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Place dossier plate
SheetNJ-ESSEX-FELLS-NJ · Essex Fells, NJ 2,320 pop · income 99th pct
Instrument codes from this place’s ACS population and household income, BEA state COL, FBI safety, national income percentile, photo-finish peer city, home-value band, and matched Census-tract book - not a moving recommendation.
Income neighbourhood around Essex Fells
Lowest/highest poles plus peers nearest Essex Fells on median household income. Full ladder: /browse and /rankings.
median HH income
Frazier Park · lowest
40,839
Frazier Park · lowest
40,839 median HH income
16.3% of the leader · rank #1
Essex Fells · this city
250,001
Essex Fells · this city
250,001 median HH income
100.0% of the leader · rank #2
Castle Hill · highest
250,001
Castle Hill · highest
250,001 median HH income
100.0% of the leader · rank #3
Alamo · near
250,001
Alamo · near
250,001 median HH income
100.0% of the leader · rank #4
Atherton · near
250,001
Atherton · near
250,001 median HH income
100.0% of the leader · rank #5
Bell Canyon · near
250,001
Bell Canyon · near
250,001 median HH income
100.0% of the leader · rank #6
Belvedere · near
250,001
Belvedere · near
250,001 median HH income
100.0% of the leader · rank #7
What this shows Neighbourhood peers only - not a full nationwide city board. Open a near peer when the gap is small; open the poles when the spread is wide.
Compare beyond this state
Nationwide peers by population, income, and FBI crime rate
Out-of-state nearest neighbors for Essex Fells on ACS population and median household income
, plus FBI UCR reporting rate when the extract covers this place. Link sets are deduped so each column is a distinct comparison path, not a forecast that peers share a labor market or climate.
Similar population
Nearest out-of-state cities by ACS population. This city: 2,320.
Agency-reported UCR totals per 100,000 population, not a neighborhood safety grade or a prediction of personal risk.
Essex Fells - the verdict
Measured against every US city with at least 1,000 residents, Essex Fells lands in the 99th percentile for household income and the 52nd percentile for safety. Source: Census ACS + FBI UCR.
99th
percentile, household income
97th
percentile, home value
94th
percentile, median rent
52nd
percentile, safety
📝 How we sourced this
Population, income, and housing-cost figures come from the U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey 5-year estimates (B-series tables). Crime data uses FBI UCR; climate uses NOAA Climate Normals; school counts come from NCES Common Core of Data; permits use the Census Building Permits Survey (BPS). See our methodology page for the full ETL pipeline and OMB / FIPS join keys.
Data Snapshot: Essex Fells, NJ
New Jersey's Essex Fells is a small town, with 2,320 residents per the latest Census Bureau ACS figures. Essex Fells sits on the ACS median-income top-code of $250,000+, a bound shared with other high-income places rather than a precise dollar amount, with a poverty rate of 0.3%. Home values in Essex Fells run a median of $976,300, and the median resident age is 43.8 years. 81.5% of adults here have a bachelor's degree or higher; 61.8% of working-age residents are in the labor force.
The Census Building Permit Survey recorded 7 residential units authorized here in 2024 (Slowing), down 12% from five years earlier. Essex Fells reports a comparatively low crime rate: FBI UCR reporting places total crime at 1296.3 incidents per 100,000 residents, below the national average (voluntary agency reporting, reflects reporting activity, not a definitive danger score).
New Jersey carries a cost-of-living premium: BEA Regional Price Parities 2024 puts New Jersey at 108.8 on a 100-equals-national-average scale (Well Above Average). A typical two-bedroom carries a HUD Fair Market Rent of $2,132 per month statewide. EIA 2023 residential energy data puts New Jersey's average monthly utility costs around $275 (state average). FEMA's National Risk Index rates natural-hazard exposure at 90.8 out of 100 (Very High).
