Oakland is the eighth largest city in California and serves as the county seat of Alameda County. Located in Northern California, Oakland occupies the San Francisco Bay Area, which is the sixth most populous metropolitan area in the United States. In the entire United States, Oakland is the 44th largest city.
According to the census in 2000, Oakland’s population was 399,484, but a 2008 estimate places Oakland’s population at around 420,183. One of the most ethnically diverse cities in the United States, Oakland has a racial makeup of 35.66% African American, 23.52% White, 0.66% Native American, 15.23% Asian American, 0.50% Pacific Islander, 11.66% from other races, 4.98% from two or more races, and 21.19% Hispanic. Residents speak over 150 different languages in Oakland. Oakland has the third highest concentration, behind San Francisco and Seattle, of gays and lesbians among the 50 largest United States cities. One in every 41 couples in Oakland were a same-sex female partnership.
The median income for a household in Oakland is $40,055, and the median income for a family is $44,384. Oakland’s per capita income is $21,433. In Oakland, 16.2% of families and 19.4% of the population live below the poverty line. Oakland’s current unemployment rate is 8.4%.
A major West Coast port, Oakland is home to several major corporations, such as Kaiser Permanente, Clorox, Dreyer’s, and Cost Plus World Markets. Former major Brown’s “10k Plan” added large amounts of new multi-family housing and development, which stimulated the economy with an increase of both population and real estate prices.