May 24--Naperville ranks as the wealthiest city in the Midwest and the 19th wealthiest city in the nation based on income, housing prices and credit availability, according to a report released Monday by financial website NerdWallet.
Naperville beat Carmel, Ind., and Arlington Heights for the top spot in the Midwest. Key factors in Naperville's calculation included:
Median household income: $104,419
Median home price: $364,300
Percent of homes with no mortgage: 23 percent
Average credit limit: $67,075
The wealthiest city nationwide was Palo Alto, Calif., with a median household income of $151,371 and a median home price of more than $2.5 million. There, 34 percent of homes have no mortgage, and the average credit limit is $71,696.
According to the study, Midwestern cities typically were more affordable, with the median home value in Naperville priced at less than half than that in Carlsbad, Calif. That city had the lowest median home value in the West's top 10 cities, according to the website.
However, Midwest salaries remained competitive with their coastal counterparts, according to the study.
Four other Chicago suburbs -- Arlington Heights, Bolingbrook, Evanston and Palatine -- also made the Midwest's top 10 list.
The results came from an analysis of 475 cities in the U.S. with at least 65,000 residents and included figures from the U.S. Census Bureau, Zillow Research and Experian credit bureau.
gbookwalter@tribpub.com
