The Richest 1% by Country - US seems to be wrong

[iRent2u]

Richest 1%

While I am also curious, I think people want to see where they are with respect to the rest of society, because some happiness comes from seeing how many people have less than you. That is common, and not deniable.

I think that no matter what your socio-economic ranking is, the big driver of happiness comes from your surrounding. It's better to live among those with a bit less money than you have. But be sure not to show off, as envy may bring trouble.

Conversely, if you dock your 100' boat alongside megayachts owned by billionaires, you are going to feel like an underclass peon.

Contentment his destroyed by comparison.

 

[Out of Steam]

Very surprised to see Ireland ranked higher than the UK, Germany and France. That’s not your father’s Ireland that’s for sure.

Ireland has high property values, and a very substantial financial sector, as well as being the European HQ of many US tech firms. It's not a surprise that there is a significant percentage of wealthy people.

As someone who has traveled to Ireland since childhood, the country's path through the 20th century was largely compressed into the last third.

 

[Koolau]

58% of all statistics are made up.

Or my favorite from back when I used to DO statistics:

Statistics are like a bathing suit. What they reveal may be less significant than what they conceal. But, as always, YMMV.

 

[Car-Guy]

I looked at this article several times in the past few days and it just doesn't "feel" right, from my POV... There's no way I have 3+ times more than what's required to be in the top 1% of my state. When I drive thru places like Houston, Austin, DFW, etc, I see tons of fancy/expensive homes, brand new high end BMW's and Mercedes seem to be everywhere, etc. (Yes I know you can lease a fancy car for little money, it's just an example.) Hard to believe are all these homes and cars are owned by the banks. Maybe so...


https://windfalldata.com/blog/what-it-takes-to-be-in-the-top-1-of-every-state/

 

[RetiredHappy]

I looked at this article several times in the past few days and it just doesn't "feel" right, from my POV... There's no way I have 3+ times more than what's required to be in the top 1% of my state. When I drive thru places like Houston, Austin, DFW, etc, I see tons of fancy/expensive homes, brand new high end BMW's and Mercedes seem to be everywhere, etc. (Yes I know you can lease a fancy car for little money, it's just an example.) Hard to believe are all these homes and cars are owned by the banks. Maybe so...


https://windfalldata.com/blog/what-it-takes-to-be-in-the-top-1-of-every-state/

State vs. city. City dwellers tend to be much wealthier. This uses US census bureau data, which much closer to actual when compared with a handful of samples.

 

[street]

Just found this article where it reports entry level $ for top 1% for every state. This report would be consistent with the minimum entry level as $4.4M instead of $11M.

https://windfalldata.com/blog/what-it-takes-to-be-in-the-top-1-of-every-state/

Very interesting! Thanks

 

[Letj]

I looked at this article several times in the past few days and it just doesn't "feel" right, from my POV... There's no way I have 3+ times more than what's required to be in the top 1% of my state. When I drive thru places like Houston, Austin, DFW, etc, I see tons of fancy/expensive homes, brand new high end BMW's and Mercedes seem to be everywhere, etc. (Yes I know you can lease a fancy car for little money, it's just an example.) Hard to believe are all these homes and cars are owned by the banks. Maybe so...


https://windfalldata.com/blog/what-it-takes-to-be-in-the-top-1-of-every-state/

I am with you on that one Car-Guy. The amount of wealth and high lifestyle I see in my state, I would think you need much more to be in the top 1% than this article suggests. I know many people who have a beautiful 2nd house on the water with a boat and seemed to be doing so well. It’s hard to imagine they’re struggling to maintain that lifestyle. I know that would make me nervous.

 

[NW-Bound]

Perhaps the truly rich people that you see are not the mere 1%, but rather the 0.1%.

And the 0.1% may have 20x to 50x the entry level for 1%.

I have a few times the 1% entry level of my state, but I do not consider myself rich. I am only comfortable.

 

[NW-Bound]

1% means 1 in 100. That's not so rare.

1 in 1000 is a smaller number. I think that perhaps the wealth of the 0.1% stands out more than their number would suggest. The properties, wealth, and toys of the 1 really stands out, while the remaining 999 is a condensed mass that goes unnoticed.

