Best Places12965, NY Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood inside ZIP code 12965, 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.
12965 ranks 20,090th of 33,110 U.S. zip codes on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on quiet by a wide margin, and empty homes are the weak spot.
The best neighborhoods in 12965
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.
12965's strengths and weaknesses
Where 12965 ranks high
- QuietBetter than 92% of zip codes
- Local economyBetter than 89% of zip codes
- Disaster safetyBetter than 85% of zip codes
- School gradeA−, better than 84% of zip codes
- Air qualityBetter than 82% of zip codes
Where 12965 ranks low
- Low vacancyBetter than only 8% of zip codes
- Big-city accessBetter than only 17% of zip codes
- State infrastructureBetter than only 18% of zip codes
- Low income/sales/gas taxBetter than only 18% of zip codes
- Low property taxBetter than only 18% of zip codes
What it costs to buy a home in 12965
A household needs to earn about $30,000 a year to comfortably buy the median 12965 home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That is below the area's own median income of $61,245, 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 12965's effective rate of 1.34%, 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 4 years, then pulls ahead as rent keeps rising and the mortgage builds equity. The chart tracks the running cost of each.
Who lives in 12965
12965'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 12965.
Who works in 12965, and how
Work in 12965 centers on education and construction. Unemployment is low, and jobs are growing.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 83%
- Work from home 15%
- Transit, walk, or bike 2%
Life in 12965
The map and measures below break down dining, culture, and green space by neighborhood across 12965.
What the weather is like in 12965, month by month
12965 sees roughly 68 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 84 degrees. January highs sit near 29, with lows near 10. The comfortable stretch runs May through September.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 29° | 20° | 10° |
| April | 56° | 44° | 32° |
| July | 84° | 71° | 58° |
| October | 63° | 50° | 38° |
Flying in and out of 12965
The nearest airport, Massena International-Richards Field, is about 18 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is Bradley International, about 216 miles away.
The best schools in and around 12965
Schools across 12965 average an A−, better than 84% of zip codes.
Top elementary schools
- Saint Lawrence Elementary SchoolA · 65% proficient
- Parishville-hopkinton Elementary SchoolA · 63% proficient
Top middle schools
- St Lawrence Middle SchoolC · 35% proficient
Top high schools
- Saint Lawrence High SchoolA+ · 95% proficient
- Parishville-hopkinton Junior-senior High SchoolA− · 60% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every 12965 school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
12965 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 12965 against the other 33,109 zip codes.
Common questions about living in 12965
Is 12965 a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, 12965 ranks 20,090th of 33,110 zip codes. It scores highest on quiet, a strong job market, and low disaster risk, and lowest on empty homes and distance from a big city. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is 12965 expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $106,035. The overall cost of living runs about 4% below the national average. Set against a $61,245 median income, cost of living beats 18% of zip codes.
Is 12965 safe?
Yes, 12965 is safer than 68% of zip codes. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $263 per resident a year.
Compare 12965 with other zip codes
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to 12965. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in 12965 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.
12965 detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for 12965: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in 12965: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of 12965: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in 12965: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
12965 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.