Seattle is attracting more of the uber-rich class who are looking to spread and store their wealth, a new report by U.K.-based wealth consultancy Henley & Partners suggests.
The firm’s 2023 World’s Wealthiest Cities report ranked Seattle sixth and 23rd across the U.S. and the world, respectively. Seattle is No. 7 in the country for residents worth at least $100 million, known as centi-millionaires.
Between 2012 and 2022, the number of “high net-worth individuals” in Seattle exploded by 68%. The city boasts about 50,500 HNWIs, or people with over $1 million in investable wealth.
“Being able to relocate yourself, your family, or your business to a more favorable city or have the option to choose between multiple different residences across the world is an increasingly important aspect of international wealth and legacy planning for private clients,” Juerg Steffen, CEO of Henley & Partners, said in a statement.
New York City earned the title of the wealthiest city in the world, with 340,000 HNWIs. Meanwhile, Austin, Texas, saw a 102% rise since 2012, second behind only to Hangzhou, China, in the world for HNWIs growth, according to the report.
Seattle's 10 billionaires are accompanied by 121 centi-millionaires, the report said.
“The centi-millionaire is someone so affluent that they don’t need to think about how much they spend,” Steffen said. “In fact, the level of wealth they have achieved means they are unlikely to ever worry about money again.”