A decision-led reading path
Useful questions to ask of Essex Fells's data
How this reading path is ordered
This is not a composite city score. It is a city-specific route through the available public records, ordered for this profile so the page starts with questions the joined data can actually answer. The route here runs from schools and households to population change to work and mobility to comparison shortlist to housing and income to reported crime; another city can have a different sequence or fewer supported layers because the source joins are not uniform.
For Essex Fells, city-specific coverage includes commute-mode shares, FBI reported-crime rates, local building permits, matched public-school count, annual population history.
No matched row is reported here for within-city Census tract profiles; the page leaves those layers out instead of substituting a statewide or national value.
Question 1
What does the education layer cover for Essex Fells?
The NCES join finds 1 public school within the city match. 81.5% of adults age 25+ hold a bachelor's degree or higher in the ACS estimate. These measures answer different questions: the school count describes local institutions, while adult attainment describes residents and cannot be used as a school-quality rating.
The matched institution count is small, so district boundaries and schools outside the city line may matter more than the municipal count suggests. Use the number as a coverage cue, then verify attendance zones with the district before making a household decision.
Is Essex Fells growing, shrinking, or holding steady?
The recent population line is broadly flat. That makes the composition of change more important than the headline count: housing turnover, household size, and age structure can shift even when the total barely moves.
Census PEP estimates show the population grew by +15 residents from 2020 to 2025, a +0.7% change. Separately, Census BPS recorded 7 housing units authorized in 2024. PEP and ACS are different Census series, so the trend is kept separate from the headline ACS population.
What does the journey to work look like in Essex Fells?
Mode share answers how workers usually travel; it does not measure congestion, reliability, distance to a particular job, or the quality of transit service. Remote work has a visible role in the local pattern. That can reduce commute exposure for some workers, but it says nothing about job availability or broadband quality; read it alongside income and housing rather than as a stand-alone lifestyle score.
Driving alone is the largest reported mode at 57.1%. A reliable mean commute time is not available for this row, so the mode shares carry the comparison.
Which cities make useful reference points for Essex Fells?
Within New Jersey, the closest population matches are Helmetta (2,317 residents, $104,143 income); Monroe Manor (2,308 residents, $160,833 income); Macopin (2,305 residents, $127,824 income). Outside the state, the closest population matches in this dataset are Dudley, NC (2,320 residents); Dunkirk, MD (2,319 residents); Frazier Park, CA (2,322 residents). A third, income-matched reference set of 6 out-of-state cities sits in the income neighbourhood chart near the Place Dossier plate. These are mechanical peer sets, not claims that the places share a labor market, climate, culture, or metro context.
Use the in-state set to hold state policy and broad price conditions more nearly constant. Use the nationwide size set to ask whether cities with a similar resident count produce different housing, income, or commute outcomes. The income set is a third lens, deliberately separate from population matching. The nationwide peer panel below adds a fourth FBI UCR reporting-rate lens, not personal risk.
These joined records add useful context, but they do not need another full-size panel. Each remains a separate measure with its own geography and source boundary.
Housing and income
How far does income reach against housing in Essex Fells?
The home-value-to-income reference sits in a middle range: the ACS median home value is 3.9 times median household income. The ACS poverty estimate is 0.3%, which keeps the citywide median from describing every household.
This is a citywide price-to-income reference, not a mortgage-affordability test; it does not include interest rates, taxes, insurance, household size, or an individual buyer's down payment. Income and home value move within the same broad scale here. The useful next check is not a generic affordability label, but whether similar-size cities offer a materially different income, housing, or commute trade-off.
Household income
$250,000+
Home value
$976,300
Value / income
3.9×
City-level Census ACS 2023 medians. The ratio divides two separate medians and is descriptive only.
What can the FBI record say about safety in Essex Fells?
Treat this as a reporting-rate comparison, not a prediction of personal risk or a neighborhood-level safety grade. Tourism, daytime population, reporting practices, and variation inside the city are not adjusted away. The state rank and same-state peer table are the narrower comparisons available on this page.
