These are the best places to live in America NYs best town and the No. 1 community in the US revealed
Massapequa Park, LI residents are enjoying some positive vibes, especially when it comes to living there.The US News & World Report’s new 2025-2026 list of the best places to live in America ranked Massapequa Park at the top of the list for the Empire State, although the Nassau County village is still leagues away from the country’s No.1 spot, which is a plane ride away.The close-knit village on the South Shore of Long Island enjoys a strong public school system, nearby beach access and a convenient commute to New York City for those heading to the office. The list evaluated a total of 850 cities and towns for affordability, job prospects, crime rates and other quality of life indicators — and a public survey gave weight to these criteria to determine the top 250 spots.While Massapequa Park ranked first in the Empire State, it only ranked 140th on the list of 250 singled-out cities.
(New York City, meanwhile, performed far, far worse.The Big Apple ranked 797 out of the 850 metros surveyed.) “It’s great, I’m here 52 years, came from the city in Maspeth, moved here.
People are great, town is great, food is great.What can I say, I love it,” Rose Polis, of Massapequa Park, told News 12.New Yorkers are willing to shell out for the quintessential suburban Long Island experience offered by the village.
The median Massapequa Park home sells for $746,500, according to Realtor.com.That’s more than twice the statewide median sale price in 2024, New York City excluded.The reputation of Massapequa Park took a hit in 2023, however, when one of its 17,000 residents, Rex Heuermann, became the prime suspect in the grisly Gilgo Beach serial killings.
Heurmann’s arrest rocked the suburban community at the time. Local residents are relishing in the good news — Long Island hardly made an appearance on last year’s rankings, in which Buffalo led the New York pack.The mayor of Massapequa Park, Danny Pearl, shared news of the recent US News & World Repo...