Posted on 01/11/2008 2:10:30 PM PST by Clemenza
New Jersey has the most millionaire households in the country, according to a marketing company's fifth annual ranking.
The Garden State moved up from No. 2 in 2005 and 2006 to No. 1 last year on the index, compiled by Phoenix Affluent Marketing Service, which does research for companies that sell luxury products, investments and the like to the wealthy.
According to the service, in 2007, 7.12 percent of New Jersey's 3.2 million households had a total of $1 million or more liquid or investable assets. That includes items such as savings, stocks and bonds, precious metals, the cash value of certain life insurance policies and retirement accounts not controlled by employers, but not equity in homes.
In 2006, 6.46 percent of New Jersey households met the $1 million standard. The figure was 5.89 percent in 2005. Hawaii ranked first in both those years, but fell to fourth in 2007. Maryland was second last year and Connecticut was third.
"It's obviously hard to pinpoint what the major driver is," said David Thompson, managing director at Phoenix Affluent.
But he said many New Jersey residents work for the financial services industry in the New York metropolitan area and received large bonuses last year.
"I think that would have the most to do with it," Thompson said, adding that New Jersey has always been in the top 10 in the survey.
The survey rankings are based on Census data and online surveys of thousands of affluent households.
And maybe you’re no longer a millionaire once you do!
It never ceased to amaze me how many conservatives praise "local control." In NJ and much of NY State, it means nothing but higher taxes and a dispersion of patronage from the core to the periphery.
“New Jersey has the most millionaire households in the country”
There’s Sammy, Jimmy, Tony, Pauly, Alphonse, Guido, and a couple of other guys I might have missed.
LOL!
I've always thought of North Jersey that way. At least, that was always my impression. But, it makes sense that most of the wealth would be concentrated in the north because most of the population is concentrated in the north. Our own township is very blue-collar, but there are plenty of upper-middle class townships like Cherry Hill and Medford, and some wealthy areas around here, too.
Most of the “urban blight” in North Jersey is in a few towns that have seen better days along the turnpike. Much of Middlesex (the Brunswicks, Woodridge, South Amboy, etc.) and southern Bergen County is blue collar. Northern Bergen, Northern Passaic, western Essex, and Morris/Somerset/Hunterdon are largely white collar, with many folks employed in finance or pharma who work either in the area or in NYC.
With their taxes they need to be rich.
My town and surrounding towns have their own fire department and EMS - volunteer. In some towns, EMS is so volunteer, we raise the money ourselves to buy the ambulances. Donations appreciated, esp. when we save your life.
Corzine wants to regionalize. Paid firefighters and EMS = more state employees, more generous benefits following early retirement = what’s killing us now.
Local school districts wouldn’t be so bad if they weren’t so top-heavy with administrators - superintendents gettting close to 200K - again with the generous pension plans. But I don’t see regionalizing as the only way to reduce administration - the Catholic schools do with a lot less.
At least local control allows for budgets to be voted down and it does happen. The school district where my children go is education-proud and built a brand-new fancy high school - now people there are starting to be very unhappy with their 13K property taxes (for a relatively modest McMansion) so I am guessing the next budget will get voted down.
My town doesn’t have its own schools, or McMansions. We pay to send our children to the larger town, and have lower property taxes because our population has been stable - not so many young families moving in. The folks in other states would still be shocked at our taxes, though.
Hey what about Linden, Elizbeth, Jersey City, Bayone,Newark.To name a few. Are these places why they call Jersey the garden state?
North Jersey is also home to some of the wealthiest counties in the US. Take I-80 and I-78 west only a few miles from the Turnpike to see what I mean.
And yet, they still choose to live in New Jersey?
What do they make?
Look at any state with low property taxes (most of the south) and you will see regionalization. Look at the places with local control at every town large or small (NY, NJ, NH) and you will see high property taxes. Look at any region of the country with low property taxes, and you will see that s
Comments?
Is this title deceptive? It implies an absolute number yet talks only about percentages as far as I can tell.
I know areas of NJ are rich, but if I have a million $ and live in a state populated by one family, we will look really good statistic-wise....
?
Not surprising, given all that developed coastline and proximity to two eastern major cities.
“Mafia”
Not so.
Some other little-known facts about NJ:
Median family income in NJ is ranked number one:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Household_income_in_the_United_States#Income_by_state
Of course, the cost of living here is higher, too.
And NJ is ranked dead last in federal funds received for every dollar paid in federal taxes:
http://www.taxfoundation.org/publications/show/266.html
I guess the number of millionaire households and the relatively high median household income explains the higher federal tax burden. After all, federal income tax is not adjusted for cost of living.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_Jersey#Economy
Don’t forget the shore towns....
“And yet, they still choose to live in New Jersey?”
Of course!
Do you think they’d want to live in....ummmm....Maryland?
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