Facebook Made This California County the Best Paid in The Entire US

2.11K

Sam Biddle

07/03/13 10:39AM

Filed to: facebook

San Mateo County holds a population of over 700,000. More importantly, it holds the headquarters of Facebook. According to new government figures, the county earns more than anywhere else in America—$168,000 per year on average. Facebook employees have singlehandedly skewed the whole area.

The Wall Street Journal's Scott Thurm crunched new federal Bureau of Labor Statistics numbers from Q4 2012 and noticed a perfect matchup between a 107% increase in San Mateo County's weekly wages and Facebook's IPO. Even though the stock has been a turd so far, plenty of the social network's staff was able to cash in. Enough to elevate San Mateo far above Manhattan, which averages out at second place with a measly $110,000, and Santa Clara County, at $99,000 (yuck).

Thurm explains:

The county’s wage surge was included in a detailed report on employment and wages for each of the nation’s more than 3,000 counties, based on reports filed by employers. Within San Mateo County, the industry that most stands out is “computer systems design services.”
Facebook employees also exercised roughly 51 million stock options in the fourth quarter, which might have added $1 billion to the “wage” total.

The notion of a wealthiest county "on average" should do a terrific job of masking the vast majority of Californians (and Americans) who've seen zero benefit from these tech money mushroom clouds.

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1

HairySquid Sam Biddle 07/03/13 03:37PM

as someone who is sorta broke and lives in SMC (san bruno, near SFO), and works in santa clara, this is upsetting. I could be classified as middle class and make about a quarter of the AVERAGE income for my area? fffffuuuuuuu

1

SiliconValleyTwin HairySquid 07/04/13 02:55AM

Yep. Agreed! I live in RWC and work in Santa Clara Valley. It breaks my heart what I pay for rent in a year could pay off a nice size house in the Midwest in three to four years. :( I will never own a house in here.

SiliconValleyTwin HairySquid 07/04/13 02:55AM

Yep. Agreed! I live in RWC and work in Santa Clara Valley. It breaks my heart what I pay for rent in a year could pay off a nice size house in the Midwest in three to four years. :( I will never own a house in here.

NoOneManShouldEatAllTheseCronuts Sam Biddle 07/03/13 01:41PM

Increased revenues to state and local governments is "zero benefit" now?

2

Bgadud NoOneManShouldEatAllTheseCronuts 07/03/13 06:02PM

Correct. I'm a teacher living in SMC and make around 50k. I can barely afford my tiny 1BD apartment in a sketchy neighborhood. The only change I have seen is a new crop of entitled parents who expect the teachers to act as their servants.

Bgadud NoOneManShouldEatAllTheseCronuts 07/03/13 06:08PM

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Chosun_World Bgadud 07/04/13 10:20PM

Move to texas, our government might be a little retarded but you pay no state income tax, wages are the same, but costs are extremely low. An "efficiency" apt in a upper-middle class neighborhood runs to 650.

ihateskinnyjeans Sam Biddle 07/05/13 01:38AM

The problem is people love the area...I know people say I could buy a house for quarter of that in Midwest... Problem.. It's in the Midwest..the Midwest sucks.. Tornados, shitty weather, not industry..flat.. So as long as California continues to be awesome.. Rich people.. Including the Chinese will continue to snap up all housing making it non affordable for all

joewatchestv Sam Biddle 07/15/13 11:10AM

It took me clicking away to another source to realize what Sam means here is that the people of the county are the best paid nationally. Not the county itself but the residents thereof.