Moving to
Budd Lake.

All Budd Lake data Compare Budd Lake

10,650people live here $114,154median household income▲ 41% above US $1,402median rent per monthNear US average $456,100median home value▲ 37% above US

Budd Lake is an unincorporated community in Morris County, NJ. 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 Budd Lake

Budd Lake is an unincorporated community in New Jersey with household incomes running above the national average, a highly educated workforce, and schools with smaller class sizes than the national average. Those factors carry real weight for anyone weighing where to move next.

The tradeoffs are worth naming plainly. Budd Lake deals with home prices well above the national average, commute times longer than most cities, cold winters, and fewer dining and entertainment options than a bigger city.

The good

Higher-than-average incomes
Highly educated workforce
Low student-teacher ratio

The not so good

High home prices
Above-average commute times
Cold winters
Smaller place — fewer dining and entertainment options

How Budd Lake compares

Median household income

Budd Lake$114,154

New Jersey avg$103,556

US$80,734

Median rent (per month)

Budd Lake$1,402

New Jersey avg$1,720

US$1,413

Median home value

Budd Lake$456,100

New Jersey avg$454,400

US$332,700

What it takes to move to Budd Lake

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

To rent

$2,804

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

Income to keep rent under 30%: $56,080 a year
40% of Budd Lake renters spend 30% or more of their income on rent

To buy

$91,220

a 20% down payment on the median home

With 10% down: $45,610
Homes cost 4.0× the typical local household income (US: 4.1×)

Moving costs, closing costs and taxes not included.

The details

Cost of livingNear US average

$1,402/mo median rent

Rent is pretty middle of the road, at $1,402 a month median. Not a bargain, not a budget-buster. About typical for a city this size. Home prices run above average, with a median around $456,100. Buyers should expect to stretch their budget here.

Median home value $456,100 · 40% of renters cost-burdened

Job market

4.4% county unemployment

Unemployment in Morris 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.

Morris County (county-wide)

Safety

37 violent crimes per 100k, whole jurisdiction

Budd Lake doesn't have its own police department, so there's no crime rate for it alone. The figures shown are for the Mount Olive Township Police Department jurisdiction as a whole, which runs below the national average for violent crime and covers many communities. Individual neighborhoods can differ a lot from that overall rate.

Property crime 392/100k · Policed by Mount Olive Township Police Department (township-wide rate) · 2025 data

Getting around▲ 17% above US

30 min average commute

Traffic is a real factor here. The 30.4 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. 8 in 10 workers drive to work; 19% work from home.

How workers get to work

Drive alone

73%

Work from home

19%

Carpool

7.3%

Public transit

0.7%

Other

0.2%

Climate

Summers are warm, with highs around 81°F, and winters are cold, with lows around 21°F and snow a regular occurrence. Rainfall is regular throughout the year.

Average month

High °FLow °FPrecip (in)

30-year averages, 1991–2020

Education & workforce▲ 26% above US

45% bachelor's degree or higher

The population is well-educated, with 45% holding college degrees. That points to a strong professional base and generally a healthy local economy.

Schools

1 public school inside the boundary

There is 1 public school inside the boundary. The student-to-teacher ratio is 10:1, well below the national average of 16:1. Smaller class sizes are generally a positive sign for a district.

Parks & recreation

The nearest national park or historic site is Morristown National Historical Park (13 miles away). There are 8 national parks and sites within a day's drive.

Bottom line

Budd Lake's strongest points are household incomes running above the national average and a highly educated workforce; the main tradeoffs are home prices well above the national average and commute times longer than most cities. A year of median rent ($1,402/mo) equals 15% of the median household income here, less than the 21% typical nationwide. It tends to suit remote workers (19% of workers here already work from home) and college-educated professionals.

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