21 US Cities That Are Dominated By Rich People

If one thing is made clear by the latest Census report on the geographic concentration of high-income households, it's this:

Wealthy people love living on the water's edge.

The report, which is based on data from the American Community Survey (2007-2011), zeroed in on not only which metro areas are home to the biggest bank accounts, but where these well-heeled residents are the most concentrated. Coastal towns were by far the most popular, including long-time favorites like California and Florida.

With the final ranking in hand, we decided to dig a bit deeper. By breaking down each metro area in the report's top wealthiest metropolitan areas by income tax rates, household income, and home value, we sought to explain not only where the wealthy live, but why.

These are the biggest metro areas with the highest concentration of wealthy residents.

Tax rates are noted as percentages of income and were compiled from Institute for Taxation and Economic Policy data. Average household income data was provided by the U.S. Census Bureau. Average home price data was compiled from Census data and Zillow.