Belford is a very small coastal town (i.e. on the ocean, a bay, or inlet) located in the state of New Jersey. With a population of 1,648 people and two associated neighborhoods, Belford is the 448th largest community in New Jersey.
Housing costs in Belford are among some of the highest in the nation, although real estate prices here don't compare to real estate prices in the most expensive communities in New Jersey.
One interesting thing about the economy is that relatively large numbers of people worked from their home: 12.38% of the workforce. While this number may seem small overall, as a fraction of the total workforce this is high compared to the rest of the county. These workers are often telecommuters who work in knowledge-based, white-collar professions. For example, Silicon Valley has large numbers of people who telecommute. Other at-home workers may be self-employed people who operate small businesses out of their homes.
Because of many things, Belford is a great place for families with children to consider. First of all, many other families with children live here, making Belford a place where both parents and children are more likely to develop social ties with other families, as well as find family-oriented services and community. The town’s good public school district and large population of college-educated adults provide an environment conducive to academic values. With regard to real estate, Belford has a high rate of owner-occupied single family homes, which tends to reflect stability in the local community. Finally, Belford’s overall crime rate is lower than average for the country.
One of the nice things about Belford is that it is nautical, which means that parts of it are somewhat historic and touch the ocean or tidal bodies of water, such as inlets and bays. Because of this, visitors and locals will often go to these areas to take in the scenery or to enjoy waterfront activities.
In Belford, however, the average commute to work is quite long. On average, people spend 37.89 minutes each day getting to work, which is significantly higher than the national average. One bright side is that local public transit is widely used, so it may be an option to avoid the headache of driving in the heavy traffic by leaving the car at home and taking transit.
Despite being a small town, Belford has a lot of people using a ferryboat to get to and from work every day. Most of these people on a ferryboat are using it to get to good jobs in other cities.
Belford is one of the most well-educated cities in the nation. 41.09% of adults in Belford have at least a bachelor's degree. Compare that to the average community in America, which has just 21.84% with a bachelor's degree or higher.
The per capita income in Belford in 2022 was $57,367, which is upper middle income relative to New Jersey, and wealthy relative to the rest of the US. This equates to an annual income of $229,468 for a family of four.
Belford is a somewhat ethnically-diverse town. The people who call Belford home describe themselves as belonging to a variety of racial and ethnic groups. The greatest number of Belford residents report their race to be White, followed by Black or African-American. Belford also has a sizeable Hispanic population (people of Hispanic origin can be of any race). People of Hispanic or Latino origin account for 10.03% of the town’s residents. Important ancestries of people in Belford include Irish, German, Italian, Polish, and English.
The most common language spoken in Belford is English. Other important languages spoken here include Polish and Spanish.