Housing & affordability
18% of the score · 30/100
F
Median home value$459,500
New York $614,200
Median rent$1,622/mo
New York $1,830/mo
Cost-burdened households49%
New York 42%
Hempstead
Nassau County58,801 residents2 school districts
44
D
Suburbgrade score
52nd of 60 New York suburbs. Strongest on amenities, held back by housing & affordability.
44
New York median 52
0 · F
A+ · 100
Launch-day rule. Residents is not counted for Hempstead yet: no poll responses so far. The overall score of 44 is computed on the other six categories, re-normalised to 100%. Answer the poll →
What living here is actually like
Written summary in preparation This page is waiting for its written summary, and for a person to check it. Until then it is excluded from search engines.
What Hempstead is like to live in, by category
Bars show Hempstead against New York. Weights are published in full.Schools
18% of the score · 33/100
F
Within-state proficiency12th pct
New York median 35th pct
Student–teacher ratio13.9
New York median 11.6
Graduation rate58%
New York median 88%
Cost of living
14% of the score · 57/100
C−
Housing cost index95
New York 100
Eff. tax rate2.32%
New York 1.37%
Local sales tax8.54%
New York median 8.54%
Commute & transport
14% of the score · 36/100
F
Mean commute33.3 min
New York 35.6 min
Under 30 minutes48%
New York 44%
Transit stops / sq mi23
New York median 2.5 · within 2 miles
Amenities
12% of the score · 89/100
A
Restaurants & cafés128
New York median 59 · within 2 miles
Groceries11
New York median 8 · within 2 miles
Parks93
New York median 61 · within 2 miles
Employment & income
12% of the score · 32/100
F
Median household income$90,420
New York $99,155
Unemployment9.2%
New York 6.8%
Professional occupations28%
New York 48%
Residents
12% of the score · inactive
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No responses yet. Residents is excluded from the score until eight people answer.
Ask the people who live here
Twelve yes/no questions, one tap each. No dataset knows whether the yards are kept or whether anyone talks to their neighbours. Answers feed the Residents grade, which needs eight responses before it counts.
Nobody has answered for Hempstead yet. If you live here, you can be the first.
Is it quiet at night?
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Do you feel safe walking after dark?
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Can you walk to a grocery store?
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Is it good for young children?
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Are yards and streets well kept?
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Tap either button to answer — no account neededAll twelve questions →
Better than Hempstead on housing & affordability
Hempstead's weakest grade is F. Six suburbs are within 25 miles and score higher on the same four inputs.
SuburbHousingOverall
Hicksville6 mi from HempsteadC+ 62 C Commack20 mi from HempsteadC+ 62 C East Meadow3 mi from HempsteadC+ 65 C+ Levittown6 mi from HempsteadC+ 64 C+ Harrison23 mi from HempsteadC 59 C Hoboken22 mi from HempsteadC 69 B− Median home value: ACS 2020–24 · Ownership rate: ACS 2020–24
Common questions about living in Hempstead
Is Hempstead, NY a good place to live?
Hempstead scores 44 out of 100, 52nd of 60 New York suburbs. It is strongest on amenities and weakest on housing & affordability. Every weight behind that score is published on the methodology page.
Is Hempstead expensive to live in?
Cost of living grades C−. The median home is $459,500, 25% below the New York median, and the effective property tax rate is 2.32%. $1,622/mo is the median gross rent.
How good are the schools in Hempstead?
Schools grade F. The districts serving Hempstead sit at the 12th pct within-state proficiency percentile, with a 58% graduation rate and a 13.9 student–teacher ratio. Hempstead is served by Hempstead Union Free School District and Uniondale Union Free School District. Proficiency is only ever compared inside the same state.
How long is the commute from Hempstead?
The mean commute is 33.3 min, with 48% of workers travelling under 30 minutes and 7.3% working from home. Transit density is 23 stops per square mile.
Can you walk anywhere in Hempstead?
Within two miles there are 11 groceries, 128 restaurants and cafés and 93 parks, which grades A on amenities.
Are the homes in Hempstead old or new?
The median home in Hempstead was built in 1958 — close to the New York median of 1960. That is a median, so a town can be half post-war and half new-build and still land there. 46% of homes are houses rather than flats.
Every answer is built from the figures on this page, with their sources and as-of dates on the methodology page.