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If you’re considering moving or buying your first home, you might have your heart set on a city with world-class amenities and infrastructure, reliable transit, a unique culture, a decent cost of living and endless offerings of art, music, entertainment and cuisine.
Just make sure you have the cash to back up your aspirations.
The following cities have such high concentrations of wealthy residents and investors that their real estate markets can squash the dreams of average buyers who have to get pre-approved for 30-year loans. Before you imagine yourself living in any of these millionaire enclaves, consider who you’ll have to compete with to make your real estate dreams come true.
The California Bay Area
According to California real estate attorney David J. Greiner, founder of Greiner Law Corp, Bay Area cities like San Francisco and San Jose “should be avoided if you’re trying to buy a home without competing with the wealthy.”
It’s no secret why.
“These cities have seen a significant influx of tech industry wealth, driving up home prices and making it challenging for average buyers to compete,” said Greiner. “High demand, limited supply, and the financial capabilities of wealthier buyers create a hyper-competitive market where bidding wars are common.”
According to the World’s Wealthiest Cities Report 2024 from Henley and Partners, a global firm for residence and citizenship by investment for wealthy individuals and businesses, the Bay Area is home to 305,700 millionaires, 675 centi-millionaires (those with at least $100 million) and 68 billionaires.
They’re a tough lot for regular people to out-bid.
Between 2013 and 2023 — long after the tech boom already priced average earners out of Silicon Valley — the Bay Area saw its share of millionaires grow by 82%. The average home in San Francisco costs $1.3 million. In San Jose, it’s $1.48 million.
New York City
The Census Bureau says 8.26 million people live in America’s biggest city, and according to the Henley report, an astonishing 349,500 of them are millionaires. Another 744 are centi-millionaires and 60 are billionaires.
Those numbers make New York the richest city in the entire world — and it’s a notoriously ruthless real estate market where the rich eat the average.
“New York City is a prime example where potential homeowners face stiff competition from the wealthy,” said Daniel Rivera, owner of Proactive Property Management Solutions in Northern New Jersey. “The presence of numerous high-net-worth individuals and foreign investors has driven property prices through the roof, particularly in areas like Manhattan and Brooklyn.”
Don’t expect to do much better across the Hudson River, either.
“Cities like Hoboken and Jersey City in New Jersey are becoming increasingly challenging for average buyers due to their close proximity to Manhattan and a surge in luxury developments,” said Rivera. “This influx has significantly ramped up home prices and competition.”
The average property in Manhattan costs $1.14 million. In Brooklyn, it’s about $836,000.
Boston
In February, heading into the busy spring buying season, Housing Wire reported that “Boston is the nation’s hottest housing market” — and the rich were turning up the heat.
“Boston’s combination of prestigious universities, biotech firms, and financial services has resulted in a strong demand for housing,” said EZ Sell Homebuyers founder Mike Wall, a 23-year real estate veteran who’s sold over 1,700 homes, flipped more than 100 properties and owns 36 rental properties in various cities. “The competition from well-paid professionals in these industries makes it a tough market for average buyers.”
Redfin labels the market as “very competitive” — and if you don’t have the cash to survive intense bidding contests, your competition probably does.
According to the Henley report, Boston is one of the 30 wealthiest cities on earth, just behind Osaka, Japan, and just ahead of Vancouver, Canada. Beantown increased its millionaire population by 55% over the last decade, and today, 42,900 of them live in Boston, where you’ll also find 107 centi-millionaires and eight billionaires. The average Boston home now costs more than $750,000.
Washington, D.C.
In America’s seat of power, you have to pay to play.
“The capital city’s strong job market, particularly in government and associated sectors, attracts many high-income professionals,” said Wall. “Neighborhoods like Georgetown and Capitol Hill are particularly competitive.”
The Henley report ranks cities based only on the number of millionaires who live in them, so naturally, highly populated urban centers like New York rise to the top. Washington, D.C., however, has a population of less than 690,000, which doesn’t even put it in the top 20 cities in terms of population — yet the District is home to 28,300 millionaires, 88 centi-millionaires and 12 billionaires.
The average home in the capital now costs nearly $622,000.
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