Photo: User:Magicpiano · CC BY-SA 4.0Even on the area’s higher pay, Burlington costs more to live in than 82% of U.S. towns
It ranks #115 of 468 in New Jersey 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. Burlington’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: 29% of owners pay 30% or more of income for housing (typical U.S. town: 20%), against 53% of renters.
In dollars
- $1,710a 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
- 2.6 yrsof area income buys the typical home; the typical U.S. town: 3.3$91K, Philadelphia-area income
- 21%of area income goes to the median rent; the typical U.S. town: 18%Census 2020–24
- 53%of renters pay 30%+ of income for housing; across New Jersey: 52%Census 2020–24
- 29%of owners do; the typical U.S. town: 20%Census 2020–24
The short version on homes in Burlington
Very little new building
Burlington permitted 31 new homes over the past 10 years, about 0.3 a year per 1,000 residents. Across New Jersey, the pace in 2025 was 3.1. In 2025, Burlington permitted 5. New homes ↓
An older housing stock
Half of Burlington’s homes were built before 1950, against 1970 for New Jersey as a whole. Older homes can mean character, and also bigger heating and repair bills, so an inspection matters. Property taxes ↓
Fewer people, more homes
Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses, Burlington lost 177 residents while 129 new homes were permitted. New homes ↓
Written from the data on this page. There’s no Zillow index for Burlington, so the typical value is an estimate: the Census median carried forward with the federal house price index; sales and supply are Redfin’s for May 2026; permits are Census figures through 2025 (2025 partly estimated); incomes, rents paid, taxes and ownership come from the Census American Community Survey.
What’s behind Burlington’s grade
Measured against what households in the area earn, Burlington is more affordable than 18% of U.S. towns, #115 of 468 in New Jersey. Property tax pulls the grade down most; home prices hold it up.
Home prices up 71% in 5 years
The federal house price index for the ZIP code around Burlington rose 71% over the past 5 years, faster than across New Jersey (63%). Last year prices rose 4.5%. Carrying the Census median home value forward with that index puts the typical Burlington home at roughly $300,000 today.
Carrying the Census median forward with the index puts a typical home at about $300K.
Federal Housing Finance Agency House Price Index (annual) for the ZIP codes around Burlington, 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 10 homes sold in May 2026, the latest month in Redfin’s figures: too few to describe the market or quote a median sale price.
A typical home costs 2.6 years of area income
The calculator starts from the area income the grade uses. Switch to Burlington’s own median, or type yours.
That’s $15K short of a typical Burlington home.
A two-bedroom rents for about $1,710 a month here, $530 less than owning.
An estimate, not a loan offer: payments of up to 28% of income, a 30-year fixed loan, Burlington’s typical property tax (2.65% 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 $1,710
Renters already here pay a median of $1,631.
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.
5 new homes permitted in 2025
Builders were permitted 5 new homes in Burlington in 2025, all single-family houses. That's 0.5 per 1,000 residents, slower than across New Jersey (3.1). Over the past 10 years, Burlington has permitted 31 homes in all.
Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses, Burlington's population fell by 177 even though 129 new homes were permitted. Homes are holding fewer people: households are getting smaller, or more homes are used part of the year. Across New Jersey: 2 new residents per new home.
Every year as a table
| Year | New homes | Single-family | 2+ per building | Value |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 (Jan–Aug) | 2 | 2 | 0 | $36,000 |
| 2025 | 5 | 5 | 0 | $91,000 |
| 2024 | 5 | 5 | 0 | $91,000 |
| 2023 | 4 | 4 | 0 | $73,000 |
| 2022 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — |
| 2021 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — |
| 2020 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — |
| 2019 | 6 | 1 | 5 | $411,000 |
| 2018 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — |
| 2017 | 11 | 1 | 10 | $444,000 |
| 2016 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — |
| 2015 | 55 | 1 | 54 | $3.1 million |
| 2014 | 54 | 0 | 54 | $3.8 million |
| 2013 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — |
| 2012 | 1 | 1 | 0 | $102,000 |
| 2011 | 1 | 1 | 0 | $105,000 |
| 2010 | 1 | 1 | 0 | $114,000 |
| 2009 | 7 | 7 | 0 | $1.1 million |
| 2008 | 11 | 11 | 0 | $530,000 |
| 2007 | 2 | 2 | 0 | $290,000 |
| 2006 | 6 | 6 | 0 | $733,000 |
| 2005 | 7 | 7 | 0 | $488,000 |
| 2004 | 12 | 12 | 0 | $971,000 |
| 2003 | 12 | 12 | 0 | $1.4 million |
| 2002 | 8 | 8 | 0 | $754,000 |
| 2001 | 13 | 13 | 0 | $955,000 |
| 2000 | 11 | 11 | 0 | $685,000 |
Burlington's permit office didn't report to the Census in 2025, so the 2025 figures are Census estimates.
Homes authorized by building permits, counted in the year the permit was issued. U.S. Census Bureau, Building Permits Survey.
Low tax bills, but a high tax rate
The median bill is $6,322, under the New Jersey median of $9,590, because homes cost less. As a share of value it’s 2.65% a year, against 2.11% 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 Burlington
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 New Jersey. Groceries follow the goods price level; nobody publishes them town by town.
| Cost | Here | Compared with | Area | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Prices overall U.S. = 100 | 103 | NJ 109 | metro | BEA, 2024 |
| Goods (groceries, clothing, cars…) U.S. = 100 | 97 | NJ 107 | metro | BEA, 2024 |
| Utilities U.S. = 100 | 114 | NJ 114 | metro | BEA, 2024 |
| Other services U.S. = 100 | 103 | NJ 104 | 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.
Burlington vs. its neighbors
Zillow publishes no value for Burlington. Bristol has no Zillow value, so it is in the table only.
Cost next door · one source per column
| Town | Cost | Typical home Zillow, latest | Median value Census 2020–24 | Tax rate bill ÷ value | 2-bed rent HUD 2026 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Burlington | C− | — | $239K | 2.65% | $1,710 |
| Burlington Township | C− | $391K | $361K | 2.23% | $1,710 |
| Bristol Township | C | $341K | $316K | 1.54% | $1,680 |
| Bristol | C | — | $271K | 1.57% | $1,390 |
“—” under Zillow: Zillow publishes no value for that town, so it’s left blank rather than mixed with Census figures.
Questions about the cost of living in Burlington
Is Burlington expensive to live in?
Measured against what households in the area earn, Burlington costs more than 82% of U.S. towns: a C− for cost of living, #115 of 468 in New Jersey. The typical home costs 2.6 years of the median household income of the Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD metro area ($91K).
How much is rent in Burlington?
HUD puts a two-bedroom at about $1,710 a month with utilities, the going rate for someone moving in. Renters already here pay a median of $1,631 (Census 2020–24).
What are property taxes in Burlington?
The median bill is $6,322 a year, 2.65% of the median home value (New Jersey: $9,590, 2.11%), from the Census 2020–24.
Neighbors talk housing
What Burlington buyers, sellers and renters are saying.
Home values: Zillow Home Value Index (ZHVI), Zillow Research. Sales, days on market and supply: Redfin Data Center, May 2026. Income, ownership, taxes and rent: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey. New homes: U.S. Census Bureau, Building Permits 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.