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Greater Washington Ranks #2 in Median Household Income
Ten Counties in Top 20 Nationally


August 26, 2008; Washington , DC – Greater Washington ranks second in the nation (behind San Jose) among U.S. metropolitan regions in median household income, according to recently released U.S. Census data. However, Greater Washington only lags San Jose by a mere $593.

Greater Washington’s median household income ( $83,200 ) is 64% above the national average ($50,740) and up from $79,500 just one year ago.  If San Jose and San Francisco (which ranked 3rd) were combined into one metropolitan area that compared more closely in population, Greater Washington would rank first nationally.

“In addition to spotlighting our region’s economic strength, this latest data provides a strong indicator of the region’s attractiveness to a highly-educated workforce. Greater Washington continues to attract and retain the best and brightest,” said Matt Erskine, executive director of the Greater Washington Initiative.

Not surprisingly, Greater Washington boasts 10 counties in the top 20 nationally. Since last year, Loudoun County, VA ($107,207) surpassed Fairfax County, VA ($105,241) as having the highest median household income of any county in the country. And for the first time, four counties in the U.S. surpassed six figures, three of which are in Greater Washington. Howard County, MD is third in the nation at $101,672.

Other Greater Washington counties include Calvert County, MD ($95,134 - #6); Arlington County, VA ($94,876 - #7); Montgomery County, MD ($91,835 - #10); Stafford County, VA ($87,629 - #12); Prince William County, VA ($87,243 - #13); Fauquier County, VA ($84,888 - #14); and Charles County, MD ($83,412 - #20).

Median Household Income –   Regionally:

Metro Area

Median Household Income

San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara,
CA Metro Area

$83,793

Washington-Arlington-Alexandria,
DC-VA-MD-WV Metro Area

$83,200

San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont ,
CA Metro Area

$73,581

Boston-Cambridge-Quincy ,
MA -NH Metro Area

$68,142

New York-Northern New Jersey-Long Island, NY-NJ-PA Metro Area

$61,554

Chicago-Naperville-Joliet , IL-IN-WI
Metro Area

$59,255

Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington,
PA-NJ-DE-MD Metro Area

$58,309

Los Angeles-Long Beach- Santa Ana,
CA Metro Area

$58,047

Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Marietta,
GA Metro Area

$57,189

Dallas-Fort Worth- Arlington,
TX Metro Area

$54,730

Miami-Fort Lauderdale-Pompano
Beach , FL Metro Area

$49,232


Source: U.S. Census, American Community Survey, 2007.

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The Greater Washington Initiative (GWI) is the regional economic development, marketing and research organization that promotes the area encompassing the District of Columbia, Northern Virginia and Suburban Maryland as the premier business location. GWI is an affiliate of the Greater Washington Board of Trade. For more information, visit www.greaterwashington.org .

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Greater Washington Initiative
(202) 857-5999