Forestville is an unincorporated community in Prince George's County, MD. It has no city government: the county runs it, and the Census counts it as its own place.

What it's like to live in Forestville

Forestville is an unincorporated community in Maryland with air quality that stays clean most of the year, schools with class sizes near the national average, and public transit that many commuters actually use. Those factors carry real weight for anyone weighing where to move next.

The tradeoffs are worth naming plainly. Forestville deals with rent well above the national average, commute times longer than most cities, college degree attainment below the national average, and a population that has been shrinking.

The good

  • Clean air
  • Average class sizes
  • Public transit that many commuters use

The not so good

  • Rent well above the national average
  • Above-average commute times
  • Low college degree attainment
  • Shrinking population
  • High rent burden for renters
  • Cold winters

How Forestville compares

Median household income

Forestville$70,579
Maryland avg$103,678
US$80,734

Median rent (per month)

Forestville$1,719
Maryland avg$1,705
US$1,413

Median home value

Forestville$339,000
Maryland avg$419,900
US$332,700

What it takes to move to Forestville

Based on Forestville's median rent, home value and household income

To rent

$3,438

up front: first month plus a typical one-month deposit

  • Income to keep rent under 30%: $68,760 a year
  • 53% of Forestville renters spend 30% or more of their income on rent

To buy

$67,800

a 20% down payment on the median home

  • With 10% down: $33,900
  • Homes cost 4.8× the typical local household income (US: 4.1×)

Moving costs, closing costs and taxes not included.

The details

Cost of living▲ 22% above US

$1,719/mo median rent

Rent runs on the higher side, at $1,719 a month median. Whether that premium makes sense usually comes down to the local job market and what it pays. Home prices run above average, with a median around $339,000. Buyers should expect to stretch their budget here.

Median home value $339,000 · 53% of renters cost-burdened

Job market

4.4% county unemployment

Unemployment in Prince George's County is 4.4%, close to the national average of 4.3%. That's the county-wide rate; BLS doesn't measure a place this size on its own.

Prince George's County (county-wide)

Safety

265 violent crimes per 100k, whole jurisdiction

Forestville doesn't have its own police department, so there's no crime rate for it alone. The figures shown are for the Prince George's County Police Department jurisdiction as a whole, which runs close to the national average for violent crime and covers many communities. Individual neighborhoods can differ a lot from that overall rate.

Property crime 1919/100k · Policed by Prince George's County Police Department (county-wide rate) · 2025 data

Getting around▲ 35% above US

35 min average commute

Traffic is a real factor here. The 35 minute average means plenty of commuters are pushing 45 to 60 minutes on a bad day. Proximity to work matters more here than it might elsewhere. 6 in 10 workers drive to work; 11% take public transit; 19% work from home.

How workers get to work

Drive alone
57%
Work from home
19%
Public transit
11%
Carpool
7.2%
Walk
3.8%
Other
1.9%

Climate

Summers are warm, with highs around 86°F, and winters are cold, with lows around 26°F and snow a regular occurrence. Rainfall is regular throughout the year.

Average month

High °FLow °FPrecip (in)
10°30°50°70°90°5"Jan: 2.96" precipitationFeb: 2.66" precipitationMar: 3.92" precipitationApr: 3.38" precipitationMay: 4.11" precipitationJun: 4.20" precipitationJul: 4.22" precipitationAug: 4.12" precipitationSep: 4.51" precipitationOct: 4.13" precipitationNov: 3.25" precipitationDec: 3.55" precipitation25°JJan: high 44°F, low 25°FFFeb: high 47°F, low 26°FMMar: high 55°F, low 33°FAApr: high 67°F, low 44°FMMay: high 75°F, low 54°FJJun: high 84°F, low 63°F88°JJul: high 88°F, low 67°FAAug: high 86°F, low 65°FSSep: high 80°F, low 58°FOOct: high 69°F, low 46°FNNov: high 58°F, low 36°FDDec: high 48°F, low 29°F

30-year averages, 1991–2020

Education & workforce▼ 40% below US

22% bachelor's degree or higher

College degree attainment runs below average at 22%. That tends to reflect a more trade and working-class economy, which can be great or limiting depending on the industry.

Schools

3 public schools inside the boundary

There are 3 public schools inside the boundary. The student-to-teacher ratio is 17:1, close to the national average of 16:1.

Parks & recreation

The nearest national park or historic site is Fort Dupont Park (5 miles away). There are 8 national parks and sites within a day's drive.

Bottom line

Forestville's strongest points are air quality that stays clean most of the year and public transit that many commuters actually use; the main tradeoffs are rent well above the national average and commute times longer than most cities. A year of median rent ($1,719/mo) equals 29% of the median household income here, more than the 21% typical nationwide. It tends to suit remote workers (19% of workers here already work from home) and people who would rather not drive. It may be a harder fit for people who dread long commutes.

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