Best Places08049, NJ Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood inside ZIP code 08049, scored on 40 measures of daily life and ranked to fit what matters to you. Several measures below read low, and the ranked lists name which ones. To work out which city fits you best, start with the best places to live tool.
08049 ranks 9,691st of 33,110 U.S. zip codes on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on few empty homes by a wide margin, and property taxes are the weak spot.
The best neighborhoods in 08049
BestNeighborhood is the only ranking that scores 40 measures of daily life neighborhood by neighborhood and lets you re-weight every one of them yourself.
08049's strengths and weaknesses
Where 08049 ranks high
- Low vacancyBetter than 98% of zip codes
- Cell coverageBetter than 97% of zip codes
- Big-city accessBetter than 95% of zip codes
- WalkabilityBetter than 93% of zip codes
- Health outlookBetter than 88% of zip codes
Where 08049 ranks low
- Low property taxBetter than only 1% of zip codes
- State fiscal healthBetter than only 1% of zip codes
- School gradeD+, better than only 10% of zip codes
- Cheap childcare$1,338 a month, better than only 12% of zip codes
- Nice weatherabout 66 pleasant days a year, better than only 17% of zip codes
What it costs to buy a home in 08049
A household needs to earn about $82,000 a year to comfortably buy the median 08049 home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That is below the area's own median income of $99,389, so a typical household can afford the median home outright.
Where the monthly payment goes
Assumes a 20% down payment, a 6.6% 30-year fixed rate, and a 28% share of income going to the payment. The rate is the 2026-07-23 30-year fixed average, series MORTGAGE30US from the St. Louis Fed, which publishes Freddie Mac's weekly survey. Against the median home value, property tax uses 08049's effective rate of 2.93%, and insurance is estimated at 0.4% of home value a year.
Renting versus buying
At today's prices, buying tends to cost more than renting for about the first 7 years, then pulls ahead as rent keeps rising and the mortgage builds equity. The chart tracks the running cost of each.
Who lives in 08049
08049's age mix sits close to the national median.
Residents by age
Racial and ethnic makeup has its own map. See the race and diversity map for 08049.
Who works in 08049, and how
Work in 08049 centers on health care & social and retail trade. Unemployment is close to the national rate, and the job base is shrinking.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 80%
- Work from home 14%
- Transit, walk, or bike 6%
Life in 08049
The map and measures below break down dining, culture, and green space by neighborhood across 08049.
What the weather is like in 08049, month by month
08049 sees roughly 66 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 91 degrees. January highs sit near 45, with lows near 27. The comfortable stretch runs April through June, September, and October.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 45° | 36° | 27° |
| April | 68° | 56° | 44° |
| July | 91° | 80° | 71° |
| October | 72° | 61° | 51° |
Flying in and out of 08049
Philadelphia International sits about 11 miles away. It is a large hub and boarded 14.8 million passengers in 2025, with 179 nonstop destinations.
The best schools in and around 08049
Schools across 08049 average a D+, better than 10% of zip codes.
Top elementary schools
- Chews Elementary SchoolD+ · 21% proficient
- MagnoliaD · 19% proficient
- Somerdale Park SchoolD · 18% proficient
Top high schools
- Sterling High SchoolC− · 26% proficient
- Triton Regional High SchoolD · 22% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every 08049 school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
08049 measure by measure
Cards are ordered by how much each measure matters to you, so the ones you weighted highest come first. Expand to see every measure. Percentages compare 08049 against the other 33,109 zip codes.
Common questions about living in 08049
Is 08049 a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, 08049 ranks 9,691st of 33,110 zip codes. It scores highest on few empty homes, cell coverage, and big-city access, and lowest on property taxes and state finances. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is 08049 expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $243,634. The overall cost of living runs about 4% below the national average. Set against a $99,389 median income, cost of living beats 81% of zip codes.
Is 08049 safe?
08049 is safer than 53% of zip codes. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $221 per resident a year.
Compare 08049 with other zip codes
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to 08049. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in 08049 represents the same real quantity as a 60 anywhere else, and the ranking is a weighted average of those absolutes. The map colors come from a national scale calibrated against a population weighted random sample of 5,000 neighborhoods. That absolute scoring is what no other places-to-live ranking does: it puts a single neighborhood, a town, a metro, and a state on one scale, so the same 40 measures answer both which metro to move to and which street inside it to buy on. Read the full methodology.
08049 detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for 08049: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in 08049: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of 08049: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in 08049: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
08049 detail on related sites:
- CrimeGrade: neighborhood crime rates behind the crime safety score.
- ISPreports.org: provider by provider internet availability and advertised speeds.
- CoverageWatch: the car insurance premiums behind the cheap car insurance score.
Federal and public data:
- U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey: income, home value, rent, vacancy, commute time and mode, educational attainment, home age, age structure, household type, industry, and race.
- NOAA Global Surface Summary of the Day: the daily station record behind the monthly temperatures and the pleasant-day count.
- FAA Passenger Boarding Data: airport size and annual passenger counts.
- Freddie Mac Primary Mortgage Market Survey: the 30-year fixed rate used in the cost-to-buy estimate.
- FBI Crime Data Explorer: reported offenses behind the tangible crime cost estimate.
- U.S. EPA Air Quality System: five year average air quality index.
- FEMA National Risk Index: expected annual loss from natural hazards.
- CDC PLACES: disease burden, preventable risk, and barriers to care.
- National Center for Education Statistics: school enrollment and assessment inputs behind the school grade.
- FCC National Broadband Map: internet and wireless availability.
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics: employment and job growth behind the local economy score.
- Religious activity uses a proprietary religious signal measurement.
Your priorities
Move a slider to say how much a measure matters. Zero turns it off.