Report: Nevada’s wealthiest tend to be older, married

A new analysis of Nevada's wealthiest finds that upper-crust households are diverse, but tend to be older, married and homeowners.

The report, commissioned by Nevada State Bank and released last week by economics consulting firm Applied Analysis, explored the 76,200 households in Nevada with an estimated net worth of $1 million or more.

"High net worth households are not a well-defined set," report authors wrote. "They do not all live in one particular area, nor do they look alike, act alike, or spend alike."

Nevada has a slightly lower proportion of high net worth households than the country overall. About 7.4 percent of Nevada households fall in the category, while that rate is 7.6 percent nationwide.

The median household net worth in the state is just under $82,000.

The largest share of wealthy household members is between 55 and 64 years old, "with wage earnings achieving their highest income potential later in life and before asset depletion during retirement," the report said. More than 33 percent of all households worth more than $1 million fall in that age range.

Most of the wealthy - about 68 percent of households - are married couples. That's much higher than the general population, where 45 percent of households include a married couple.

The report also found the wealthy overwhelmingly live in homes they own.

"While Nevada has transformed from a predominantly owner-occupied to a predominantly renter-occupied state during the past two years, 85.2 percent of high net worth households live in homes they own," the report said.

The study is the first in a series of reports on high net worth households. Nevada State Bank officials said future reports will explore changes in home equity in wealthy neighborhoods.