America’s Wealthiest Zip Codes — and What it Costs to Buy a House There

It takes at least 10 times the median salary in the U.S. to live like the residents of these places.

America’s Wealthiest Zip Codes — and What it Costs to Buy a House There

The median annual salary for American workers aged 35 to 64 hovers in the $50,000 range, as of 2017. The typical working American would have to make more than 10 times that to live like the residents in these zip codes.

Using data from the Internal Revenue Service, Bloomberg analyzed the tax returns of over 22,000 zip codes with at least 500 households and found the wealthiest places to live in the United States. These are the top twenty, along with a bit of our own research about each area and its median home listing price.

Some of the wealthiest zip codes may surprise you. A remote area in Wyoming has a higher median income than where Bill Gates lives, Manhattan didn’t crack the top 20 and the wealthiest place in America is located on a tiny island.

20) Greenwich, Connecticut (06831)

Median income (in thousands): $625.2

Median home listing: $1.8 million, according to realtor.com

Population: 14,792

Greenwich is one of the wealthiest places on the Gold Coast and home to one of the most expensive properties in the country (which is this mansion formerly owned by Donald Trump).

This particular zip code in Greenwich is called Back Country, located on the town’s far north and western area. The subsection is devoted to sprawling country areas of secluded estates — although, lately, its real estate market has been stagnating.

19) Glencoe, Illinois (60022)

Median income (in thousands): $633.7

Median home price: $975,000

Population: 8,153, as of 2010

With an impressively low unemployment rate of 1.5 percent and a high education rate, Glencoe was ranked as the most successful city in the country by Zippia, a career and industry information website.

The town lies about an hour north of downtown Chicago and is surrounded by other high-income neighborhoods, golf courses and nature preserves.

18) Old Westbury, New York (11568)

Median income (in thousands): $639.8

Median home price: $2 million

Population: 4,555

A sleepy hamlet on the North Shore of Long Island, Old Westbury makes up just 8.6 square miles of land — but boy, is that land beautiful.

While it must be fun to drive and gawk at the gated mansions, it’s probably even more fun to stop at the historic Old Westbury Gardens. In fact, you’ve probably already seen it: The gardens have been the filming location for films like “North by Northwest,” “The Age of Innocence,” “Cruel Intentions,” and “Hitch.”

The Buchanan estate in Baz Luhrmann’s 2013 “The Great Gatsby” were inspired by Old Westbury Gardens as well.

17) Riverside, Connecticut (06878)

Median income (in thousands): $665.1

Median home listing price: $1.9 million

Population: 8,043, as of 2010

Riverside is actually another piece of Greenwich. Famous residents include “Good Morning America” co-anchor Lara Spencer, "Today" co-host Kathie Lee Gifford and former New York Rangers forward Martin St. Louis.

Plus, the real estate market is doing just fine.

16) Medina, Washington (98039)

Median income (in thousands): $691.8

Median home listing price: $3.8 million

Population: 2,971, as of 2010

Medina is located less than 30 minutes away from Seattle, and it's home to some very wealthy people. The most famous of which is Bill Gates, who owns a 24-bedroom custom house worth at least $60 million that’s nicknamed “Xanadu 2.0.”

In 2008, the Seattle Times described Medina as “as a place where very wealthy people want to be left alone” and where “cops stop unfamiliar people on the street and seem to know even the dogs by name.”

15) Naples, Florida (34102)

Median income (in thousands): $694.7

Median home price: $1.8 million

Population: 10,460, as of 2010

Naples News said it best: “The Port Royal area has been called one of the most prestigious neighborhoods in Southwest Florida and is considered a landmark community with its white sand beaches off the Gulf of Mexico and 500 residences, many of which are multi-million-dollar mansions.”

Famous residents include Judge Judy and musician Bob Seger.

14) Moose Wilson Road, Wyoming (83014)

Median income (in thousands): $699.2

Median home price: $2 million

Population: 3,595, as of 2010

This curiously -titled place near Grand Teton National Park is rather affluent. According to Bloomberg, Wyoming and Florida are states that draw wealthy people because of their “favorable tax structures.”

13) Portola Valley, California (94028)

Median income (in thousands): $701.2

Median home price: $4.3 million

Population: 6,534

Portola Valley is one of the most expensive places in the country to buy a home — and there’s barely any inventory.

Portola Valley is a haven for Silicon Valley money makers who want to enjoy the more open, rural aspects of California while still staying within a reasonable commute.

