Best PlacesNorth Western, NY Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood in and around North Western, 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.
North Western ranks 9,340th of 50,333 U.S. towns on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on low crime by a wide margin, and biking ranks lowest.
The best neighborhoods in North Western
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.
North Western's strengths and weaknesses
Where North Western ranks high
- Crime safetyBetter than 94% of towns
- QuietBetter than 93% of towns
- Air qualityBetter than 92% of towns
- Disaster safetyBetter than 90% of towns
- School gradeB+, better than 88% of towns
Where North Western ranks low
- BikingBetter than only 3% of towns
- Low property taxBetter than only 7% of towns
- Cell coverageBetter than only 11% of towns
- Cheap car insuranceBetter than only 14% of towns
- Low income/sales/gas taxBetter than only 15% of towns
What it costs to buy a home in North Western
A household needs to earn about $42,000 a year to comfortably buy the median North Western home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That is below the area's own median income of $86,500, 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 North Western's effective rate of 1.68%, 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 7 years, then pulls ahead as rent keeps rising and the mortgage builds equity. The chart tracks the running cost of each.
Who lives in North Western
North Western runs older than the country, though fewer residents are over 65 than the national share.
Residents by age
Racial and ethnic makeup has its own map. See the race and diversity map for North Western.
Who works in North Western, and how
Work in North Western centers on retail trade and health care & social. Unemployment is close to the national rate.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 95%
- Work from home 4%
- Transit, walk, or bike 1%
Life in North Western
The map and measures below break down dining, culture, and green space by neighborhood across North Western.
What the weather is like in North Western, month by month
North Western sees roughly 65 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 85 degrees. January highs sit near 34, with lows near 15. The comfortable stretch runs May through September.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 34° | 24° | 15° |
| April | 59° | 45° | 33° |
| July | 85° | 72° | 60° |
| October | 65° | 52° | 41° |
Flying in and out of North Western
The nearest airport, Syracuse Hancock International, is about 41 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is Bradley International, about 168 miles away.
The best schools in and around North Western
Schools across North Western average a B+, better than 88% of towns.
Top elementary schools
- Boonville Elementary SchoolA− · 60% proficient
- Holland Patent Elementary SchoolA− · 56% proficient
- Stokes Elementary SchoolB · 48% proficient
Top middle schools
- Holland Patent Middle SchoolB · 45% proficient
- Adirondack Middle SchoolB− · 40% proficient
Top high schools
- Holland Patent Central High SchoolA+ · 94% proficient
- Adirondack High SchoolA+ · 94% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every North Western school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
North Western 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 North Western against the other 50,332 towns.
Common questions about living in North Western
Is North Western a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, North Western ranks 9,340th of 50,333 towns. It scores highest on low crime, quiet, and clean air, and lowest on biking and property taxes. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is North Western expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $143,200. The overall cost of living runs about 12% below the national average. Set against a $86,500 median income, cost of living beats 77% of towns.
Is North Western safe?
Yes, North Western is safer than 94% of towns. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $163 per resident a year.
Compare North Western with other towns
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to North Western. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in North Western 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.
North Western detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for North Western: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in North Western: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of North Western: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in North Western: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
North Western 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.