Barnegat Light, New Jersey

Population

Growing. Up 2.1% since 2020.

641

people, the 308th-largest of New Jersey's cities and towns.

Census Population Estimates, 2025. Rank among New Jersey's cities and towns computed by the Almanac. Sources: Census Population Estimates

The workday

9 in 10 jobs here go to people who live somewhere else.

93.5%

of 261 jobs located in Barnegat Light are filled by in-commuters.

Census LEHD LODES, 2023. Sources: Census LEHD LODES

Rent

Median rent is where it was in the 2005–2009 survey.

$1,213

a month. New Jersey's median is $1,720.

Census ACS 5-year, 2010-2014 (latest), with earlier 5-year windows. Survey estimates for a place this size carry wide margins of error. Sources: Census ACS 5-year

The seam

Cross one tract line and median rent doubles.

A $1,877 gap between neighbors, the sharpest rent edge between adjacent tracts in Ocean County.

• $1,293 Tract 7220.03
• $3,170 Tract 7221

Census ACS 5-year, 2020-2024, adjacent tracts compared by the Almanac. Tract estimates carry wide margins of error. Sources: Census ACS 5-year

Room to build

The median rent sits inside what local wages can carry.

$862–$1,294

is the monthly rent range local workforce wages support.

• $1,213 median

Supportable rent computed by the Almanac from 2023 source wage data. Median rent: Census ACS 5-year, 2010-2014. Sources: Computed by the Almanac, Census ACS 5-year

Building

Most of the housing here is older than 2000.

• 122 homes permitted in ten years, 2016–2025
• 2% of those were in multifamily buildings
• 79% of all homes were built before 2000

Census Building Permits Survey, 2016–2025; Census ACS 5-year, 2020-2024. Survey estimates for a place this size carry wide margins of error. Sources: Census Building Permits Survey, Census ACS 5-year

Units needed

Closing the gap would add 0–0.2% to the 1,269 homes here.

0–3

is the estimated number of missing housing units, from the lowest to the highest of three estimates.

Range computed by the Almanac from 2023 jobs and household data, using three demand models: 1% of jobs located here, 1% of renter households, and a rate by town size applied to renters. The low end is the lowest of the three and the high end the highest. It is an estimate, not a count. Sources: Computed by the Almanac

Home value

A median home costs 144% more than New Jersey's.

$1,107,800

median home value in Barnegat Light.

• $1,107,800 Barnegat Light
• $454,400 New Jersey
• $332,700 U.S.

Census ACS 5-year, 2020-2024. Survey estimates for a place this size carry wide margins of error. Sources: Census ACS 5-year