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The 250 Richest Towns in AmericaWant to know where the most expensive real estate is in America? By , USA www.listforless.com
Look no further than the May 1998 edition of Worth magazine.Jane Berentson and Loch Adamson used median home prices to rank the rich towns and interviewed their famous citizens to find out what they love about their hometowns. Worth wanted to know why successful men and women who have the means to live most anywhere but have chosen one place above all others are residents of some of America's richest towns.
Which town came in first? Aspen, CO, popular with celebrity residents, has a median home price of over a million and a half-dollars and the number one ranking.The 'cheapest' expensive place to live on the list, Port Washington, NY (Long Island) has a median home price of a mere $315,000 (ranked number 250).
We looked at the top 50 towns (see the Directory below).As you might expect, California has the most entries in the top 50 with New York running a close second.Among the rich and famous interviewed by the magazine are Susan Lucci, television star, Jim Lovell, astronaut, and Phil Ramone, famous record producer.Their personal stories show us why 'home' has a deep meaning, even for the rich and famous.
Susan Lucci, icon of daytime television and successful businesswoman, cites the great sense of community and multiple generations in Garden City, Long Island, her hometown for her entire life.She worked as a candy striper, met her husband while waitressing at the Garden City Hotel, married and raised their two children there."I didn't expect to stay here myself, " she says with a radiant smile."I just began to realize, as I grew up, what a spectacular place this was."
Jim Lovell, tells of a visit to Milwaukee with his new bride, Marilyn, when they happened to drive through Lake Forest, IL, the quintessential old-money suburb 35 miles north of Chicago."Wouldn't it be nice if someday we could live here?" Lovell recalls them saying to each other.Almost 30 years after their wedding and more than 10 years after he commanded the harrowing Apollo 13 mission, the Lovells moved to Lake Forest. Phil Ramone, the famous record producer, moved to Bedford, New York, 13 years ago to a big turn-of-the-century farmhouse that his wife, Karen, had her eye on.The owner wasn't planning to sell but he liked them.The house is pretty much as they found it but the state-of-the-art recording studio in the barn is decorated with three walls' worth of platinum and gold albums.Ramone has won eight Grammys and an Emmy, and as a ten-year-old violin prodigy, gave a command performance for Queen Elizabeth.His love for the town centers on another source of joy: his family.He tells Worth that Bedford "s a good area for children."
You can find out if your town or city is on the 'Directory of Wealth' list on Worth's online magazine web site, www.worth.com. using an alphabetical list to search.Or check out the list to find out where to move to if you win the lottery!
Here's a sample (50 top towns) from the Directory of Wealth*: RANK TOWN POPULATION MEDIAN PRICE 1. Aspen, CO 5,049 $1,512,500 2. Jupiter Island, FL 601 1,222,500 3. Rolling Hills, CA 1,748 1,165,000 4. Atherton, CA 7,500 1,150,000 5. Matinecock, NY (LI) 880 1,070,000 6. Hillsborough, CA 10,589 1,023,000 7. Belvedere, CA 2,071 986,000 8. Rancho Santa Fe, CA 12,300 963,000 9. Los Altos Hills, CA 7,900 960,000 10. Snowmass Village, CO 1,449 960,000 11. Purchase, NY 4,205 950,000 12. Sands Point, NY 2,477 950,000 13. Saddle River, NJ 3,136 941,500 14. North Hills, NY (LI) 3,748 895,000 15. Old Brookville, NY (LI) 1,914 845,000 16. Old Westbury, NY (LI) 4,204 810,000 17. Hidden Hills, CA 1,879 790,000 18. Portola Valley, CA 4,400 787,250 19. Monte Sereno, CA 3,311 775,000 20. Ross, CA 1,894 767,400 21. Brookville, NY (LI) Upper 3,748 765,000 22. Brookville, NY (LI) 1,560 765,000 23. Alpine, NJ 1,849 755,000 24. Beverly Hills, CA 34,116 750,000 25. Woodside, CA 5,087 7742,500 26. Kenilworth, IL 2,291 740,000 27. Green Village, NJ 892 736,000 28. Montecito, CA 10,000 731,000 29. Bannockburn, IL 1,595 725,000 30. Hunting Valley, OH 824 712,500 31. Gulf Stream, FL 789 710,000 32. Oyster Bay Cove, NY (LI) 2,240 700,000 33. Bloomfield Hills, MI 4,587 695,000 34. Muttontown, NY (LI) 3,107 680,000 35. Palm Beach, FL 9,894 675,000 36. Diablo, CA 1,158 672,500 37. Saratoga, CA 27,527 659,500 38. Kentfield, CA 6,296 655,000 39. Mill Neck, NY (LI) 985 655,000 40. Greenwich, CT 36,504 651,000 41. Palos Verdes Estates, CA 12,847 650,000 42. Marina del Rey, CA 7,431 645,000 43. Bronxville, NY 5,992 640,000 44. New Canaan, CT 17,656 637,500 45. Kings Point, NY (LI) 4,821 635,000 46. New Vernon, NJ 722 632,500 47. Los Altos, CA 27,988 625,000 48. Wailea, HI 3,798 625,000 49. Laurel Hollow, NY (LI) 1,784 624,700 50. Lattingtown, NY (LI) 1,892 610,000 SOURCE: Government Records & Prudential Real Estate
Abstract of article published by Worth, May 1998, |