More Millionaires in Florida than in New York

Put this in the should have known there was a housing bubble folder; the WSJ Reports:

According to new wealth stats released by the I.R.S. Florida had 199,000 residents with a net worth of $1.5 million or more as of 2004 (their latest period). That topped New York’s count of 168,000, though it still trailed way behind leader California, which boasted 428,000–more than a fifth of the nation’s total.

A little digging into the numbers, however, reveals a troubling trend for the nation’s top millionaire states. Much of the growth came from real estate, which is included in the IRS calculation. About 40% of the net worth of California’s million-and-a-halfers was in real estate in 2004. Florida’s was slightly more than 20%, and New York’s was slightly less than 20%.

But you can bet that with the real-estate slide, California’s and Florida’s million-and-a-halfers will be hit especially hard. And maybe, just maybe, New York will regain its No. 2 spot.