Best PlacesChangewater, NJ Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood in and around Changewater, 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.
Changewater ranks 5,671st of 50,333 U.S. towns on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on big-city access by a wide margin, and state finances rank lowest.
The best neighborhoods in Changewater
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.
Changewater's strengths and weaknesses
Where Changewater ranks high
- Big-city accessBetter than 98% of towns
- Crime safetyBetter than 97% of towns
- Voter turnoutBetter than 96% of towns
- Low vacancyBetter than 96% of towns
- Household income$130,592 median, better than 95% of towns
Where Changewater ranks low
- State fiscal healthBetter than only 1% of towns
- Low property taxBetter than only 1% of towns
- Short commute39.7 minutes each way, better than only 6% of towns
- Cheap childcare$1,385 a month, better than only 6% of towns
- Nice weatherabout 61 pleasant days a year, better than only 9% of towns
What it costs to buy a home in Changewater
A household needs to earn about $145,000 a year to comfortably buy the median Changewater home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That is only a little above the area's median income of $130,592; the gap is small, which keeps homes within reach of local pay.
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 Changewater's effective rate of 2.33%, and insurance is estimated at 0.4% of home value a year.
Who lives in Changewater
Changewater runs older than the country.
Residents by age
Racial and ethnic makeup has its own map. See the race and diversity map for Changewater.
Who works in Changewater, and how
Work in Changewater centers on health care & social and admin & support services. Unemployment is close to the national rate, and the job base is shrinking.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 84%
- Work from home 12%
- Transit, walk, or bike 4%
Life in Changewater
The map and measures below break down dining, culture, and green space by neighborhood across Changewater.
What the weather is like in Changewater, month by month
Changewater sees roughly 61 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 90 degrees. January highs sit near 43, with lows near 22. The comfortable stretch runs May, June, and August through October.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 43° | 32° | 22° |
| April | 67° | 52° | 39° |
| July | 90° | 76° | 64° |
| October | 71° | 56° | 43° |
Flying in and out of Changewater
The nearest airport, Lehigh Valley International, is about 27 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is Newark Liberty International, about 40 miles away.
The best schools in and around Changewater
Schools across Changewater average a C+, better than 48% of towns.
Top elementary schools
- Valley View SchoolB− · 40% proficient
- Brass Castle SchoolC+ · 38% proficient
- Port Colden SchoolC · 35% proficient
Top middle schools
- Woodglen SchoolC+ · 38% proficient
Top high schools
- Voorhees High SchoolB− · 44% proficient
- Warren Hills Regional High SchoolC+ · 35% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every Changewater school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
Changewater 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 Changewater against the other 50,332 towns.
Common questions about living in Changewater
Is Changewater a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, Changewater ranks 5,671st of 50,333 towns. It scores highest on big-city access, low crime, and civic engagement, and lowest on state finances and property taxes. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is Changewater expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $457,863. The overall cost of living runs about 1% above the national average. Set against a $130,592 median income, cost of living beats 95% of towns.
Is Changewater safe?
Yes, Changewater is safer than 97% of towns. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $103 per resident a year.
Compare Changewater with other towns
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to Changewater. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in Changewater 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.
Changewater detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for Changewater: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in Changewater: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of Changewater: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in Changewater: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
Changewater 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.