The joined FBI UCR record reports 1296.3 violent and property crimes per 100,000 residents, below the 2280.5 national reference used here. The difference is 43% lower in arithmetic terms, but agency participation is voluntary and reporting completeness varies.
Property rate
1296.3
Violent rate
0.0
Total reported rate
1296.3
FBI Uniform Crime Reporting, incidents per 100,000. Voluntary agency reporting; not a danger score.
Top-coded income · poverty 0.3% (Very low poverty)
Cost of Living Index (state)
108.8 (US=100)
High cost · BEA RPP 2024, New Jersey average
Note: Census ACS censors the tails of median household income ($250,000+ / under $2,500) and median home value ($2,000,000+ / under $10,000).
Essex Fells's income is shown as $250,000+ - a bound shared with other high-income places, not an exact annual figure.
A-
City profile score · Essex Fells, NJ
81/100
5 published dimensions · ACS/FBI 2023
Comparative score against U.S. cities with population of 1,000 or more on Census ACS medians
(income, poverty, bachelor's share, cost of living) and FBI UCR violent-crime rates when
published. Higher means a stronger standing on those published figures, not a livability
rating, not a recommendation to move, buy, or pick a "best" city. Missing inputs drop out
and redistribute weight.
How it is calculated.
Household income A+
$250,000+
Median household income vs U.S. cities (pop ≥1,000); ACS.
Bachelor's+ share A+
81.5%
Adults with a bachelor's degree or higher; ACS.
Poverty rate A+
0.3%
Share of residents below the poverty line; lower scores better on this axis.
Violent crime A+
0 /100k
FBI UCR violent offenses per 100,000 residents; lower is stronger on this axis.
Cost of living F
108.8 index
BEA state Regional Price Parities index (100 ≈ national average); lower is stronger on this axis. Same value for every city in the state.
Essex Fells profile (scored ACS/FBI dimensions)Read the chart values
Household income: 100/100 (A+) · $250,000+
Bachelor's+ share: 100/100 (A+) · 81.5%
Poverty rate: 98/100 (A+) · 0.3%
Violent crime: 97/100 (A+) · 0 /100k
Cost of living: 10/100 (F) · 108.8 index
Where Essex Fells sits on home value vs crime among peer cities
Essex Fells's median home value and FBI crime rate plotted with similar-size and
same-state peers (padded with large cities when the peer set is thin). The second
read: pricey does not always mean safer, check which quadrant this city lands in.
Census ACS median home value vs FBI UCR crime rate - Essex Fells highlighted among 23 peers.Read the chart values
Essex Fells, NJ (this city): home $976,300, crime 1,296/100k
Helmetta, NJ : home $321,400, crime 362/100k
Gibbsboro, NJ : home $278,200, crime 1,487/100k
New York, NY : home $751,700, crime 3,039/100k
Los Angeles, CA : home $879,500, crime 2,212/100k
Chicago, IL : home $315,200, crime 4,012/100k
Houston, TX : home $253,400, crime 5,442/100k
Phoenix, AZ : home $381,900, crime 3,125/100k
Philadelphia, PA : home $232,400, crime 5,457/100k
San Antonio, TX : home $219,700, crime 5,218/100k
San Diego, CA : home $848,500, crime 2,082/100k
Dallas, TX : home $295,300, crime 4,010/100k
San Jose, CA : home $1,187,800, crime 3,195/100k
Austin, TX : home $512,700, crime 3,709/100k
Fort Worth, TX : home $277,300, crime 3,158/100k
Columbus, OH : home $234,500, crime 3,088/100k
Indianapolis, IN : home $207,000, crime 4,214/100k
San Francisco, CA : home $1,380,500, crime 4,526/100k
Seattle, WA : home $912,100, crime 5,783/100k
Denver, CO : home $586,700, crime 5,755/100k
Oklahoma City, OK : home $215,100, crime 3,570/100k
El Paso, TX : home $171,700, crime 1,772/100k
Washington, DC : home $724,600, crime 4,514/100k
How does Essex Fells compare to other US cities?