Which of the following images would impress you more? You can fit the crowd of 999 onto the ground of the home of the 1.

 

[Car-Guy]

I have several times the 1% entry level of my state, but I do not consider myself rich. I am only comfortable.

That was my point too. Being in the top 1% "ain't" what I thought it would be..... Of course YMMV.

 

[RetiredAt55.5]

So, someone could be "rich" with $4.4 million in net worth, but $1.2 million of that (just making up a number) could be their primary home. Someone else could also have $4.4 million but have a modest $200k home.

Granted, the $1.2 million home could always be sold as part of downsizing, but before that happens there's a lot of expenses on a bigger home (higher taxes, utilities, HVAC replacement, landscaping, roof repair to name a few). So, all those expenses tend to be a drag on this "investment".

Just another reason why these surveys are so imperfect, but they are entertaining to read.

 

[NW-Bound]

That was my point too. Being in the top 1% "ain't" what I thought it would be..... Of course YMMV.

I just changed my earlier post from "several times" to "a few times", after taking a closer look at the 1% in my state. I am not that deep into the 1% group.

I was surprised that Arizonans are that well off. Who wouldda thunk? A bunch of desert dwellers. How they make their money? Maybe they are not natives, and bring it from out of state. We need a study.

 

[RetiredHappy]

I just changed my earlier post from "several times" to "a few times", after taking a closer look at the 1% in my state. I am not that deep into the 1% group.

I was surprised that Arizonans are that well off. Who wouldda thunk? A bunch of desert dwellers. How they make their money? Maybe they are not natives, and bring it from out of state. We need a study.

Tech, eg, Intel has a significant large presence. Lots of rich retirees in Scottsdale and its surrounding area. We visit Scottsdale regularly and they have lots of high-end shops and great restaurants. We looked at a new development about 4 years ago. The cheapest home was $1.5M.

 

[NW-Bound]

Tech, eg, Intel has a significant large presence. Lots of rich retirees in Scottsdale and its surrounding area. We visit Scottsdale regularly and they have lots of high-end shops and great restaurants. We looked at a new development about 4 years ago. The cheapest home was $1.5M.

My question was a rhetorical one. More than Intel, there are other semiconductor companies with operations in the Phoenix area. And several aerospace companies have divisions in Phoenix and Tucson.

Intel is looking to build more plants here. And Taiwan Semiconductor has plans to build in the North Phoenix area. What is interesting is that chip making requires a lot of water. Perhaps they plan on using reverse osmosis to recycle the water, because the water supply does not look certain.

 

[aleabo]

$4,312,158 to be top 1% in WA. I'm not there yet but know a lot of people who over this number. None of them own jet or mega yacht

 

[Koolau]

I tried to get through the Night Frank Wealth Report. At first, I tried reading every thing. Then I started skipping around. Eventually, I decided it was totally boring.

I'm quite satisfied with my "Stash" (a stash that puts me in the 1% of many of the states - but certainly not all) but the real bottom line is that I have "enough." Labels like HNW and UHNW lose their meaning when you are satisfied. Talk of owning yachts or investing in art or rare whisky just made me shake my head. I keep wondering "Who ARE these people?" YMMV

 

[pjigar]

I looked at this article several times in the past few days and it just doesn't "feel" right, from my POV... There's no way I have 3+ times more than what's required to be in the top 1% of my state. When I drive thru places like Houston, Austin, DFW, etc, I see tons of fancy/expensive homes, brand new high end BMW's and Mercedes seem to be everywhere, etc. (Yes I know you can lease a fancy car for little money, it's just an example.) Hard to believe are all these homes and cars are owned by the banks. Maybe so...


https://windfalldata.com/blog/what-it-takes-to-be-in-the-top-1-of-every-state/

I work in high tech industry in Texas and I personally know a lot of people you are referring to. They are what we call "big hat, no cattle" people IMHO. I know several of those people who like to blow that dough as soon as it comes in.

 

[tryan]

I have a friend in the top 1% .... the loot is in the form of family land she inherited. No intention of selling, so she lives off a teachers salary (35 years n'counting). Fortunately she can rent her house out in prime time (walk to the ocean) to help make ends meet.

Ironically she considers herself "middle class".