The 30 Poorest Neighborhoods in New Jersey

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the median household income in New Jersey is just over $101,000.

The Cost of Living in New Jersey

While that is an impressive number, we are all aware of the high cost of living here. By the time you pay taxes, make a rent or mortgage payment, and then try to put food on your kitchen table, there’s not much left.

I mean, taxes alone… in 2023, New Jersey’s statewide average property tax bill was around $9,600. That increased to just under $10,100 last year.

Poverty Despite High Income

Even with the average household here bringing in around $100,000/year, the poverty rate is rather high.

According to the Census Bureau, around 9.2% of people in New Jersey live in poverty.

With that in mind, if someone asked you which neighborhoods in the state were the poorest, you would probably immediately think of the usual places like Newark, Camden, or Trenton.

But if someone asked you to list the 30 poorest spots in New Jersey, those stereotypical cities would only get you so far. You might still have a dozen or so empty spots to fill.

Ranking the 30 Poorest NJ Towns

So let’s look at an official ranking of the 30 poorest neighborhoods in the Garden State. Some of these will definitely surprise you. In fact, you might live in one of these spots and not even realize it.