Where are the top 5 best places to live in the NYC area?
Residential homes in Great Neck, New York, U.S., on Friday, April 16, 2021. Across the U.S., house hunters are fighting for scraps in a market picked clean of listings during the key spring homebuying season. Photographer: Johnny Milano/Bloomberg via
If you're looking for a place to raise a family in the New York City area, a new report says that Long Island is by far your best choice.
According to a new report by Niche.com, a stunning 14 of the best 25 places to live in the NYC metropolitan area can be found in Nassau County, along with all 5 of the top 5 spots.
Great Neck Gardens was given the #1 spot, which earned A+'s for public schools and being good for families, along with an A for its nightlife.
Great Neck Plaza, which is also located in Nassau County, came in second, while Herricks and Syosset took third and fourth place, respectively. Kensington, another Nassau County hamlet, was ranked fifth and was rated as the best place to raise a family in New York by Niche. Syosset was rated the second-best place to raise a family in the state.
RIDGEWOOD, NEW JERSEY - OCTOBER 9: People enjoy during picking pumpkins at the Wardâs Farm in Ridgewood of New Jersey, United States on October 9, 2021. (Photo by Tayfun Coskun/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images)
If Long Island's not quite your cup of tea, New Jersey also saw representation in the top 10, with Ho-Ho-Kus finishing 6th and earning the rank of the Garden State's best suburb.
Ridgewood, in Bergen County finished #9, receiving A+ marks for its public schools and being a good place for families.
Of all of New York City's five boroughs, only Manhattan made the list, finishing 14th, receiving A+ grades for diversity, nightlife, and being family-friendly, but only a B+ for public schools. Housing received a C- grade, which is not surprising considering the sky-high cost of living in the city.
The neighborhoods of Chelsea and Morningside Heights also made the list, finishing 21st and 24th, respectively.