There are many factors that go into the decision of where financial advisors should ply their trade.
Two years ago, ThinkAdvisor looked at the metropolitan areas in which advisors are paid the most. Now it's time to update the info with the latest data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
Along with the mean wages for each metro area, the BLS has included what it calls a Location Quotient, which is a measure of how prevalent a particular occupation is in a given area. Any area with a Location Quotient of greater than one has a higher incidence of advisors than average for the country. For example, a quotient of 0.50 indicates the share of the work force consisting of financial advisors is half the national average.
Here are the Top 10 Metro Areas With Highest Pay for Advisors: 2014.
10. Nashville-Davidson-Murfreesboro-Franklin, Tenn.
Annual Mean Wage: $130,950
Hourly Mean Wage: $62.96
Location Quotient: 0.60
The percentage of financial advisors in the work force of Music City is relatively small, but the wages they earned were enough to land Nashville 10th place on our list.
9. Hartford-West Hartford-East Hartford, Conn.
Annual Mean Wage: $134,350
Hourly Mean Wage: $64.59
Location Quotient: 0.93
The city that made its reputation as home to insurance companies is also home to a well-paid force of financial advisors. And as a percentage of the area's work force, the share of advisor jobs is nearly average.
8. Danbury, Conn.
Annual Mean Wage: $134,980
Hourly Mean Wage: $64.89
Location Quotient: 1.25
Not too far from New York City is this Nutmeg State city. It offers cheaper living and the ability to get into the city that never sleeps. Many residents even make the daily trek to Manhattan.
7. Asheville, N.C.
Annual Mean Wage: $135,260
Hourly Mean Wage: $65.03
Location Quotient: 0.54
Set in the mountains in the western part of the state, Asheville is known as a great place to retire. All those retirees have money that needs to be managed. Still, there are fewer financial advisors in the work force than might be expected.
6. Boston-Cambridge-Quincy, Mass.
Annual Mean Wage: $137,140
Hourly Mean Wage: $65.93
Location Quotient: 2.04
The heavily populated area is rife with financial advisors, thus the competition is stiff. But the pay is good, although it must be noted that the area is expensive to live in.
5. New York-White Plains-Wayne, N.Y.-N.J.
Annual Mean Wage: $137,150
Hourly Mean Wage: $65.94
Location Quotient: 3.08
New York has the among the highest Location Quotients on our list, but that's to be expected. The financial capital offers plenty of opportunity for financial advisors.
4. Eugene-Springfield, Ore.
Annual Mean Wage: $138,540
Hourly Mean Wage: $66.61
Location Quotient: 0.37
On the opposite coast from New York is the fourth-ranking metro area. The pay is good, the pace of life more relaxed and there's a low percentage of advisors. Maybe there's room for more.
3. Greenville, N.C.
Annual Mean Wage: $138,920
Hourly Mean Wage: $66.69
Location Quotient: 0.60
Another entry from the Tar Heel state, Greenville was cited by Forbes in 2010 as one of the top 25 midsize cities for business growth. Judging by the Location Quotient, it looks like there's even more growth opportunity.
2. Wilmington, N.C.
Annual Mean Wage: $141,150
Hourly Mean Wage: $67.86
Location Quotient: 0.52
Another entry from North Carolina that offers good pay and a more relaxed lifestyle than you'd likely enjoy in the big cities of the Northeast.
1. Bridgeport-Stamford, Conn.
Annual Mean Wage: $144,270
Hourly Mean Wage: $69.36
Location Quotient: 5.09
This area in Fairfield County is often seen as a suburb of New York City. Encompassing Greenwich, Darien and other well-heeled towns, this metro not only has the highest wages for advisors but the greatest concentration of them at more than 5 times the average.
—
Check out these related stories on ThinkAdvisor:
© Touchpoint Markets, All Rights Reserved. Request academic re-use from www.copyright.com. All other uses, submit a request to TMSalesOperations@arc-network.com. For more information visit Asset & Logo Licensing.