Best Places19734, DE Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood inside ZIP code 19734, scored on 40 measures of daily life and ranked to fit what matters to you. Local pay runs high here, and housing takes the biggest bite out of it. To work out which city fits you best, start with the best places to live tool.
19734 ranks 5,071st of 33,110 U.S. zip codes on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on state infrastructure by a wide margin, and long commutes are the weak spot.
The best neighborhoods in 19734
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.
19734's strengths and weaknesses
Where 19734 ranks high
- State infrastructureBetter than 96% of zip codes
- Cost of living vs incomeBetter than 94% of zip codes
- Household income$135,079 median, better than 94% of zip codes
- Low vacancyBetter than 92% of zip codes
- Local economyBetter than 90% of zip codes
Where 19734 ranks low
- Short commute36.8 minutes each way, better than only 8% of zip codes
- Nice weatherabout 61 pleasant days a year, better than only 9% of zip codes
- Cheap car insuranceBetter than only 21% of zip codes
- Cheap childcare$1,109 a month, better than only 24% of zip codes
- Internet speedBetter than only 29% of zip codes
What it costs to buy a home in 19734
A household needs to earn about $116,000 a year to comfortably buy the median 19734 home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That is below the area's own median income of $135,079, 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 19734's effective rate of 0.62%, and insurance is estimated at 0.4% of home value a year.
Renting versus buying
At today's prices and rents, renting stays cheaper than buying across the first 10 years here, so the case for buying rests on staying much longer or on prices rising faster than assumed. The chart tracks the running cost of each.
Who lives in 19734
19734's age mix sits close to the national median, and households here run larger than average.
Residents by age
Racial and ethnic makeup has its own map. See the race and diversity map for 19734.
Who works in 19734, and how
Work in 19734 centers on health care & social and construction. Unemployment is low, and jobs are growing.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 78%
- Work from home 20%
- Transit, walk, or bike 2%
Life in 19734
The coast is about 15 minutes away. Distance to the water changes a lot across 19734, which the map shows.
What the weather is like in 19734, month by month
19734 sees roughly 61 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 90 degrees. January highs sit near 45, with lows near 26. The comfortable stretch runs April through June, September, and October.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 45° | 35° | 26° |
| April | 68° | 55° | 43° |
| July | 90° | 79° | 69° |
| October | 72° | 59° | 48° |
Flying in and out of 19734
The nearest airport, New Castle, is about 20 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is Philadelphia International, about 40 miles away.
The best schools in and around 19734
Schools across 19734 average a B−, better than 59% of zip codes.
Top elementary schools
- Townsend Elementary SchoolC · 34% proficient
- Old State Elementary SchoolC · 34% proficient
- Clayton Elementary SchoolC− · 30% proficient
Top middle schools
- Meredith (everett) Middle SchoolC− · 30% proficient
- Redding (louis L.) Middle SchoolC− · 29% proficient
- Clayton Intermediate SchoolC− · 29% proficient
Top high schools
- Appoquinimink High SchoolB+ · 54% proficient
- Middletown High SchoolB · 48% proficient
- Smyrna High SchoolC+ · 35% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every 19734 school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
19734 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 19734 against the other 33,109 zip codes.
Common questions about living in 19734
Is 19734 a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, 19734 ranks 5,071st of 33,110 zip codes. It scores highest on state infrastructure, what local pay buys, and high incomes, and lowest on long commutes and the weather. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is 19734 expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $456,991. The overall cost of living runs about 1% below the national average. Set against a $135,079 median income, cost of living beats 94% of zip codes.
Is 19734 safe?
19734 is safer than 44% of zip codes. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $300 per resident a year.
Compare 19734 with other zip codes
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to 19734. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in 19734 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.
19734 detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for 19734: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in 19734: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of 19734: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in 19734: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
19734 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.