Is the typical person in Northern Virginia really that well off? (Norfolk: lawyers, townhouse)

[Old and Ill]

If you look at the average income in Fairfax and Arlington County it appears that most everyone is pretty rich. But I wonder if the typical person, the 80%, is really doing all that well. I suspect that there is an elite 20% of the population in Northern VA that is doing very well but most people are suffering with high living costs and low to moderate income. In other words the top 20% of people who are doing well make the average income seem very high.

Spend some time in a Walmart and you will find that Fairfax has a large underclass who are really struggling. A large number of kids going to school in Fairfax County are getting free or reduced lunch.

Maybe the typical person in Fairfax County has a lower standard of living due to high costs than someone in lower cost metro areas like Richmond or Norfolk. What do you think?

[spencgr]

High wages and a high cost of living. What comes in quickly goes back out.

[rome99]

I agree!!

Originally Posted by spencgr

High wages and a high cost of living. What comes in quickly goes back out.

[sonnymarkjiz]

I mean, idk. Cost of living is pretty high here. A standard decent Single Family House in Fairfax/Arlington/Alexandria can go for almost a million dollars these days, while a standard 2000 sq ft townhouse can also run you almost a million here. Most people get paid just to keep up with the cost of living here, so like spencgr said, what comes in quickly goes back out.

[NOVAmtneer82]

There are many 'well off' people in Northern Virginia- it just takes more $$ to be in that category compared to other smaller metropolitan areas. There are large numbers of people in and around the median income in the $100k-$150k range but also a large number making $250-300k plus annually. They are lawyers in private practice, lobbyists, defense contractors, academics (the high up ones), diplomats, doctors, directors at the numerous consulting firms, etc. Regarding housing and general living costs, we're somewhat in a gray area here - people who move here from overseas, other parts of the NE and coastal California find it generally more affordable - especially when factoring in taxes. People who move here from the South or Midwest find it largely more expensive.

[LakeLifePA]

There are plenty of well off people in N/VA and many of them own and/or are senior management for small government consulting/contracting firms or are true professionals such as suggested earlier in the thread. Government employees here do make good money due to the locality pay and more likelihood of a senior position, but most likely not the kind of money that buys million dollar homes and puts two Teslas in the garage.

Many federal employees (myself included) are here to bump up our high three and then retire to a lower cost of living area just as HokieFan suggests. I would not want to live here otherwise, but I have made the most of it and enjoyed all that the area has to offer. I am in no way suffering to make ends meet here, and consider myself solidly in the middle class. I made a decision to buy in Herndon (30 miles from my workplace with a 45 to 60 minute commute) and bought a nice home 5 years ago for $440k that has appreciated nicely with the addition of the Silver Line just 5 miles away and will more than likely appreciate further with the addition of Amazon HQ2 by the time I retire in 5 more years.

[sonoronos]

I don't think the original poster is asking about individual or anecdotal examples of being "better off". Of course some people will answer one way or another depending on their personal bias or situation. There are exceptions to every rule.

What the original poster is really asking is:

Is the statistical distribution of wealth in Northern Virginia counties shifted to the higher income brackets compared to the national average? Are there fewer people at the lowest end of the income distribution than the national average?

[NOVA_guy]

Yes, CoL is high here but so are salaries. You can, for the most part, make here what you’d make in SF or NYC but our prices here aren’t nearly as crazy as it is out there.

That said, if you’re really smart and forward-thinking, there’s an ability here to really build your wealth but the caveat is you have to be smart with your money.

[sonnymarkjiz]

Originally Posted by NOVA_guy

Yes, CoL is high here but so are salaries. You can, for the most part, make here what you’d make in SF or NYC but our prices here aren’t nearly as crazy as it is out there.

That said, if you’re really smart and forward-thinking, there’s an ability here to really build your wealth but the caveat is you have to be smart with your money.

Bingo! Your last sentence sums it up well. You'd be surprised how many people in this area make $150K a year and still live paycheck to paycheck because they don't know how to handle their finances. Too many people too concerned with keeping up with the Joneses in this area.

[jillybean720]

Here's a breakdown I found:

Moderator cut: link removed, competitor site