Christiana Historic District · Photo: Smallbones · Public domainEven on the area’s higher pay, Brookside costs more to live in than 53% of U.S. towns
It ranks #14 of 37 in Delaware for affordability.
Census 2020–24 home values, rents, tax bills and cost burden, measured against the median household income of the Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD metro area ($91K). How TownRatings grades cost of living
The grade measures what housing costs against what households in the area earn. Brookside’s area earns well above the typical U.S. town ($91K against $74K), but homes, rent and taxes here run higher still. Owners keep up better than renters: 21% of owners pay 30% or more of income for housing (typical U.S. town: 20%), against 58% of renters.
In dollars
- $1,680a month for a two-bedroom, utilities includedHUD Fair Market Rent, 2026
- 103prices across the Philadelphia metro, where the U.S. is 100 (housing 113)BEA Regional Price Parities, 2024
In paychecks the grade
- 3.1 yrsof area income buys the typical home; the typical U.S. town: 3.3$91K, Philadelphia-area income
- 19%of area income goes to the median rent; the typical U.S. town: 18%Census 2020–24
- 58%of renters pay 30%+ of income for housing; across Delaware: 50%Census 2020–24
- 21%of owners do; the typical U.S. town: 20%Census 2020–24
What stands out about housing in Brookside
What’s behind Brookside’s grade
Measured against what households in the area earn, Brookside is more affordable than 47% of U.S. towns, #14 of 37 in Delaware. The share of households paying 30%+ for housing pulls the grade down most; property tax holds it up.
Home prices up 56% in 5 years
The federal house price index for the ZIP code around Brookside rose 56% over the past 5 years, faster than across Delaware (51%). Last year prices rose 5.5%. Carrying the Census median home value forward with that index puts the typical Brookside home at roughly $340,000 today.
Carrying the Census median forward with the index puts a typical home at about $340K.
Federal Housing Finance Agency House Price Index (annual) for the ZIP codes around Brookside, weighted by land area. It tracks repeat sales of the same homes, so it shows how prices changed, not what homes cost.
Too few sales to read the market
Only 12 homes sold in September 2026, the latest month in Redfin’s figures: too few to describe the market or quote a median sale price.
A year’s rent takes 19% of area income
The calculator starts from the area income the grade uses. Switch to Brookside’s own median, or type yours.
That covers a typical Brookside home, with $27K to spare.
A two-bedroom rents for about $1,680 a month here, $290 less than owning.
An estimate, not a loan offer: payments of up to 28% of income, a 30-year fixed loan, Brookside’s typical property tax (0.64% of value a year, from the Census) and insurance of about 0.35%. Mortgage insurance, HOA fees and other debts aren’t included.
A two-bedroom rents for about $1,680
Renters already here pay a median of $1,444, so moving in tends to cost more than staying put.
Fair Market Rent a month, utilities included
U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, Fair Market Rents by ZIP code (Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD MSA): the 40th-percentile rent plus utilities for a standard unit. Median rent and renters: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey.
Property tax runs above the Delaware norm
The median bill is $1,779 (Delaware: $1,768), 0.64% of a home’s value a year, against 0.50% statewide.
Census American Community Survey 2020–24: the median real-estate tax bill homeowners report, and that bill ÷ the median home value. Bills include town, school and county taxes. The Census reports bills over $10,000 only as “$10,000+”.
The rest of a budget near Brookside
Only figures published free for the whole country, each labeled with the area it covers: the Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD metro area, or Delaware. Groceries follow the goods price level; nobody publishes them town by town.
| Cost | Here | Compared with | Area | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Prices overall U.S. = 100 | 103 | DE 100 | metro | BEA, 2024 |
| Goods (groceries, clothing, cars…) U.S. = 100 | 97 | DE 96 | metro | BEA, 2024 |
| Utilities U.S. = 100 | 114 | DE 104 | metro | BEA, 2024 |
| Other services U.S. = 100 | 103 | DE 101 | metro | BEA, 2024 |
Price levels: U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Price Parities 2024 (metro area and state). Electricity: U.S. Energy Information Administration, Electric Power Monthly, table 5.6.A.
Brookside vs. its neighbors
Zillow publishes no value for Brookside.
Cost next door · one source per column
Questions about the cost of living in Brookside
Is Brookside expensive to live in?
Measured against what households in the area earn, Brookside costs more than 53% of U.S. towns: a B− for cost of living, #14 of 37 in Delaware. The typical home costs 3.1 years of the median household income of the Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD metro area ($91K).
How much is rent in Brookside?
HUD puts a two-bedroom at about $1,680 a month with utilities, the going rate for someone moving in. Renters already here pay a median of $1,444 (Census 2020–24).
What are property taxes in Brookside?
The median bill is $1,779 a year, 0.64% of the median home value (Delaware: $1,768, 0.50%), from the Census 2020–24.
Neighbors talk housing
What Brookside buyers, sellers and renters are saying.
Home values: Zillow Home Value Index (ZHVI), Zillow Research. Sales, days on market and supply: Redfin Data Center, September 2026. Income, ownership, taxes and rent: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey. Price trend: Federal Housing Finance Agency House Price Index. Fair Market Rents: U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. The calculator is an estimate, not a loan offer. Regional price levels: BEA; electricity: EIA. How TownRatings grades cost of living.