Where Essex Fells sits among all US cities (population 1,000+) on each measure, computed live from Census and FBI data.
Household income99% higher than other cities
Home value97% pricier than other cities
Median rent94% pricier than other cities
Safety52% safer than other cities
"Safer than" reflects total crime rate from FBI UCR; the others use Census ACS estimates.
A national percentile can hide a lot of local variation: narrowed to New Jersey alone, Essex Fells ranks #146 of 238 New Jersey cities by lowest crime rate - a different, more locally useful comparison than stacking it against the entire country.
How we calculate these percentiles & ranks
Each percentile compares Essex Fells against every qualifying US city; each in-state rank narrows that to New Jersey only. Full formula and direction notes: methodology.
New Jersey-relative analysis
Median Gross Rent places Essex Fells near the bottom of New Jersey's cities
Among the 686 New Jersey cities PlainCities tracks with reported median gross rent data, Essex Fells ranks #1 - the 0th percentile within the state. This is a different, narrower cut than the nationwide percentiles above: it compares Essex Fells only against its own state's cities, not the full US field.
Median Household Income
#1 of 659
98th percentile in New Jersey
Median Gross Rent
#1 of 686
0th percentile in New Jersey
Median Home Value
#31 of 672
95th percentile in New Jersey
Poverty Rate
#538 of 680
21st percentile in New Jersey
Bachelor's Degree or Higher
#16 of 686
98th percentile in New Jersey
How in-state ranks are ordered
Ranked by raw value (highest first); a higher rank is not automatically "better" for every measure, see each metric's own context above. This is a comparison within New Jersey only, not a livability score. See the methodology for the source and calculation.
Gauge source note
99th percentile nationally for median household income · 52nd percentile for safety (lower crime rate). Source: Census ACS 2023 / FBI UCR 2023.
Essex Fells's profile vs. every US city
Income, affordability, and safety percentile
Essex Fells's percentile rank on 3 favorable-direction measures (income, affordability, safety) vs. every tracked US city -- higher on every axis is more favorable. Not a composite quality score, just the arithmetic mean of the axes shown.
How Essex Fells's home value compares nationally
Median home value vs. every US city (population 1,000+)
$976,3003rd percentilemore affordable than 3% of 15,600 US cities
Show national distribution
Each bar is a $25K-wide band; taller bars hold more US cities. The dashed line + filled bar mark this entry. Hover or tap any bar for its full count, share, and where it sits relative to this entry.
Source U.S. Census Bureau ACS 5-Year Estimates · 2023
Essex Fells's home-value-to-income ratio: 3.9×
ACS median home value divided by median household income.
Band
moderate
3.0–5.0×
National rank
#10,411 of 15,516
More affordable than 33% of tracked cities (pop. 1,000+)
Size class
#8,175 of 11,323
Micro cities (under 10,000)
At 3.9×, Essex Fells sits in the moderate band:
national rank #10,411 of 15,516 and #8,175 of 11,323micro cities (under 10,000).
Income and home value move in the same broad scale; check same-state peers before treating the multiple as an advantage or a warning.
How this ratio is calculated
Ratio = Census ACS 2023 median home value ÷ median household income for cities with both fields and population ≥ 1,000.
Rank 1 = lowest ratio (most compact). Bands match the fleet affordability thresholds used on guides (<3.0 / 3.0–5.0 / >5.0).
This is not a mortgage payment estimate and does not include rates, taxes, insurance, or down payment.
Income distribution context
$250,000+Essex Fells, NJ median household income (Census ACS)
Show U.S. national quintile / Lorenz context Essex Fells, NJ median household income (Census ACS 5-year) with U.S. national quintile shares for context. Diagonal = equality; the curve is national, not computed for Essex Fells, NJ.
