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Moving to
Shirley.
Shirley is an unincorporated community in Suffolk County, NY. 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 Shirley
Shirley is an unincorporated community in New York with county unemployment below the national average, household incomes running above the national average, 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. Shirley deals with rent well above the national average, home prices well above the national average, commute times longer than most cities, and college degree attainment below the national average.
The good
- Low unemployment in the county
- Higher-than-average incomes
- Low student-teacher ratio
The not so good
- Rent well above the national average
- High home prices
- Above-average commute times
- Low college degree attainment
- High rent burden for renters
- Cold winters
How Shirley compares
Median household income
Median rent (per month)
Median home value
What it takes to move to Shirley
Based on Shirley's median rent, home value and household income
To rent
$4,112
up front: first month plus a typical one-month deposit
- Income to keep rent under 30%: $82,240 a year
- 58% of Shirley renters spend 30% or more of their income on rent
To buy
$84,980
a 20% down payment on the median home
- With 10% down: $42,490
- Homes cost 3.8× the typical local household income (US: 4.1×)
Moving costs, closing costs and taxes not included.
The details
Cost of living▲ 46% above US
$2,056/mo median rent
Rent is expensive here, at $2,056 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 $424,900. Buyers should expect to stretch their budget here.
Median home value $424,900 · 58% of renters cost-burdened
Job market
3.5% county unemployment
Unemployment in Suffolk County is 3.5%, a little below the national average of 4.3%. That's the county-wide rate; BLS doesn't measure a place this size on its own.
Suffolk County (county-wide)
Safety
48 violent crimes per 100k, whole jurisdiction
Shirley doesn't have its own police department, so there's no crime rate for it alone. The figures shown are for the Suffolk County 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 567/100k · Policed by Suffolk County Police Department (county-wide rate) · 2023 data
Getting around▲ 28% above US
33 min average commute
Traffic is a real factor here. The 33.2 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; 7% work from home.
How workers get to work
Climate
Summers are warm, with highs around 80°F, and winters are cold, with lows around 26°F and snow a regular occurrence. Rainfall is regular throughout the year.
Average month
30-year averages, 1991–2020
Education & workforce▼ 48% below US
19% bachelor's degree or higher
This is a working-class city, and college degree rates reflect that. Trades, manufacturing, and service industries tend to dominate the local economy, which is a strength for some fields and a real constraint for others.
Schools
7 public schools inside the boundary
There are 7 public schools inside the boundary. The student-to-teacher ratio is 13:1, 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 Fire Island National Seashore (10 miles away). There are 8 national parks and sites within a day's drive.
Bottom line
Shirley's strongest points are county unemployment below the national average and household incomes running above the national average; the main tradeoffs are rent well above the national average and home prices well above the national average. A year of median rent ($2,056/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, people who dread long commutes, and anyone who doesn't drive.
Other places near Shirley
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