Best Places08731, NJ Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood inside ZIP code 08731, scored on 40 measures of daily life and ranked to fit what matters to you. The coast is close, and the measures below put a number on how close. To work out which city fits you best, start with the best places to live tool.
08731 ranks 11,797th of 33,110 U.S. zip codes on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on low crime by a wide margin, and state finances rank lowest.
The best neighborhoods in 08731
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.
08731's strengths and weaknesses
Where 08731 ranks high
- Crime safetyBetter than 96% of zip codes
- Big-city accessBetter than 93% of zip codes
- Household income$101,441 median, better than 81% of zip codes
- Health outlookBetter than 81% of zip codes
- TransitBetter than 80% of zip codes
Where 08731 ranks low
- State fiscal healthBetter than only 1% of zip codes
- Nice weatherabout 51 pleasant days a year, better than only 1% of zip codes
- Cheap childcare$1,478 a month, better than only 7% of zip codes
- Housing crash safetyBetter than only 10% of zip codes
- Low property taxBetter than only 12% of zip codes
What it costs to buy a home in 08731
A household needs to earn about $121,000 a year to comfortably buy the median 08731 home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That runs well above the area's median income of $101,441, so buying stretches a typical household.
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 08731's effective rate of 1.54%, 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 10 years, then pulls ahead as rent keeps rising and the mortgage builds equity. The chart tracks the running cost of each.
Who lives in 08731
08731 runs older than the country.
Residents by age
Racial and ethnic makeup has its own map. See the race and diversity map for 08731.
Who works in 08731, and how
Work in 08731 centers on health care & social and retail trade. Unemployment sits above the national rate, and jobs are growing.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 83%
- Work from home 14%
- Transit, walk, or bike 3%
Life in 08731
08731 has more restaurants and bars per resident than 66% of zip codes and more parkland per resident than 73% of zip codes. The coast is about 20 minutes away. Dining, parks, and nightlife concentrates in some parts of 08731 and thins out in others, which the map shows.
What the weather is like in 08731, month by month
08731 sees roughly 51 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 90 degrees. January highs sit near 43, with lows near 22. The comfortable stretch runs May, June, and August through October.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 43° | 32° | 22° |
| April | 65° | 51° | 39° |
| July | 90° | 77° | 65° |
| October | 71° | 58° | 46° |
Flying in and out of 08731
The nearest airport, Atlantic City International, is about 34 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is Philadelphia International, about 55 miles away.
The best schools in and around 08731
Schools across 08731 average a C−, better than 27% of zip codes.
Top elementary schools
- Cedar Creek Elementary SchoolC · 35% proficient
- Lanoka Harbor Elementary SchoolC · 35% proficient
- Forked River Elementary SchoolC− · 28% proficient
Top middle schools
- Mill Pond Elementary SchoolD+ · 26% proficient
- Lacey Township Middle SchoolD+ · 25% proficient
- Central Regional Middle SchoolD+ · 25% proficient
Top high schools
- Lacey Township High SchoolC · 32% proficient
- Manchester Township High SchoolD+ · 24% proficient
- Central Regional High SchoolD · 23% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every 08731 school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
08731 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 08731 against the other 33,109 zip codes.
Who 08731 suits
Families
Schools land around the 27th percentile and crime safety beats 96%.
Remote workers
Internet is fast and widely advertised and 14% already work from home.
Common questions about living in 08731
Is 08731 a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, 08731 ranks 11,797th of 33,110 zip codes. It scores highest on low crime, big-city access, and high incomes, and lowest on state finances and the weather. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is 08731 expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $420,717. The overall cost of living runs about 11% above the national average. Set against a $101,441 median income, cost of living beats 64% of zip codes.
Is 08731 safe?
Yes, 08731 is safer than 96% of zip codes. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $108 per resident a year.
What is the weather like in 08731?
July highs average about 90 degrees, and January highs near 43 with lows near 22. That works out to about 51 pleasant days a year, more than 1% of zip codes.
Is 08731 good for families?
Schools beat 27% of zip codes, crime safety beats 96%, and childcare runs $1,478 a month.
Compare 08731 with other zip codes
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to 08731. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in 08731 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.
08731 detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for 08731: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in 08731: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of 08731: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in 08731: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
08731 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.