Best Places12138, NY Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood inside ZIP code 12138, scored on 40 measures of daily life and ranked to fit what matters to you. This page is for people who live here or already know they want to. To work out which city fits you best, start with the best places to live tool.
12138 ranks 10,510th of 33,110 U.S. zip codes on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on tree cover by a wide margin, and walkability ranks lowest.
The best neighborhoods in 12138
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.
12138's strengths and weaknesses
Where 12138 ranks high
- Tree shadeBetter than 98% of zip codes
- Crime safetyBetter than 93% of zip codes
- School gradeA, better than 91% of zip codes
- Air qualityBetter than 90% of zip codes
- Heat safetyBetter than 88% of zip codes
Where 12138 ranks low
- WalkabilityBetter than only 5% of zip codes
- Low property taxBetter than only 8% of zip codes
- BikingBetter than only 10% of zip codes
- Cheap childcare$1,317 a month, better than only 14% of zip codes
- Cheap car insuranceBetter than only 16% of zip codes
What it costs to buy a home in 12138
A household needs to earn about $59,000 a year to comfortably buy the median 12138 home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That is below the area's own median income of $87,495, 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 12138's effective rate of 1.67%, 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 12138
12138 runs older than the country, and households here run smaller than average.
Residents by age
Racial and ethnic makeup has its own map. See the race and diversity map for 12138.
Who works in 12138, and how
Work in 12138 centers on manufacturing and health care & social. Unemployment is low, and the job base is shrinking.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 86%
- Work from home 9%
- Transit, walk, or bike 4%
Life in 12138
12138 has more restaurants and bars per resident than 99% of zip codes. That concentrates in some parts of 12138 and thins out in others, which the map shows.
What the weather is like in 12138, month by month
12138 sees roughly 66 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 85 degrees. January highs sit near 36, with lows near 18. The comfortable stretch runs May through September.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 36° | 26° | 18° |
| April | 60° | 47° | 35° |
| July | 85° | 71° | 59° |
| October | 65° | 52° | 41° |
Flying in and out of 12138
The nearest airport, Albany International, is about 22 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is Bradley International, about 66 miles away.
The best schools in and around 12138
Schools across 12138 average an A, better than 91% of zip codes.
Top elementary schools
- Poestenkill Elementary SchoolA+ · 78% proficient
- Tamarac Elementary SchoolA · 63% proficient
- Hoosick Falls Elementary SchoolA · 63% proficient
Top high schools
- Hoosick Falls High SchoolA+ · 91% proficient
- Berlin Middle School/high SchoolA− · 63% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every 12138 school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
12138 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 12138 against the other 33,109 zip codes.
Common questions about living in 12138
Is 12138 a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, 12138 ranks 10,510th of 33,110 zip codes. It scores highest on tree cover, low crime, and good schools, and lowest on walkability and property taxes. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is 12138 expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $201,780. The overall cost of living runs about 7% below the national average. Set against a $87,495 median income, cost of living beats 68% of zip codes.
Is 12138 safe?
Yes, 12138 is safer than 93% of zip codes. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $173 per resident a year.
Compare 12138 with other zip codes
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to 12138. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in 12138 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.
12138 detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for 12138: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in 12138: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of 12138: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in 12138: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
12138 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.