In 2014, the 50 states and the District of Columbia comprised 120,163,305 households, of which 6,265,668 households had investable assets of $1 million or more, a ratio of 5.2%, according to a new report by Phoenix Marketing International.
The report, which ranked millionaires per capita by state, showed that the top 10 states remained the same from the 2013 ranking, with slight shifts among them.
The big news in the report, released in late January, came in the middle of the ranking. North Dakota, strengthened by the oil boom, continued its meteoric rise, moving up to No. 20 from No. 29 in 2013 and No. 43 in 2012.
Also impressive was the rise of its neighbor to the south. In 2014, South Dakota jumped to No. 26 from No. 38 the year before.
"The amazing rise of North Dakota in the millionaires rankings clearly demonstrates the power of an industry to quickly create wealth," David Thompson, managing director of the Phoenix Global Wealth Monitor, said in a statement. (Though with the sharp decline in oil prices in 2014 and early 2015 might affect the number of the Dakotas' millionaire ranks.)
"However, the states that are consistently in the top 10 have much more diversified economies or are smaller states that are geographically centered near wealth-generating metropolitan areas such as DC, New York or Boston."
For these reasons, Thompson said, North Dakota will be challenged to maintain its rise in the rankings once the oil boom subsides.
At the other end of the spectrum, Mississippi remained stuck in last place, while Idaho replaced Arkansas for the penultimate bottom spot.
Texas, which recorded the largest number of households with $1 million or more in investable assets, dropped five places in the rankings to No. 27, with a ratio of millionaire households to total households in the state of 5%, compared with 7.7% for the number one state.
Following are the top 10 states, ranked by ratio of millionaires to total households:
10. District of Columbia
Total households: 292,398
$1 million+ investable assets: 18,267
Ratio of millionaires to total households: 6.25%
2013 ranking: Same
9: Delaware
Total households: 353,887
$1 million+ investable assets: 22,905
Ratio of millionaires to total households: 6.47%
2013 ranking: Same
8. New Hampshire
Total households: 525,490
$1 million+ investable assets: 34,921
Ratio of millionaires to total households: 6.65%
2013 ranking: Same
7. Massachusetts
Total households: 2,612,989
$1 million+ investable assets: 174,114
Ratio of millionaires to total households: 6.66%
2013 ranking: Sixth
