Best Places12548, NY Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood inside ZIP code 12548, 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.
12548 ranks 7,505th of 33,110 U.S. zip codes on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on big-city access by a wide margin, and property taxes are the weak spot.
The best neighborhoods in 12548
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.
12548's strengths and weaknesses
Where 12548 ranks high
- Big-city accessBetter than 91% of zip codes
- School gradeB+, better than 89% of zip codes
- Air qualityBetter than 88% of zip codes
- Crime safetyBetter than 88% of zip codes
- Household income$109,089 median, better than 85% of zip codes
Where 12548 ranks low
- Low property taxBetter than only 5% of zip codes
- Cheap car insuranceBetter than only 10% of zip codes
- QuietBetter than only 14% of zip codes
- Cheap childcare$1,308 a month, better than only 15% of zip codes
- State infrastructureBetter than only 18% of zip codes
What it costs to buy a home in 12548
A household needs to earn about $64,000 a year to comfortably buy the median 12548 home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That is below the area's own median income of $109,089, 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 12548's effective rate of 1.88%, 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 5 years, then pulls ahead as rent keeps rising and the mortgage builds equity. The chart tracks the running cost of each.
Who lives in 12548
12548'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 12548.
Who works in 12548, and how
Work in 12548 centers on education and manufacturing. Unemployment is low, and the job base is shrinking.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 90%
- Work from home 7%
- Transit, walk, or bike 4%
Life in 12548
The map and measures below break down dining, culture, and green space by neighborhood across 12548.
What the weather is like in 12548, month by month
12548 sees roughly 75 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 85 degrees. January highs sit near 37, with lows near 23. The comfortable stretch runs May through October.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 37° | 30° | 23° |
| April | 60° | 50° | 41° |
| July | 85° | 75° | 66° |
| October | 65° | 55° | 47° |
Flying in and out of 12548
The nearest airport, New York Stewart International, is about 11 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is Laguardia, about 62 miles away.
The best schools in and around 12548
Schools across 12548 average a B+, better than 89% of zip codes.
Top elementary schools
- Lenape Elementary SchoolA · 63% proficient
- Marlboro Elementary SchoolB+ · 54% proficient
- Plattekill Elementary SchoolB− · 40% proficient
Top middle schools
- New Paltz Middle SchoolA− · 55% proficient
- Marlboro Middle SchoolB+ · 51% proficient
- John G Borden Middle SchoolB · 45% proficient
Top high schools
- New Paltz Senior High SchoolA+ · 97% proficient
- Wallkill Senior High SchoolA+ · 95% proficient
- Marlboro Central High SchoolA+ · 94% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every 12548 school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
12548 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 12548 against the other 33,109 zip codes.
Common questions about living in 12548
Is 12548 a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, 12548 ranks 7,505th of 33,110 zip codes. It scores highest on big-city access, good schools, and clean air, and lowest on property taxes and car insurance costs. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is 12548 expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $213,274. The overall cost of living runs about 5% above the national average. Set against a $109,089 median income, cost of living beats 79% of zip codes.
Is 12548 safe?
Yes, 12548 is safer than 88% of zip codes. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $197 per resident a year.
Compare 12548 with other zip codes
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to 12548. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in 12548 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.
12548 detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for 12548: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in 12548: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of 12548: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in 12548: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
12548 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.