Best PlacesClay Arsenal, Hartford, CT Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood in and around Clay Arsenal, Hartford, scored on 40 measures of daily life and ranked to fit what matters to you. The coast is close, and the measures below put a number on how close. To work out which city fits you best, start with the best places to live tool.
Clay Arsenal, Hartford ranks 5,332nd of 5,983 U.S. neighborhoods on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on civic engagement by a wide margin, and an overheated housing market is the weak spot.
The best neighborhoods in Clay Arsenal, Hartford
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.
Clay Arsenal, Hartford's strengths and weaknesses
Where Clay Arsenal, Hartford ranks high
- Voter turnoutBetter than 98% of neighborhoods
- WalkabilityBetter than 86% of neighborhoods
- TransitBetter than 83% of neighborhoods
- Internet speedBetter than 82% of neighborhoods
- Short commute20.0 minutes each way, better than 80% of neighborhoods
Where Clay Arsenal, Hartford ranks low
- Housing crash safetyBetter than only 1% of neighborhoods
- Local economyBetter than only 3% of neighborhoods
- Household income$29,788 median, better than only 5% of neighborhoods
- Cost of living vs incomeBetter than only 6% of neighborhoods
- Low property taxBetter than only 6% of neighborhoods
What it costs to buy a home in Clay Arsenal, Hartford
A household needs to earn about $66,000 a year to comfortably buy the median Clay Arsenal, Hartford home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That runs well above the area's median income of $29,788, so buying stretches a typical household.
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 Clay Arsenal, Hartford's effective rate of 1.86%, 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 8 years, then pulls ahead as rent keeps rising and the mortgage builds equity. The chart tracks the running cost of each.
Who lives in Clay Arsenal, Hartford
Clay Arsenal, Hartford runs younger than the country.
Residents by age
Racial and ethnic makeup has its own map. See the race and diversity map for Clay Arsenal, Hartford.
Who works in Clay Arsenal, Hartford, and how
Work in Clay Arsenal, Hartford centers on health care & social and retail trade. Unemployment runs well above the national rate, and the job base is shrinking.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 54%
- Work from home 8%
- Transit, walk, or bike 38%
Life in Clay Arsenal, Hartford
The coast is about 39 minutes away. Distance to the water changes a lot across Clay Arsenal, Hartford, which the map shows.
What the weather is like in Clay Arsenal, Hartford, month by month
Clay Arsenal, Hartford sees roughly 59 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 88 degrees. January highs sit near 42, with lows near 23. The comfortable stretch runs May, June, and August through October.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 42° | 32° | 23° |
| April | 63° | 51° | 39° |
| July | 88° | 77° | 66° |
| October | 69° | 56° | 45° |
Flying in and out of Clay Arsenal, Hartford
Bradley International sits about 11 miles away. It is a medium hub and boarded 3.3 million passengers in 2025, with 92 nonstop destinations.
The best schools in and around Clay Arsenal, Hartford
Schools across Clay Arsenal, Hartford average a D−, better than 6% of neighborhoods.
Top elementary schools
- Breakthrough Magnet School NorthD+ · 22% proficient
- Global Communications AcademyF · 10% proficient
- Wish Museum SchoolF · 8% proficient
Top middle schools
- Renzulli Gifted And Talented AcademyA · 63% proficient
- Milner Middle SchoolF · 9% proficient
Top high schools
- University High School Of Science And EngineeringC+ · 38% proficient
- Classical Magnet SchoolD · 19% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every Clay Arsenal, Hartford school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
Clay Arsenal, Hartford 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 Clay Arsenal, Hartford against the other 5,982 neighborhoods.
Common questions about living in Clay Arsenal, Hartford
Is Clay Arsenal, Hartford a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, Clay Arsenal, Hartford ranks 5,332nd of 5,983 neighborhoods. It scores highest on civic engagement, walkability, and transit, and lowest on an overheated housing market and a weak job market. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is Clay Arsenal, Hartford expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $219,679. The overall cost of living runs about 11% below the national average. Set against a $29,788 median income, cost of living beats 6% of neighborhoods.
Is Clay Arsenal, Hartford safe?
Clay Arsenal, Hartford is safer than 21% of neighborhoods. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $506 per resident a year.
Compare Clay Arsenal, Hartford with other neighborhoods
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to Clay Arsenal, Hartford. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in Clay Arsenal, Hartford 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.
Clay Arsenal, Hartford detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for Clay Arsenal, Hartford: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in Clay Arsenal, Hartford: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of Clay Arsenal, Hartford: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in Clay Arsenal, Hartford: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
Clay Arsenal, Hartford 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.