 per month. Ouch.
16. Menlo Park, California
Menlo Park is another wealthy suburb located in the hills outside of San Francisco, CA. The average household income is $316,584, according to the report, and the typical home will set you back nearly $3,000,000. The average rent, according to Zillow, is $3,950.
17. Lafayette, California
Lafayette, like Menlo Park, is also a wealthy suburb of San Francisco-Oakland, CA. For people working in San Francisco or Oakland, Lafayette offers a getaway from the hubbub of the big city. The average household income is $312,233 in Lafayette with a typical home value of just over $2,000,000. Average rent is $3,500, a bargain compared to Menlo Park. However, the average U.S. rent is only $2,150.
18. La Cañada Flintridge, California
La Cañada Flintridge (Spanish for 'The Canyon’) is a suburb of Los Angeles, CA. The average household income in this small, picturesque town in the foothills of the Verdugo Mountains is $310,947. The typical home value is $2,481,526. No one said California was a cheap place to live. In 2020, the population was just 20,573 in La Cañada Flintridge.
19. Los Gatos, California
In 2020, the population of Los Gatos was 33,529. It is located in the San Francisco Bay Area just southwest of the San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA area in the foothills of the Santa Cruz Mountains. Los Gatos is part of Silicon Valley, with several high technology companies maintaining a presence in the area. The average household income in Los Gatos is slightly over $300,000 and the typical home value is $2,740,764.
20. Pinecrest, Florida
Pinecrest is a wealthy suburb of Miami, FL. The average household income is $304,416, according to the GoBankingRates report, and the typical home value is $2,243,489. The current average rent is a whopping $6,500 per month, partly due to an influx of new residents , higher cost-of-living and a lack in inventory.
Key Findings
- Scarsdale, New York is the wealthiest U.S. suburb. The average household income is $568,942. The typical home value in Scarsdale is $1.4M or more.
- Sixteen of the top 50 suburbs are in California. The top five most expensive California suburbs are Los Altos ($400k), Orinda ($370), Palos Verdes Estates ($342k), Saratoga ($329k) and Menlo Park ($316k).
- The East Coast took the lead with 23 wealthy suburbs, including five in New York and five in New Jersey. In second place is the West Coast with 19 suburbs.
Find the entire report by GoBankingRates.
