Median income dropped last year in Dallas-Fort Worth
Add Axios as your preferred source to
see more of our stories on Google.
Median income in Dallas-Fort Worth dropped nearly 1% between 2019 and 2022, per new U.S. Census Bureau data.
The big picture: Nationally, the median income dropped 1.6%, adjusted for inflation.
- Median income in Texas dropped 2.35%.
Driving the news: The Census 2022 American Community Survey, released Thursday, details population changes and household incomes.
State of play: Wage increases in the past two years haven't kept up with inflation.
By the numbers: D-FW median income was $82,823 last year, compared with $83,537 in 2019, adjusted for inflation.
- The statewide median income in 2022 fell to $72,284 from $74,022 in 2019.
- Yes, but: The share of Dallas-area residents making more than $100,000 increased from about 35% in 2019 to nearly 42% last year.
The intrigue: The COVID-19 pandemic shifted the geography of income, with many high-earning Americans moving from major metros to the exurbs or rural areas.
Zoom in: That was true locally, with income moving out of Dallas County and more income moving into the suburbs.
- Dallas County lost about 10,000 households filing tax returns — to Collin, Denton and Tarrant counties — between 2020 and 2021, per IRS data analysis by Cullum Clark, the director of the Bush Institute-SMU Economic Growth Initiative.
- Plus, the households leaving Dallas County for Collin County had higher incomes than those moving from Collin to Dallas.
Meanwhile: Denton County added 5,000 tax-filing households from the other three major North Texas counties between 2020 and 2021, more than Collin County did. That move added $765 million in total taxable income to Denton.
Go deeper: Where America stands