Cost of Living in Princeton
Princeton's cost of living runs genuinely high across nearly every category, reflecting the town's university-and-pharma-anchored high-income resident base.
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Learn moreAmong the highest housing costs in this project's NJ buildout
Zillow's own average home value ran approximately $974,452 (08540 ZIP), with a separately-cited median sale price near $1,389,000 -- genuinely elevated relative to every other New Jersey Tier A market documented in this project.
A property-tax rate above the state average
Princeton's 2.51% effective property-tax rate runs above New Jersey's own 1.88%-2.23% statewide average, layering a real, substantial ongoing cost onto the town's already-high purchase prices.
New Jersey's graduated income tax reaches Princeton's high earners
New Jersey's real, graduated 7-bracket state income tax (1.4%-10.75%) applies statewide, reaching meaningfully into Princeton's own genuinely high-income resident base (median household income approximately $120,000) at the upper brackets.
Key takeaways
- Princeton's housing costs run among the highest documented in this project's New Jersey buildout.
- Princeton's own property-tax rate (2.51%) runs above New Jersey's already high statewide average.
- New Jersey's graduated state income tax reaches meaningfully into Princeton's high-income resident base.
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