Best Places12168, NY Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood inside ZIP code 12168, 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.
12168 ranks 7,385th of 33,110 U.S. zip codes on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on tree cover by a wide margin, and a weak job market ranks lowest.
The best neighborhoods in 12168
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.
12168's strengths and weaknesses
Where 12168 ranks high
- Tree shadeBetter than 98% of zip codes
- Heat safetyBetter than 94% of zip codes
- Crime safetyBetter than 90% of zip codes
- QuietBetter than 89% of zip codes
- School gradeA−, better than 88% of zip codes
Where 12168 ranks low
- Local economyBetter than only 4% of zip codes
- Low property taxBetter than only 6% of zip codes
- Cheap childcare$1,317 a month, better than only 14% of zip codes
- Cheap car insuranceBetter than only 15% of zip codes
- State infrastructureBetter than only 18% of zip codes
What it costs to buy a home in 12168
A household needs to earn about $60,000 a year to comfortably buy the median 12168 home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That is below the area's own median income of $90,773, 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 12168's effective rate of 1.81%, 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 6 years, then pulls ahead as rent keeps rising and the mortgage builds equity. The chart tracks the running cost of each.
Who lives in 12168
12168 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 12168.
Who works in 12168, and how
Work in 12168 centers on construction and other services. Unemployment runs well above the national rate, and jobs are growing.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 88%
- Work from home 5%
- Transit, walk, or bike 7%
Life in 12168
12168 has more restaurants and bars per resident than 99% of zip codes. That concentrates in some parts of 12168 and thins out in others, which the map shows.
What the weather is like in 12168, month by month
12168 sees roughly 72 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 83 degrees. January highs sit near 34, with lows near 16. The comfortable stretch runs May through September.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 34° | 25° | 16° |
| April | 58° | 45° | 34° |
| July | 83° | 71° | 59° |
| October | 63° | 51° | 40° |
Flying in and out of 12168
The nearest airport, Albany International, is about 25 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is Bradley International, about 56 miles away.
The best schools in and around 12168
Schools across 12168 average an A−, better than 88% of zip codes.
Top elementary schools
- Berlin Elementary SchoolA− · 58% proficient
- Walter B Howard Elementary SchoolB+ · 53% proficient
Top high schools
- New Lebanon Junior-senior High SchoolA · 73% proficient
- Berlin Middle School/high SchoolA− · 63% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every 12168 school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
12168 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 12168 against the other 33,109 zip codes.
Common questions about living in 12168
Is 12168 a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, 12168 ranks 7,385th of 33,110 zip codes. It scores highest on tree cover, heat safety, and low crime, and lowest on a weak job market and property taxes. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is 12168 expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $200,785. The overall cost of living runs about 6% below the national average. Set against a $90,773 median income, cost of living beats 77% of zip codes.
Is 12168 safe?
Yes, 12168 is safer than 90% of zip codes. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $188 per resident a year.
Compare 12168 with other zip codes
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to 12168. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in 12168 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.
12168 detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for 12168: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in 12168: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of 12168: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in 12168: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
12168 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.