Study: Best Cities to Raise a Family in New York

Strong educational opportunities and endless options for family staycations, including natural wonders like Niagara Falls, Montauk Point, and the Catskill Mountains, make these cities the 10 best cities to raise a family in New York. The Big Apple didn't crack the top 10, so the spotlight is on the lesser known - but just as interesting and worthy - communities worth exploring for young families. Take a look and consider moving to one of these cities with your kids.

Study Methodology

We first narrowed our list of potential cities to those that had a population of 20,000 people or more. From there, we moved on to ranking each city based on these individual factors:

1. Education
   
2. Commute Time
   
3. Household Type
   
4. Residency
   
5. Housing Costs

Making sure your kids get a first-rate education is a must and it's important to take a close look at the local school system before making a decision on where to move. To measure each city's educational attainment, we calculated what percentage of adults earned a high school diploma or higher.

New York City is notorious for its traffic and that alone is one reason why you might choose to settle down somewhere smaller. We ranked each city based on the average commute times so you'll have an idea of what the daily commute is like.

One of the ways you can gauge a city's kid-friendliness is to look at how many other families are already living there. Our study looked at how each city ranks in terms of the percentage of family households with children under 18 years olds.

There's nothing more annoying than making friends with your new neighbors, only to have them pack up and move away. We considered what percentage of residents are still living in the same house they were one year ago to find those cities with the lowest turnover rate.

If you look at median home prices, New York is pretty reasonable compared to a state like California. When you start checking listings in individual cities, you get a better idea of how widely prices vary. We looked at the percentage of income residents spend on housing for each city so you can plan your budget accordingly.

10 Best Cities to Raise a Family in New York

10. Valley Stream

• High School Graduates or Higher: 88%
  
• Commute Time: 36.1 minutes
  
• Households With Children Under 18: 33.4%
  
• Residing in Same Home: 93.5%
  
• Income Spent on Housing: 28.5%

Surrounded by the larger city of Hempstead, Valley Stream is an active community of nearly 38,000 people. The city earned a spot in our top 10 because there are so many families with children already in the area and residents tend to stay put once they move in. At just over 36 minutes, Valley Stream has one of the longest commutes but it's a small price to pay if you want to settle down somewhere close to Manhattan, Queens and Brooklyn.

Did You Know: Early settlers chose some unusual nicknames for Valley Stream's different neighborhoods, including "Skunks Misery" and "Tigertown."

9. Rome

• High School Graduates or Higher: 85.5%
  
• Commute Time: 17.5 minutes
  
• Households With Children Under 18: 24.2%
  
• Residing in Same Home: 82.9%
  
• Income Spent on Housing: 20.4%

Rome is located in New York's upstate area, just east of Oneida Lake. Like the rest of Rome's 33,000 residents, we like the city because of its bargain home prices. It also doesn't hurt that workers here have the shortest commute of any city on our list, at 17.5 minutes. There are lots of local attractions to explore, with even more to see and do in nearby Syracuse, which is less than 45 miles away.

Did You Know: Construction for the Erie Canal began here in July 1817.

8. Saratoga Springs

• High School Graduates or Higher: 94.5%
  
• Commute Time: 21.9 minutes
  
• Households With Children Under 18: 20.3%
  
• Residing in Same Home: 83.3%
  
• Income Spent on Housing: 22.2%

Saratoga Springs takes its name from the many natural mineral springs in the area, and it was this that first brought people here in the 1800s. While plenty of visitors still frequent the city, it's also become a choice destination for families. The population is well educated and housing costs won't eat up a lot of your income. If you're moving here for a job opportunity, you'll be happy to know that the average commute is under 22 minutes and the median income approaches $63,000.

Did You Know: The Battle of Saratoga Springs, fought here in September and October 1777, ranks as one of the top 15 most decisive battles in world history.

7. Niagara Falls

• High School Graduates or Higher: 85.4%
  
• Commute Time: 17.4 minutes
  
• Households With Children Under 18: 25%
  
• Residing in Same Home: 89.3%
  
• Income Spent on Housing: 24.1%

Niagara Falls is a popular spot for newlyweds, but it's also a great place to live once the honeymoon's over. Homes are a steal and on average, residents spend less than a quarter of their income on housing. The daily commute is fairly short, although it may take longer if you work just down the road in Buffalo. Obviously, the Falls themselves are the biggest attraction around but if you're looking to take the kids sailing or fishing, Lake Ontario's not too far away.

Did You Know: Roughly 30 million people visit Niagara Falls each year to get a closer look at the American Falls, the Bridal Veil Falls and the Horseshoe Falls.