Key socioeconomic indicators
Bachelor's degree or higher (adults 25+)81.5%
Census ACS S1501, educational attainment
Poverty rate (households below FPL)0.3%
Census ACS S1701, poverty status
Labor force participation (adults 16+)61.8%
Census ACS S2301, share of working-age residents in the labor force
Population
2,320
Median Income
$250,000+
Median Home Value
$976,300
Median Age
43.8
Poverty Rate
0.3%
Labor force participation
61.8%
Bachelor's Degree+
81.5%
Safety & Crime
Total Crime Rate
1296.3
per 100,000 residents
Violent Crime
0.0
per 100,000 residents
Property Crime
1296.3
per 100,000 residents
Crime reporting caveat
Reflects incidents reported to the FBI's Uniform Crime Reporting program — agency participation is voluntary and reporting completeness varies by jurisdiction and year, so this reflects reporting activity, not a definitive danger score. Not adjusted for tourism, commuter, or daytime population.
Schools
Total Schools
1
Public schools in this city
Population Change
PEP vintage
Annual U.S. Census Bureau Population Estimates Program (PEP) estimates, 2020–2025
Essex Fells's Census PEP population estimates, 2020–2025.Read the chart as text
Period
Population
2020
2,220 residents
2021
2,187 residents
2022
2,177 residents
2023
2,192 residents
2024
2,237 residents
2025
2,235 residents
Housing Supply
BPS source
Census Bureau Building Permits Survey (BPS) - annual residential permits authorized
🏗️ Slowing
Total Permits (2024)
7
housing units authorized
Single-Family
7
detached homes
Multifamily
0
apartments & condos
Supply Intensity
3
permits per 1,000 residents
5-Year Permit Trend (2019–2024)
Year
Total
Single-Family
Multifamily
Est. Value
2019
8
8
0
$1.7M
2020
8
8
0
$1.5M
2021
9
9
0
$1.9M
2022
7
7
0
$1.8M
2023
7
7
0
$3.1M
2024
7
7
0
$2.8M
Permit volume decreased 12% from 2019 to 2024.
Commute Patterns
Commute source
How workers travel to work, Census ACS 2023
Drive Alone
57.1%
Carpool
0.7%
Public Transit
7.7%
Walk
1.2%
Work from Home
32.5%
Other
0.8%
Based on 1,008 workers 16 and over.
Monthly Utility Costs
New Jersey statewide monthly utility average (EIA 2023): $275
EIA 2023 residential energy data puts average monthly utilities across New Jersey at $275 (electricity about $120 , water and sewer about $60 ).
These are New Jersey statewide averages, not a meter reading for Essex Fells. Actual bills vary by home size, usage, and local rates. Source: U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) 2023.
Living Costs & Risk
New Jersey's BEA cost-of-living index is 108.8 (Well Above Average; US average = 100, RPP 2024). HUD Fair Market Rent for a typical two-bedroom in the county around Essex Fells is $2,132/mo. FEMA's National Risk Index, averaged to New Jersey statewide on PlainCities, rates natural-hazard exposure at 90.8 / 100 (Very High).
Cost/risk geography note
Cost of living is a New Jersey statewide BEA average; rent is a county-level HUD Fair Market Rent for the county Essex Fells sits in; the FEMA hazard score shown here is a statewide average of county NRI inputs, not a parcel-level reading.
How Essex Fells compares to similar-size New Jersey cities
Same-state peer method
Closest same-state population matches, not geographic neighbors. Population + median household income come from Census Bureau ACS 5-year B01001 and B19013.
Source: U.S. Census Bureau ACS 5-Year 2023, FBI UCR, NCES CCD, Census BPS 2024, Census ACS B08301/B08136, U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) 2023, BEA Regional Price Parities 2024, HUD Fair Market Rents 2026, FEMA National Risk Index.