[Video] America's 3 Wealthiest Counties Now Ring Washington D.C.

By IBTimes Staff Reporter | March 11 2010 8:00 AM

While Forbes much celebrated list of richest people in the world takes all the attention, the list below was far more interesting to me. A striking video via CNBC on where the wealth of America is increasingly being concentrated. (like to original Forbes story here) There was a time not half a decade ago, Oakland County Michigan was the 2nd most wealthy county in the country - not because of the top end, but because the automotive blue collar worker (rightly or wrongly) had far above the national median wage. (I think Fairfield, CT, home of the hedge funds, was #1 for a while) Now as the median wage of the federal worker far outpacing that of the private sector - along with the concentration of unions in the public sector [Jan 24, 2010: For the First Time, More Union Workers Work in Government versus Private Sector] - we've seen a wholesale switch. I would assume the huge outgrowth of lobbying (jobs) in the country the past decade, along with those in the private sector who contract with federal government have also helped to push along this trend.

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Net result of this nirvana that is recession proof? Despite a HUGE influx of people moving to this area, the unemployment rate is far below the national average of America, and wealth is surging. The 3 richest counties in America all now center around Washington D.C. I did some other digging and not only the top 3 are DC centered, but 6 of the top 10 wealthiest communities in America now revolve around Washington D.C. Think about that for a moment - this is a huge country. Once more I reiterate - if your child asks what career to get into - tell them government (especially of the federal kind) or any business serving the federal government.

Original Forbes story here.

....in Loudoun County, Va., where median household incomes are higher than anywhere else in the country. This affluent suburb of Washington, D.C., where families take home a median $110,643 annually, tops our list of America's 25 richest counties.
Like Loudoun, a number of the country's wealthiest households are tightly concentrated in counties around the nation's capital. Six of the richest counties lie on the outskirts of Washington: Fairfax County, Va., Arlington County, Va., Stafford County, Va., Prince William County, Va., Charles County, Md., and Alexandria City, Va.