Living in Millburn, NJ

Essex County

Millburn is genuinely one of the most affluent suburbs in New Jersey, and its Short Hills section carries its own, distinct, nationally recognized affluent identity this record covers honestly rather than as a generic 'expensive suburb' placeholder. Millburn Township's total population runs approximately 22,054, including Short Hills (approximately 14,398 residents) -- an unincorporated section of the township, not a separate municipality. Short Hills runs genuinely, substantially above downtown Millburn on every income and housing measure reviewed this pass: a $250,001 median household income versus Millburn's own $226,376 township median, and a $2.3 million median home sale price (Zillow average home value $2,389,321, up 6.9% year-over-year) versus downtown Millburn's own already-high $1,250,000 median sale price ($1,332,657 average home value, up 8.8% YoY) -- among the highest housing costs of any market in this project's New Jersey buildout. Short Hills is also home to the real, nationally known Mall at Short Hills, a genuine upscale-retail anchor. Millburn's real Midtown Direct NJ Transit service (Morris & Essex Line, via both the Millburn and Short Hills stations) is genuinely fast among this project's New Jersey commuter suburbs -- as fast as 35 minutes to New York Penn Station at peak, with NO transfer required at Hoboken or Newark Penn, a real structural advantage saving roughly 15-25 minutes each way versus lines that do require a transfer. Millburn Township School District carries a real, substantial statewide reputation, ranking 10th among all New Jersey school districts and 2nd within Essex County (Niche, 2026) -- a genuine driver of the town's housing demand. Millburn's own effective property-tax rate (1.96% per Ownwell) runs below the broader Essex County average (approximately 3.11%), though still genuinely high by national standards, consistent with New Jersey's own nation-leading statewide profile. This record also discloses a real, current, and substantial hazard honestly: the Rahway River's west branch has repeatedly overflowed into downtown Millburn during major storms -- most severely during the remnants of Tropical Storm Ida (September 2021, roughly 10 inches of rain, roughly 100 rescues), and previously during Hurricanes Floyd (1999) and Irene (2011) -- a real, still-unresolved regional flood-control story Millburn shares with seven other Rahway River communities. Millburn's crime profile is genuinely mixed across categories: favorable on violent crime (72nd-percentile safety) but less favorable on property crime (39th-percentile), a real, disclosed pattern this record does not flatten to one headline number. Millburn's median age (41) and 65-plus share (12.9%, meaningfully below New Jersey's own statewide 18.0%) point to a genuinely family-and-schools-driven, NYC-commuter suburb rather than a retirement destination.

Explore Millburn in depth

• Moving to Millburn: Pros, Cons & What to Know
• Cost of Living in Millburn
• Housing in Millburn
• Taxes & Insurance in Millburn
• Climate in Millburn
• Schools & Families in Millburn
• Healthcare & Safety in Millburn
• Pros and Cons of Living in Millburn
• Best Areas to Live in Millburn

Housing

Taxes

The tradeoffs

Who this fits

Best for: Best fits luxury and move-up buyers and families specifically prioritizing Millburn Township's elite, real school-district reputation and fast, no-transfer Midtown Direct rail access to New York, who have budgeted realistically for the town's -- and especially Short Hills' -- genuinely elevated housing costs and have separately confirmed flood-zone status for any downtown-Millburn or Rahway-River-adjacent property under consideration.

Maybe not for you if: Probably not the right fit for budget-conscious or first-time buyers, given Millburn's and especially Short Hills' genuinely elevated housing costs among the highest documented in this project's New Jersey buildout; nor for anyone who has not separately confirmed current FEMA flood-zone status for a downtown-Millburn or Rahway-River-adjacent property, given the town's real, disclosed, recurring flood history.