Race
Recent U.S. Census Bureau publications indicate a strong correlation between race and affluence. In the top household income quintile, households with incomes exceeding $91,200, Asian Americans and Whites were overrepresented, whereas Hispanics and African Americans were underrepresented. The household income for Asian Americans was, at $61,094, by far the highest, exceeding that of Whites ($48,554) by 26%. Over a quarter, 27.5%, of Asian American households had incomes exceeding $100,000, and another 40% had incomes of over $75,000.
Among White households, who remained near the national median, 18.3% had six figure incomes, while 28.9% had incomes exceeding $75,000. The percentages of households with incomes exceeding $100,000 and $75,000 were far below the national medians for Hispanic and African American households. Among Hispanic households, for example, only 9% had six figure incomes, and 17% had incomes exceeding $75,000. The race gap remained when considering personal income. In 2005, roughly 11% of Asian Americans and 7% of White individuals had six figure incomes, compared to 2.6% among Hispanics and 2.3% among African Americans.
The racial breakdowns of income brackets further illustrate the racial disparities associated with affluence. in 2005, 81.8% of all 114 million households were White (including White Hispanics), 12.2% were African American, 10.9% were Hispanic and 3.7% were Asian American. While White households are always near the national median due to Whites being the by far most prevalent racial demographic, the percentages of minority households with incomes exceeding $100,000 strayed considerably from their percentage of the overall population. Asian Americans, who represent the smallest surveyed racial demographic in the overall population, were the found to be the prevalent minority among six figure income households. Among the nearly twenty million households with six figure incomes, 86.9% were White, 5.9% were Asian American, 5.6% were Hispanic and 5.5% were African American. Among the general individual population with earnings, 82.1% were White, 12.7% were Hispanic, 11.0% were African American and 4.6% were Asian American.
Of the top 10% of income earners, those nearly 15 million individuals with incomes exceeding $77,500, Whites and Asians were once again overrepresented with the percentages of African Americans and Hispanics trailing behind considerably. Of the top 10% of earners, 86.7% were White. Asian Americans were the prevalent minority, constituting 6.8% of top 10% income earners, nearly twice the percentage of Asian Americans among the general population. Hispanics, who were the prevalent minority in the general population of income earners, constituted only 5.2% of those in the top 10%, with African Americans being the least represented with 5.1%.
| Race | Overall Median | High School | Some College | College Graduate | Bachelor's Degree | Master's Degree | Doctorate Degree | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total population | All, age 25+ | 32,140 | 26,505 | 31,054 | 49,303 | 43,143 | 52,390 | 70,853 |
| Full-time workers, age 25–64 | 39,509 | 31,610 | 37,150 | 56,027 | 50,959 | 61,324 | 79,292 | |
| White alone | All, age 25+ | 33,030 | 27,311 | 31,564 | 49,972 | 43,833 | 52,318 | 71,268 |
| Full-time workers, age 25–64 | 40,422 | 32,427 | 38,481 | 56,903 | 51,543 | 61,441 | 77,906 | |
| Asian alone | All, age 25+ | 36,152 | 25,285 | 29,982 | 51,481 | 42,466 | 61,452 | 69,653 |
| Full-time workers, age 25–64 | 42,109 | 27,041 | 33,120 | 60,532 | 51,040 | 71,316 | 91,430 | |
| African American | All, age 25+ | 27,101 | 22,379 | 27,648 | 44,534 | 41,572 | 48,266 | 61,894 |
| Full-time workers, age 25–64 | 32,021 | 26,230 | 32,392 | 47,758 | 45,505 | 52,858 | N/A | |
| Hispanic or Latino | All, age 25+ | 23,613 | 22,941 | 28,698 | 41,596 | 37,819 | 50,901 | 67,274 |
| Full-time workers, age 25–64 | 27,266 | 26,461 | 33,120 | 46,594 | 41,831 | 53,880 | N/A | |
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, 2006
Read more about this topic: Affluence In The United States
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