Bay Area Tops List as the Richest Region in State
Marin, San Mateo and Contra Costa counties, which have the highest household incomes in California, helped make the Bay Area the wealthiest region in the state in 1986, according to the Center for Continuing Study of the California Economy.
The center said the Bay Area has an average household income of more than $52,000, about $6,000 higher than the state average. By 1995, the center projected the Bay Area average household income will have risen to $57,454, about $5,000 higher than the state average.
The center said in its report that Bay Area income is higher because the region also leads the state in the percentage of women working. It said about 71% of all women 16 to 64 in the area are employed. The comparable state average is 63%.
“The Bay Area has very high living costs, but these are offset in many families by having two incomes,” said Stephen Levy, who wrote the report.
Marin County continued to be the wealthiest in the state last year with an average household income of $65,703, followed by San Mateo County with $61,490 and Contra Costa with $56,531.
Levy said that by 1995, San Mateo may become the wealthiest county in the state because more women are projected to be working there than in Marin.
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