http://www.usatoday.com/n...yahoorefer

What's the most affluent city in the USA?
(a) San Jose

(b) San Francisco

(c) Honolulu

(d) Plano, Texas

The answer is Plano — and that surprises even the mayor of this 260,000-person Dallas suburb.

"I'd never heard that before," Plano Mayor Pat Evans says. "But it's good to know."

The Census Bureau released its annual report on income and poverty Tuesday. The results offer an interesting — and often unexpected — portrait of who's rich and who's poor in the USA.

Plano was the report's star among cities with populations of 250,000 or more. It had the highest income and lowest poverty rate.

Plano's median household income in 2007 was $84,492, up 10% from 2006. Placing a distant second: San Jose, with a median income of $76,963.

Plano is the home to corporate headquarters for Frito-Lay, JCPenney and other companies. Billionaire Ross Perot founded computer giant EDS and Perot Systems, both still based in Plano.

The city is north of Dallas at the end of a light-rail line. Gymnast Nastia Liukin, Olympic gold medalist in Beijing, trains there.

Despite its affluence, the median home price is about $225,000, Evans says. By contrast, San Jose's median home price is $744,000.

"We've got the lowest taxes and highest level of services in North Texas," the mayor says.

The poorest city in the nation was Detroit, with a median household income of $28,097. It fell to the bottom spot this year, replacing Cleveland.

The Census Bureau report also showed:

•States. Maryland remained the top state in income, and Mississippi remained the poorest.

Energy states Alaska and Wyoming had the biggest income gains. Four states lost ground: Michigan, Kentucky, New Mexico and South Dakota.

•Congressional districts. Rep. Tom Davis, R-Va., who represents suburbs outside Washington, has the most affluent constituents. Their median household income was $103,664.

Rep. José Serrano, D-N.Y., who represents Harlem and the Bronx in New York City, has the district with the poorest residents. Median household income was $23,291.

And I live in Cleveland, the second poorest city in the nation.

I'm in a city adjacent to Plano.

SCNDLS said:

Awesome!!

psychodelicide said:

Girl, you need to leave Cleveland.

That's not new.
Plano has had that status and reputation since the 1970's. In the 70's and '80's everyone was trying to figure out why teens who supposedly had everything were killing themselves.

not even an honorable mention.


Then again, that's a good thing, I think.

SCNDLS said:

Oh man, I would LOVE to. After I left my last job, I tried to find a job in Charlotte, NC. I found out that you actually had to live there 24/7 to get a job. They did not seem to want to hire out of towners. My sister-in-law (who now lives there) told me that a lot of the people that she and my brother knows who live in Charlotte actually sold their houses and moved down there. No jobs, nothing!
[Edited 8/28/08 17:45pm]

SUPRMAN said:

They had a rash of heroine overdoses in the 90s. However, the city was not having more suicides or overdoses than any other city, it just makes a good storyline because it was happening in a suburb.

i'm sure all the crackheads here in baltimore are excited about the #1 ranking of maryland