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Dix Hills is again the best place to live in Suffolk County, according to Niche’s Best Places to Live in America report released on Tuesday.
An excellent school system, along with comparatively high grades for diversity, its promotion of health and fitness and its family friendly atmosphere, secured an overall grade of A+ for Dix Hills.
Residents also love Dix Hills for its great outdoors. Many reviewers note the 25,000-resident community’s fantastic scenery.
“Dix Hills is a beautiful area that I have called home for 25 years. Great mature trees, different house styles, and blocks of front yard gardens paint astounding beauty across the town’s landscape,” a current Dix Hills resident wrote on Niche. “Neighbors of different backgrounds, cultures, and races make it a beautifully diverse neighborhood. I feel very fortunate to grow up in such a safe neighborhood and have access to Half Hollow Hills school district where I fostered a love for education from a young age.”
Following closely behind Dix Hills is Stony Brook at No. 2, up one slot from last year’s Niche rankings. The North Shore community — its population is about 12,500 — boasts such cultural gems as the Long Island Museum and Stony Brook University, just the right number of nightlife options, plenty of coffee shops and an ample amount of park space.
At No. 3 is tiny Poquott, moving up one spot from last year. Located along Port Jefferson Harbor, Poquott is home to 1,100 residents. No. 4 Centerport is up one position from last year, rounding out the top five with Cold Spring Harbor, which dropped three spots to No. 5.
Cracking Niche’s list of top ten Suffolk communities this year are No. 8 Commack and No. 9 Halesite. Port Jefferson was bumped up one slot from last year to No. 6 and West Hills jumped two spots to No. 7. The ultra-affluent community of Head of the Harbor on the North Shore slipped four positions to No. 10.
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Each of the top five ranked communities received A+ overall grades, while the second five each received an A.
Click here to review the entire list of Suffolk County communities.
For its annual Best Places to Live in America report, Niche says it pulls data from such sources as the U.S. Census, FBI, Bureau of Labor Statistics and CDC, and combines it with millions of resident reviews. Affordability, the local housing market, neighborhood diversity, public schools and and walkability are among the key factors.
Nearly 230 cities and over 18,000 places were included in this year’s Niche rankings. Colonial Village, Virginia, a suburb of Washington D.C. is rated the Best Place to Live in America.
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“We know that people consider far more than just affordability when deciding where to call home, from neighborhood diversity and weather conditions to career opportunities and the quality of the schools,” said Luke Skurman, CEO and founder of Niche.
“Our rankings have always aspired to give families, homebuyers, professionals and retirees the data and insights they need to reliably and confidently discover their next place to live.”
Top photo: Half Hollow Hills East High School homecoming in 2023 (Facebook).
