Moving to
Ocean Acres.

All Ocean Acres data Compare Ocean Acres

19,204people live here $121,924median household income▲ 51% above US $2,241median rent per month▲ 59% above US $402,500median home value▲ 21% above US

Ocean Acres 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 Ocean Acres

Ocean Acres is an unincorporated community in New Jersey with household incomes running above the national average, air quality that stays clean most of the year, a growing population, 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. Ocean Acres deals with rent well above the national average, commute times longer than most cities, a rent burden that leaves many renters stretched thin, and fewer dining and entertainment options than a bigger city.

The good

Higher-than-average incomes
Clean air
Growing population
Low student-teacher ratio

The not so good

Rent well above the national average
Above-average commute times
High rent burden for renters
Smaller place — fewer dining and entertainment options
Car-dependent — few commuters use transit

How Ocean Acres compares

Median household income

Ocean Acres$121,924

New Jersey avg$103,556

US$80,734

Median rent (per month)

Ocean Acres$2,241

New Jersey avg$1,720

US$1,413

Median home value

Ocean Acres$402,500

New Jersey avg$454,400

US$332,700

What it takes to move to Ocean Acres

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

To rent

$4,482

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

Income to keep rent under 30%: $89,640 a year
67% of Ocean Acres renters spend 30% or more of their income on rent

To buy

$80,500

a 20% down payment on the median home

With 10% down: $40,250
Homes cost 3.3× the typical local household income (US: 4.1×)

Moving costs, closing costs and taxes not included.

The details

Cost of living▲ 59% above US

$2,241/mo median rent

Rent is expensive here, at $2,241 a month median and well above the national average. This is the kind of city where housing costs deserve serious budgeting before committing to a move. Home prices run above average, with a median around $402,500. Buyers should expect to stretch their budget here.

Median home value $402,500 · 67% 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

80 violent crimes per 100k, whole jurisdiction

Ocean Acres doesn't have its own police department, so there's no crime rate for it alone. The figures shown are for the Stafford 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 646/100k · Policed by Stafford Township Police Department (township-wide rate) · 2025 data

Getting around▲ 25% above US

33 min average commute

Traffic is a real factor here. The 32.6 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. 9 in 10 workers drive to work; 11% work from home.

How workers get to work

Drive alone

78%

Work from home

11%

Carpool

8.9%

Walk

1.4%

Other

1.0%

Climate

Summers are warm, with highs around 81°F, and winters are cold, with lows around 29°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 4.0 out of 5 by Medicare. Hospitals in neighboring towns aren't counted here.

Medicare-certified hospitals

Education & workforceNear US average

36% bachelor's degree or higher

Education levels run about average, with 36% 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

1 public school inside the boundary

There is 1 public school inside the boundary. The student-to-teacher ratio is 14:1, 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 (23 miles away). There are 8 national parks and sites within a day's drive.

Bottom line

Ocean Acres's strongest points are household incomes running above the national average and air quality that stays clean most of the year; the main tradeoffs are rent well above the national average and commute times longer than most cities. A year of median rent ($2,241/mo) equals 22% of the median household income here, about the same as the 21% typical nationwide. It may be a harder fit for renters on a tight budget and people who dread long commutes.

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