12) Boston, Massachusetts (02110)

Median income (in thousands): $711.9

Median home price: $1.9 million

Population: 1,733

The zip code, in the bustling financial district of Boston, is home to the headquarters of big businesses like Fidelity, Eastern Bank, State Street Bank and Putnam Investments. You may want to check with one of them if you need to buy a home there.

The Federal Reserve Bank of Boston is also in the financial district.

11) Far Hills, New Jersey (07931)

Median income (in thousands): $747.2

Median home price: $1.4 million

Population: 3,296, according to the U.S. Census, 919 according to the New Jersey Department of Labor.

Far Hills is home to the Far Hills Race Meeting, which hosts an annual, popular horse racing contest. There are also parks, gardens, museums and an arboretum to entertain tourists.

10) San Francisco, California (94111)

Median income (in thousands): $776.4

Median home price: $1.4 million

Population: 3,713

San Francisco’s financial district is home to some exceedingly wealthy companies. The headquarters of Fortune 500 companies Charles Schwab, Salesforce, Wells Fargo, PG&E, GAP, Inc. and McKesson are all located in this one zip code.

9) Weston, Massachusetts (02493)

Median income (in thousands): $860.4

Median home listing price: $1.9 million

Population: 11,389

Weston is one of those places you go to give your kids a good education — the town placed third on Boston.com’s 2017 best school districts list. There are tons of historic houses and beautiful foliage for scenery, and it’s apparently a very safe place to live.

8) Kenilworth, Illinois (60043)

Median income (in thousands): $861

Median home listing price: $1.4 million

Population: 2,513

With around 800 houses, this tiny town 17 miles north of Chicago is, by Bloomberg’s IRS survey, the wealthiest place in all of Illinois.

7) Los Angeles, California (90067)

Median income (in thousands): $905.7

Median home listing price: $2.2 million

Population: 5,934

The zip code covers Century City, a residential and commercial district in downtown Los Angeles, situated next to Beverly Hills.

This wealthy zip got its name from 21st Century Fox, which actually owned much of Century City as its huge studio backlot; the studio sold off the land in the 1950s. Fox Studios is still located in this zip.

6) Gladwyne, Pennsylvania (19035)

Median income (in thousands): $957.2

Median home listing price: $1.2 million

Population: 3,780

Gladwyne is a small, hilly suburban town located in eastern Pennsylvania. M. Night Shyamalan lived here in a giant mansion in 2000, but sold it in 2008.

Unlike a Shyamalan movie, there’s no twist to this village — it’s just really, really rich.

5) Purchase, New York (10577)

Median income (in thousands): $976.2

Median home listing price: $2 million

Population: 6,552, as of 2010

A hamlet of Harrison, New York, Purchase is one of those affluent places where the rich go to get the countryside feeling of being away from everything without being too far away from anything.

According to The New York Times, Purchase residents have easy access to major highways, trains and the Westchester Airport, and New York City is as little as 30 minutes away.

4) Palo Alto, California (94301)

Median income: $1.175 million

Median home listing price: $3.9 million

Population: 16,955

This downtown area of Palo Alto not only has the fourth highest-paid residents in the country, it’s also the top spot for residents who know how to work tax loopholes.

According to Bloomberg’s IRS analysis, this neighborhood had the highest average tax deduction in the nation, at $491,600.

3) Palm Beach, Florida (33480)

Average income: $1.254 million

Median home listing price: $745,000

Population: 9,549

With just 4.2 square miles of land on an 18-mile long strip on the easternmost piece of Florida, Palm Beach is the tiniest place on this list. It’s also the third richest.

While there’s no real industry within the town itself, there a few attractions — namely Mar-a-Lago, president Trump’s private resort.

2) Atherton, California (94027)

Average income: $1.496 million

Median home listing price: $6.6 million

Population: 9,549

The second-richest place in the entire country, Atherton is home to some super-rich and super-important people. Ex-Google CEO Eric Schmidt, Hewlett-Packard CEO Meg Whitman, billionaire businessman Charles Schwab and Facebook COO Sheryl Sandberg all live in Atherton, according to CNBC.

The town is near the core of Silicon Valley, making this place an ideal location for the super-rich to buy astounding property with an easy commute.

1) Fisher Island, Florida (33109)

Average income: $2.543 million

Median listing price: $4.2 million

Population: 594

With an average income of $2.5 million per resident — more than $1 million more than the second richest place in America — Fisher Island is the undisputed reigning champ of America’s ultra-wealthy residences.

Fisher Island is located three miles from the shore of Miami, and you can only reach it by boat or helicopter, which shouldn’t be a problem, as we assume every resident and their dog own at least one of these vehicles.