Support The Wire

Seattle residents’ thoughts on financial planning and wealth

 survey released by Charles Schwab asked Seattle area residents about financial planning, management, and wealth.

Overall, Seattle residents define wealth as having a lot of money (35 percent), having material items/being able to afford anything (32 percent), and enjoying their life (29 percent). Only 6 percent of people said happiness was part of their definition of wealth, and 5 percent said being healthy was part of wealth.

Seattle residents’ definitions of wealth also lean more toward intangibles. Not having to stress about money, having a healthy work/life balance, and spending time with family ranked higher than having more money than other people, having an important job title, or leaving an inheritance for family.

Seattleites also say it takes an average of $2.4 million in order to be considered wealthy where they live, an amount about 30 times larger than the net worth of the average American household.

When it comes to financial planning, 63 percent of Seattleites have a financial plan. But, less than half of Seattle residents have a household budget (41 percent), less than a third have an emergency fund that would cover three months of expenses (29 percent), and only 28 percent have a monthly savings goal.

To compare Seattle to other major cities, click here.


Your support matters.

Public service journalism is important today as ever. If you get something from our coverage, please consider making a donation to support our work. Thanks for reading our stuff.