Laconia households earn less than state average, according to tax returns

LACONIA — One in three Granite Staters earns over $100,000, tax return data shows. But in the City of Laconia, that figure is 23%.

Aggregated federal tax return data from the U.S. Internal Revenue Service shows about 30.5% of New Hampshire residents in tax year 2022 recorded more than $100,000 in adjusted gross income. Without adjustment for inflation, that’s an increase from 18.4% in tax year 2013, 22.3% in tax year 2017, and 28.7% in tax year 2021. 

“While data are limited and not yet available beyond 2021, the reported incomes of the highest-income households, both in New Hampshire and nationally, have grown more substantially than incomes for individuals and families with moderate and low incomes,” wrote Phil Sletten, research director at New Hampshire Fiscal Policy Institute, in an analysis. 

The institute used the IRS data to create a heat map of high-earners by municipality across the state. You can view that map at nhfpi.org/blog/nearly-one-in-three-federal-income-tax-returns-from-new-hampshire-reported-100000-or-more-of-income.

The percentage of 2022 tax returns reporting over $100,000 ranges from 11% to 54%, depending on location. Municipalities in the southern portion of New Hampshire, particularly just over the border from Massachusetts, tend to have more high-income residents as compared to other areas of the state. 

Municipalities throughout the Lakes Region report large discrepancies, too. In Franklin, for example, just 14% of federal tax returns reported income of $100,000 or more. In Center Harbor, by contrast, nearly 40% of tax returns reported high income. Center Harbor tax returns were the richest in the Lakes Region at 39%, though Moultonborough, Gilford and Wolfeboro residents trailed closely behind, with Moultonborough at 36%, and both Gilford and Wolfeboro at 35%. 

There were just five municipalities statewide — Hanover, Hollis, Windham, Amherst and Bedford — where at least half of all tax returns reported incomes of at least $100,000.

Six communities — Franklin, Claremont, Benton, Berlin, Success and Stratford — had less than 15% of tax returns reporting income of at least $100,000. All of those communities, other than Franklin, are located outside of New Hampshire’s four southeastern counties.

It’s worth noting, however, that while a third of New Hampshire tax returns reported $100,000 or more in gross income, some of those were filed by individuals and some by couples filing jointly, and do not necessarily represent the same sort of financial challenges. Additionally, individuals with income below the standard deduction are not required to file federal income tax returns, so tax return data does not capture the entirety of the population.

The sources of income are also notable. For New Hampshire residents with more than $1 million in adjusted gross income in 2022, 27.9% of income came from salary or wages, and 43.5% came from capital gains. Those figures account for 71.1% of all reported capital gains income collected in New Hampshire that year, according to NHFPI.

Overall, about 65% of all reported income came from salaries and wages, 9.3% from taxable retirement arrangements, 10.3% from capital gains and 8.3% from business, partnership and closely held corporate income.

The burden on consumers increased significantly since 2013. According to NHFPI, the goods and services $100,000 could get you in 2013 cost over $130,000 in 2024. The cost of living for households with multiple children is estimated to be nearly $100,000, depending on factors like household composition, location or employment patterns. 

According to census data, the City of Laconia’s population was estimated to be 17,310 in 2024, an increase of 3.4% over the 2020 census year. Just over 24% of residents were 65 years old or older, 17.8% were under 18 years old, and 4.5% were under five years old. 

The median household income between 2019 and 2023 in Laconia was $68,427, and per-capita income over an individual’s most recent year of earning was $42,679. Just over 12% of residents were living at or below the federal poverty line.