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GUEST: George Galster, Professor of Urban Studies at Wayne State University in Detroit, co-author of a study on the Decline of Middle-Income Neighborhoods in Metropolitan America

According to a new study, Greater Los Angeles is the most economically polarized metropolitan area in the United States. Based on 2000 census data, demographers at Wayne State University in Detroit found that more than two-thirds of Angelinos live in definitively rich or poor neighborhoods. Los Angeles is home to more billionaires than any other city in the United States. Meanwhile, only about 28 percent live in middle class or mixed income neighborhoods. According to the report published by the Brookings Institution, the disappearance of middle class neighborhoods is a national trend. Since 1970, the percentage of middle-class neighborhoods in the 100 largest metropolitan areas such as Chicago and Washington has dropped.

Read the entire study here.