Living in Upper Brookville, New York: homes, schools and costs

The book's checklist

Lower cost of livingEveryday prices run 12.6% above the U.S. average in the New York-Newark-Jersey City metro area.
More house for the moneyThe Census survey didn't reach enough homes in Upper Brookville to say.
A safer neighborhoodThe FBI has no 2025 figures for Upper Brookville itself. Many small towns are patrolled by the county sheriff, so call the sheriff's office and ask what calls they get most.
Schools in town1 public school. No public high school in town: the nearest is Oyster Bay High School, about 3 miles away.
A hospital close byNorthwell Hospital Glen Cove in Glen Cove, about 4 miles away, has the nearest emergency room.
Within reach of a big cityNew York is about 23 miles away as the crow flies. The book suggests staying within about 60 miles if you'll miss big-city sports, concerts and theater.

A check means Upper Brookville meets the rule of thumb from Frank and Dave's book. An empty box isn't a deal breaker: it's something to weigh for your family. A question mark means there isn't enough data.

What kind of town

A suburb, not a stand-alone small town

Upper Brookville runs into the built-up area around New York (Census Bureau, 2020 urban areas). We include suburbs under 20,000 people because some still feel like small towns, but daily life here is closer to the suburbs than to the towns Frank and Dave's book describes. Weigh it against towns farther out.

The book sorts small towns into six types. These labels come only from the numbers; take the quiz to see which type fits your family.

For a lifetime

Homes and money

Typical home value, as owners valued them in 2020-2024: $2,000,000 or moreU.S.: $332,700
Home prices since then: Up 21%Nassau County, 2022 to 2025
Typical rent, with utilities: $1,750 a monthU.S.: $1,413
Typical household income: $250,000 or moreU.S.: $80,734
Typical property tax bill: $10,000 or more a yearNew York: $6,582
Homes built before 1940: 14%U.S.: 12%
Homes built since 2010: 6%U.S.: 11%
Vacation and seasonal homes: 1%U.S.: 3%
Everyday prices: 112.6U.S. average = 100 (the New York-Newark-Jersey City metro area)

Home values and rents are what households told the Census Bureau across 2020 to 2024, so they trail today's market: county prices have moved up 21% since 2022. Everyday prices are the government's average for the New York-Newark-Jersey City metro area, not Upper Brookville alone. Check current listings before you budget.

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates; Federal Housing Finance Agency, House Price Index for counties (all transactions); U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Price Parities, 2024.

The people

Population, 2025 estimate: 1,7782020: 1,769
Median age: 52.8 yearsU.S.: 38.9
Age 65 and older: 20%U.S.: 17%
Under 18: 20%U.S.: 22%
Moved here from another county or state in the past year: 4%U.S.: 6%

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, Population Estimates (Vintage 2025); U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates.

Work

Biggest lines of work: Professional and business services (30%); schools, health care and social services (22%); finance, insurance and real estate (18%)
Unemployment rate: 6%U.S.: 5%
Average commute: 39 minutesU.S.: 26 minutes
Work from home: 19%U.S.: 15%
Below the poverty line: 1%U.S.: 12%

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates.

Health care

Nearest emergency room: Northwell Hospital Glen Cove, Glen Cove, NY, about 4 miles away. It's a general hospital. Medicare gives it 5 of 5 stars.

Look up doctors, clinics and the hospitals themselves on Medicare's Care Compare. Ask where the most serious cases are sent.

Sources: Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, Hospital General Information.

Schools

1 public school in Upper Brookville, run by Oyster Bay-East Norwich Central School District. The nearest public high school is Oyster Bay High School, about 3 miles away.

Colleges in or next to town: Long Island University (10,000 to 19,999 students).

See each school on the federal school search, then check test scores and graduation rates on New York's school report card.

Sources: National Center for Education Statistics, Common Core of Data, 2023-24 (via the Urban Institute Education Data Portal); National Center for Education Statistics, IPEDS institution directory, 2024.

Weather

January average low: 27°F
July average high: 86°F
Days 90°F or hotter: 16 a year
Nights at or below freezing: 83 a year
Rain and melted snow: 45.3 inches a year
Snow: 18 inches a year
Elevation: 170 feet

Weather station: Mineola (8 miles away). Averages for 1991 to 2020.

Sources: NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, U.S. Climate Normals 1991-2020; U.S. Geological Survey, 3D Elevation Program.

Getting around

Northwell Hospital Glen CoveEmergency room4

Hempstead, NYCity of 60,00010

New York, NYMetro of 20.1 million23

Straight-line miles. The road is always longer, and as the book says, an interstate at 70 is a different trip from a farm road at 45. Check the real drive: Northwell Hospital Glen Cove, Hempstead, New York.

Nassau County is in a metro area of 1 million people or more (USDA rural-urban code 1, on a scale where 1 is the biggest metro areas and 9 the most rural counties).

For a day

National Park Service sites within about an hour:

Sagamore Hill National Historic Site4 miles
Saint Paul's Church National Historic Site14 miles
Gateway National Recreation Area19 miles
Hamilton Grange National Memorial20 miles
General Grant National Memorial21 miles

Campus life. Check Long Island University's events calendar for games, concerts and plays open to the public.

Read about Upper Brookville's history on Wikipedia.

Know Upper Brookville?

Tell us what a visitor shouldn't miss, and what living there is really like. Write to Main Street at mainstreet@smalltownguide.com. The best notes from people who know the town will be added here.

Nearby

Straight-line miles.

Small towns

East Norwich, NY2,700 people, 2 miles
Muttontown, NY3,600 people, 2 miles
Oyster Bay, NY7,300 people, 2 miles
Old Brookville, NY2,100 people, 2 miles
Mill Neck, NY1,000 people, 2 miles
Locust Valley, NY4,200 people, 3 miles

Smaller places

Matinecock, NY854 people, 1 mile
Centre Island, NY394 people, 4 miles
Greenvale, NY (unincorporated)1,113 people, 4 miles
Cove Neck, NY293 people, 4 miles
Plandome Manor, NY823 people, 7 miles
Great Neck Gardens, NY (unincorporated)1,492 people, 9 miles
Russell Gardens, NY900 people, 10 miles
Saddle Rock Estates, NY (unincorporated)485 people, 10 miles

Sources

Census survey figures are estimates with a margin of error; we leave out any figure whose margin is too wide to be useful. Data last gathered October 5, 2026. See something wrong? Write to mainstreet@smalltownguide.com.