6. Harrison

• High School Graduates or Higher: 89.4%
  
• Commute Time: 26.5 minutes
  
• Households With Children Under 18: 38.1%
  
• Residing in Same Home: 86.4%
  
• Income Spent on Housing: 24.7%

Harrison, part of the White Plains area that also includes Scarsdale, is one of the most prosperous communities on our list. Percentage-wise, housing doesn't put that much of a strain on your wallet since the median household income is above $105,000. It's worth noting, however, that homes priced at $1 million or higher are not uncommon. Harrison has the second-highest concentration of families with children and the drive to work takes under half an hour.

Did You Know: According to local legend, the reason Harrison has no waterways is because its founder John Harrison was only allowed to claim the amount of land his horse could travel in one day.

5. Lindenhurst

• High School Graduates or Higher: 89.1%
  
• Commute Time: 32.9 minutes
  
• Households With Children Under 18: 33.5%
  
• Residing in Same Home: 94.4%
  
• Income Spent on Housing: 26.5%

The village of Lindenhurst sits on Long Island's south shore, in between Babylon and East Massapequa. The area is definitely family-friendly, as evidenced by the high percentage of households that include children. The average commute takes slightly less than 33 minutes but you can expect to tack on a little more time if you're driving to any of the five boroughs. Since you're further from the New York metro area, homes aren't as pricey but median incomes are still high, at $88,356.

Did You Know: Lindenhurst was originally named Breslau, in honor of the German town the city's earliest settlers hailed from.

4. Kiryas Joel

• High School Graduates or Higher: 60.3%
  
• Commute Time: 24.3 minutes
  
• Households With Children Under 18: 85.8%
  
• Residing in Same Home: 97.3%
  
• Income Spent on Housing: 67%

Kiryas Joel prevails in the top half of our list despite its poor showing on most of our metrics. While it has a really low graduate rate and a fairly poor population, this Hasidic village is flush with kids. Just over 85 percent of households here have children under 18 (in fact the median age is under 12 years old), and most of those households have more than the standard 2.5 kids many Americans strive for when creating a family. Homes are affordably priced, but median incomes tend to be low.

Did You Know: Yiddish is more commonly spoken here than English, and many of Kiryas Joel's signs are worded in both languages.

3. North Tonawanda

• High School Graduates or Higher: 90.4%
  
• Commute Time: 20.1 minutes
  
• Households With Children Under 18: 23.4%
  
• Residing in Same Home: 89.6%
  
• Income Spent on Housing: 19.6%

North Tonawanda sits roughly halfway between Buffalo and Niagara Falls, close to Grand Island. If you want to buy a home but don't have a lot to spend, North Tonawanda's the place to go to find a deal. Nearly 90% of the city's residents are still living in the same house they were living in a year ago and more than 23% of family households have children. Kids will love touring the Herschell Carrousel Museum while Mom and Dad can enjoy a cruise down the Niagara River.

Did You Know: The timber industry was what gave North Tonawanda its start, and to this day it's still known as Lumber City.

2. Rockville Centre

• High School Graduates or Higher: 94.5%
  
• Commute Time: 36.1 minutes
  
• Households With Children Under 18: 31.7%
  
• Residing in Same Home: 93.6%
  
• Income Spent on Housing: 20.9%

Rockville Centre is situated on Long Island, just south of Hempstead. About 24,000 people call the village home and it's especially popular among upper-middle class families. Adults are well-educated overall and the local schools consistently score top marks based on state and national standards. You will pay more for a home in terms of the purchase price but you'll also take home a bigger paycheck, since the median household income exceeds $112,000.

Did You Know: Famed radio host Howard Stern grew up in Rockville Center and attended South Side High School.

1. Garden City

• High School Graduates or Higher: 97.7%
  
• Commute Time: 32.5 minutes
  
• Households With Children Under 18: 35.6%
  
• Residing in Same Home: 92.1%
  
• Income Spent on Housing: 24.3%

Garden City is hands-down the most affluent community on our list but that's not the reason we chose it as our top pick. In terms of education, Garden City has the highest population of high school graduates, which is largely thanks to its excellent schools. The median income is more than $141,000 and home prices are correspondingly higher. Residents take less than 33 minutes on average to get work and the drive to Manhattan isn't that much longer.

Did You Know: Nearby Roosevelt Field is now a shopping complex but in 1927, it was the place where Charles Lindbergh took off in the Spirit of St. Louis to begin his historic solo transatlantic flight.

New York City is undisputedly one of the most culturally and ethnically diverse cities in the world. With a population of 8 million and counting, there's no doubt about its popularity. Some of New York's other cities, like Buffalo, Syracuse and Rochester, also have a lot to offer but when it comes to raising a family, we think the 10 places we've chosen are better suited for the task.