5 Cities Where the Rich Live a Middle-Class Lifestyle

Being wealthy generally entails not worrying too much about financial matters, living an (economically speaking) easy life and splurging on luxury items without a second thought.

Not so fast, some say. While being wealthy can conjure images of superyachts and private jets, a reader recently contacted a Seattle Times columnist, saying that there are also “regular rich,” who just “blend in.”

“We have a nice house but not that special (not a gated mansion or waterfront house),” the reader told The Seattle Times. “I drive a Tesla (albeit the cheapest I could buy, that less-than-$40K Model 3). We take a pleasant vacation every year (though we do fly coach). So yes, we do blend in.”

These individuals — who are also feeling the high costs of living — are still not typified as middle class. For context, according to the Pew Research Center, the middle class has steadily contracted in the past five decades, with the share of adults who live in middle-class households falling to 50% in 2021, from 61% in 1971.

And for the Pew Center, there is a clear definition of what middle-income households are: those with an income that is two-thirds to double the U.S. median household income. And that median income stands at $74,580, according to the latest Census Bureau data. 

So where do these wealthy people live?

• Number of millionaires: 54,200, according to U.K. wealth firm Henley & Partners.
• Average median home price: $877,000, up 9.6% since last year, according to Redfin.
• Median household income: $116,068, according to the Census Bureau.

Of note, the top 20% of Seattle households — about 70,000 in all — earned an average of $442,000 each last year, according to The Seattle Times.

• Number of millionaires: 305,700, according to Henley & Partners.
• Average median home price: $1.44 million in April, a 4.1% increase compared to March 2024, according to Norada Real Estate Investments.
• Median household income: $128,151, according to Axios.

• Number of millionaires: 349,500, per Henley & Partners.
• Average median home price: $838,000, up 1.1% year-over-year, according to Realtor.com
• Median household income: $76,607 according to the Census Bureau.

• Number of millionaires: 212,100, as Henley & Partners indicated.
• Average median home price: $1.2 million, up 2.5% year-over-year, according to Realtor.com.
• Median household income: $176,244, according to the Census Bureau.

• Number of millionaires: 35,300, according to Henley & Partners.
• Average median home price: $575,859, up 8.8% over the past year, according to Zillow.
• Median household income: $65,116, according to the Census Bureau.