Here’s The Richest Town In Michigan

MICHIGAN — The wealthiest town in Michigan is Grosse Pointe Shores, where the household income is more than $150,000, according to a new report.

The financial news and opinion site 24/7 Wall St. reviewed median household incomes in every town, city, village, borough or census designated place with a population between 1,000 and 25,000, using data from the U.S. Census Bureau’s American Community Survey.

In Grosse Pointe Shores, which has fewer than 3,000 residents, the median household income is more than $100,000 more than the state average, the site says. We know the community to be distinguished by lakefront living, historic mansions like the Edsel and Eleanor Ford house and the local yacht club.
But here’s the entire breakdown for Grosse Pointe Shores and its wealth:

• Michigan: Grosse Pointe Shores
• Median household income: $151,440 (state: $50,803)
• Household incomes of at least $200,000: 33.7 percent (state: 3.8 percent)
• Adults with at least a bachelor’s degree: 70.5 percent (state: 27.4 percent)
• Median home value: $431,200 (state: $127,800)
• Population: 2,933

Here’s what the site had to say about the community:

Grosse Pointe Shores, a Detroit suburb located on the western shore of Lake St. Clair, is the wealthiest town in Michigan. Franklin, the second wealthiest town in the state with a median income of $150,250, is located just 30 miles west of Grosse Pointe Shores. Across Michigan as a whole, the typical household earns $50,803, about a third of the median income in Grosse Pointe Shores. A well-educated town, every adult in Grosse Pointe Shores has a high school diploma and over 70% have a bachelor’s degree.

In nearly every state, regardless of wealth, at least one town has people who earn significantly more than a typical resident in the state and the typical American, the authors wrote.

Most of the richest towns have a relatively large number of college-educated people, the authors wrote. This is partly because at least a four-year college degree is required to qualify for many high-paying jobs. In all but four towns on the list, the share of adults with at least a bachelor’s degree was greater than the statewide share and the nationwide share of 30.3 percent. The town with the highest median income was also often a pretty pricey place to live, the authors wrote.

“Not only can higher income individuals afford more expensive real estate, but high real estate costs also drive up median incomes as they attract higher income residents and are often often prohibitively expensive for most Americans,” the authors wrote.All but three towns on the list have higher median home values than the typical U.S., home, which is worth $184,700, the site said. Each “richest” town also had higher median home value than the state.Many of the wealthiest towns are located near large cities and are “well within” commuting distance of a major urban center.

“Major urban areas are more likely to offer a wide range of high-paying jobs as well as a high concentration of cultural amenities like museums, theatres, concert venues, and professional sports teams,” the authors wrote.

Some small towns where the margin of error was too high weren’t included, the authors wrote. Click here to read the full methodology.

Patch reporter Dan Hampton contributed to this report.

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