Moving to
Lakewood.

All Lakewood data Compare Lakewood

69,585people live here $56,968median household income▼ 29% below US $1,718median rent per month▲ 22% above US $715,500median home value▲ 115% above US

Lakewood is an unincorporated community in Ocean 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 Lakewood

Lakewood is a large unincorporated community in New Jersey with crime rates well below the national average, commutes that run shorter than most cities, air quality that stays clean most of the year, 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. Lakewood deals with rent well above the national average, home prices well above the national average, household incomes below the national average, and a poverty rate above the national average.

The good

Low crime rates
Short commutes
Clean air
Low student-teacher ratio

The not so good

Rent well above the national average
High home prices
Below-average household incomes
High poverty rate
High rent burden for renters
Cold winters

How Lakewood compares

Median household income

Lakewood$56,968

New Jersey avg$103,556

US$80,734

Median rent (per month)

Lakewood$1,718

New Jersey avg$1,720

US$1,413

Median home value

Lakewood$715,500

New Jersey avg$454,400

US$332,700

What it takes to move to Lakewood

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

To rent

$3,436

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

Income to keep rent under 30%: $68,720 a year
71% of Lakewood renters spend 30% or more of their income on rent

To buy

$143,100

a 20% down payment on the median home

With 10% down: $71,550
Homes cost 12.6× the typical local household income (US: 4.1×)

Moving costs, closing costs and taxes not included.

The details

Cost of living▲ 22% above US

$1,718/mo median rent

Rent runs on the higher side, at $1,718 a month median. That premium adds up quickly for renters whose income hasn't kept pace with local prices. Home prices are steep, with a median around $715,500. Renting first to get a feel for the city before buying is often the more practical route.

Median home value $715,500 · 71% of renters cost-burdened

Job market

5.3% county unemployment

Unemployment in Ocean County is 5.3%, somewhat above the national average of 4.3%. Lining up work before the move is the safer route. That's the county-wide rate; BLS doesn't measure a place this size on its own.

Ocean County (county-wide)

Safety▼ 61% below US

129 violent crimes per 100k

Safety is genuinely one of the selling points here. Both violent and property crime run well below the national average, the kind of numbers that fade into the background after a week of living somewhere.

Property crime 482/100k · Lakewood Township Police Department · 2025 data

Getting around▼ 20% below US

21 min average commute

Commutes are reasonable, averaging 20.8 minutes. Nothing heroic, and there's still time left over for a life after work. 8 in 10 workers drive to work; 16% work from home.

How workers get to work

Drive alone

62%

Work from home

16%

Carpool

13%

Walk

5.6%

Public transit

1.6%

Other

1.4%

Climate

Summers are warm, with highs around 83°F, and winters are cold, with lows around 23°F and snow a regular occurrence. Rainfall is regular throughout the year.

Average month

High °FLow °FPrecip (in)

30-year averages, 1991–2020

Healthcare

1 hospital

There's one Medicare-certified hospital inside city limits, rated 3.0 out of 5 by Medicare. Hospitals in neighboring towns aren't counted here.

Medicare-certified hospitals

Education & workforce▼ 11% below US

32% bachelor's degree or higher

Education levels run about average, with 32% college-educated. It's a mix of white-collar and blue-collar work, which can be an asset or a limitation depending on the field.

Schools

5 public schools inside the boundary

There are 5 public schools inside the boundary and 22 private schools. 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 New Jersey Pinelands National Reserve (24 miles away). There are 8 national parks and sites within a day's drive.

Bottom line

Lakewood's strongest points are crime rates well below the national average and commutes that run shorter than most cities; the main tradeoffs are rent well above the national average and home prices well above the national average. A year of median rent ($1,718/mo) equals 36% of the median household income here, more than the 21% typical nationwide. It tends to suit anyone prioritizing low crime, remote workers (16% of workers here already work from home), and people who want short commutes.

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