Housing & affordability
18% of the score · 86/100
A−
Median home value$916,300
Birmingham $240,200
Median rent$1,456/mo
Birmingham $1,172/mo
Cost-burdened households23%
Birmingham 27%
Mountain Brook
Jefferson County22,029 residentsMountain Brook City
75
B
Suburbgrade score
2nd of 22 Birmingham suburbs. Strong on schools and employment & income, held back by cost of living.
75
Birmingham median 55
0 · F
A+ · 100
Launch-day rule. Residents is not counted for Mountain Brook yet: no poll responses so far. The overall score of 75 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 Mountain Brook is like to live in, by category
Bars show Mountain Brook against Birmingham. Weights are published in full.Schools
18% of the score · 95/100
A+
Within-state proficiency100th pct
Birmingham median 69th pct
Student–teacher ratio11.5
Birmingham median 17.0
Graduation rate98%
Birmingham median 93%
Cost of living
14% of the score · 37/100
F
Housing cost index224
Birmingham 100
Eff. tax rate0.84%
Birmingham 0.48%
Local sales tax9.46%
Birmingham median 9.46%
Commute & transport
14% of the score · 82/100
B+
Mean commute16.4 min
Birmingham 27.0 min
Under 30 minutes92%
Birmingham 59%
Transit stops / sq mi1.0
Birmingham median 0.0 · within 2 miles
Amenities
12% of the score · 47/100
D
Restaurants & cafés19
Birmingham median 12 · within 2 miles
Groceries4
Birmingham median 2 · within 2 miles
Parks17
Birmingham median 7 · within 2 miles
Employment & income
12% of the score · 89/100
A
Median household income$201,479
Birmingham $71,498
Unemployment1.2%
Birmingham 4.5%
Professional occupations74%
Birmingham 42%
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 Mountain Brook 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 Mountain Brook on cost of living
Mountain Brook's weakest grade is F. Six suburbs are within 25 miles and score higher on the same four inputs.
SuburbCost of livingOverall
Bessemer16 mi from Mountain BrookB 37 F Hueytown17 mi from Mountain BrookB 43 D Leeds10 mi from Mountain BrookB 54 C− Birmingham4 mi from Mountain BrookB 51 D+ Irondale5 mi from Mountain BrookB 49 D+ Center Point11 mi from Mountain BrookB 44 D Cost-of-living index composed in-house from housing cost, utilities, effective property tax and local sales tax · Median home value: ACS 2020–24 · Effective property tax: ACS 2020–24
Common questions about living in Mountain Brook
Is Mountain Brook, AL a good place to live?
Mountain Brook scores 75 out of 100, 2nd of 22 Birmingham suburbs. It is strongest on schools and weakest on cost of living. Every weight behind that score is published on the methodology page.
Is Mountain Brook expensive to live in?
Cost of living grades F. The median home is $916,300, 281% above the Birmingham median, and the effective property tax rate is 0.84%. $1,456/mo is the median gross rent.
How good are the schools in Mountain Brook?
Schools grade A+. The districts serving Mountain Brook sit at the 100th pct within-state proficiency percentile, with a 98% graduation rate and a 11.5 student–teacher ratio. Mountain Brook is served by Mountain Brook City. Proficiency is only ever compared inside the same state.
How long is the commute from Mountain Brook?
The mean commute is 16.4 min, with 92% of workers travelling under 30 minutes and 17% working from home. Transit density is 1.0 stops per square mile.
Can you walk anywhere in Mountain Brook?
Within two miles there are 4 groceries, 19 restaurants and cafés and 17 parks, which grades D on amenities.
Are the homes in Mountain Brook old or new?
The median home in Mountain Brook was built in 1964 — older than the Birmingham median of 1983. That is a median, so a town can be half post-war and half new-build and still land there. 88% 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.
Six Birmingham lists
Best Birmingham suburbs for familiesMost affordable Birmingham suburbsBest Birmingham suburbs for schoolsShortest commutes to Downtown BirminghamMost walkable Birmingham suburbsBest Birmingham suburbs for young professionals