Nearly half of SF families are financially insecure, despite high median income

According to a report from nonprofit the Urban Institute, nearly half of San Francisco families are financially insecure. According to a report from nonprofit the Urban Institute, nearly half of San Francisco families are financially insecure. Photo: Christian Heeb/Getty Images/AWL Images RM Photo: Christian Heeb/Getty Images/AWL Images RM Image 1 of / 14 Caption Close Nearly half of SF families are financially insecure, despite high median income 1 / 14 Back to Gallery

Despite the median household income in San Francisco County being $112,376, more than half of all San Francisco families do not have at least $2,000 in savings, according to a report released by the nonprofit Urban Institute Wednesday.

That means 47% are financially insecure, leaving them at higher risk of eviction and unpaid bills. Financially insecure households are 14 times more likely to be evicted — which can lead to homelessness — and three times more likely to miss a housing or utility payment, according to the Urban Institute.

Basically, the cost of living in San Francisco is so high that even making $37,099 more than the statewide average income (according to the 2018 census) isn't enough to keep you from struggling.

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The organization’s estimates were based on 2014 census data and put into a predictive model for 10 different U.S. cities, including Los Angeles, New York City and Chicago. San Francisco was the only Bay Area city included in the study. To compare, 61% of both Los Angeles and New York families were found to be financially insecure, despite the fact that the median income of both cities is substantially lower than that of San Francisco's.

However, San Francisco fared better with a different measure of financial health: credit scores. Only 13% of San Franciscans have subprime credit scores, which signify the estimated risk of delinquency on a debt or line of credit. This is below the national average of 28%.

Madeline Wells is an SFGATE digital reporter. Email: madeline.wells@sfgate.com | Twitter: @madwells22