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Data on this report is based on areas within the legal city boundary, outlined in black on the map. Any additional neighborhoods shown on the map are associated with the city by name and are included for reference only.

New York, NY
Real Estate & Demographic Data






New York profile


Living in New York



New York is a very large coastal borough (i.e. on the ocean, a bay, or inlet) located in the state of New York. With a population of 1,694,251 people and 310 constituent neighborhoods, New York is the third largest community in New York. Much of the housing stock in New York was built prior to World War II, making it one of the older and more historic boroughs in the country.

New York home prices are not only among the most expensive in New York, but New York real estate also consistently ranks among the most expensive in America.

Of important note, New York is also a borough of artists. New York has more artists, designers and people working in media than 90% of the communities in America. This concentration of artists helps shape New York’s character.

Also of interest is that New York has more people living here who work in computers and math than 95% of the places in the US.

A relatively large number of people in New York telecommute to their jobs. Overall, about 16.98% of the workforce works from home. While this may seem like a small number, as a fraction of the total workforce it ranks among the highest in the country. These workers are often telecommuters who work in knowledge-based, white-collar professions. For example, Silicon Valley has large numbers of people who telecommute. Other at-home workers may be self-employed people who operate small businesses out of their homes.

New York is one of the most attractive larger cities for people who are young, single, educated, and upwardly-mobile career starters. This makes it a good place to live for young singles in their 20s and 30s and who have undergraduate or graduate degrees and are starting their professional careers. Although New York is a large city, this demographic is significant enough that young professionals will find many others like themselves here, with really good opportunities for friendships, recreation, romance, and more.

New York is also nautical, which means that parts of it are somewhat historic and touch the ocean or tidal bodies of water, such as inlets and bays. Such areas are often places that visitors and locals go for waterfront activities or taking in the scenery.

One downside of living in New York is that it can take a long time to commute to work. In New York, the average commute to work is 33.07 minutes, which is quite a bit higher than the national average. On the other hand, local public transit is widely used in the borough, so leaving the car at home and taking transit is often a viable alternative. In addition, it is also a pedestrian-friendly borough. Many of New York’s neighborhoods are dense enough and have amenities close enough together that people find it feasible to get around on foot.

New York, like many big cities in America, has a public transportation system, but the citizens of New York are lucky because theirs is one of the most extensive and widely used. Many commuters choose to leave their cars at home and instead use the subway to get to and from work. In fact, for some people it is feasible to forgo car ownership entirely, avoiding the cost and headache of driving in heavy traffic. The benefits include reduced air pollution and load on the road network.

Do you have a 4-year college degree or graduate degree? If so, you may feel right at home in New York. 62.55% of adults here have a 4-year degree or graduate degree, whereas the national average for all cities and towns is just 21.84%.

The per capita income in New York in 2018 was $83,008, which is wealthy relative to New York and the nation. This equates to an annual income of $332,032 for a family of four. However, New York contains both very wealthy and poor people as well.

New York is an extremely ethnically-diverse borough. The people who call New York home describe themselves as belonging to a variety of racial and ethnic groups. The greatest number of New York residents report their race to be White, followed by Black or African-American. New York also has a sizeable Hispanic population (people of Hispanic origin can be of any race). People of Hispanic or Latino origin account for 25.65% of the borough’s residents. Important ancestries of people in New York include Irish, Italian, German, English, and Polish.

New York also has a high percentage of its population that was born in another country: 27.93%.

The most common language spoken in New York is English. Other important languages spoken here include Spanish and Chinese.