Highlands, NJ: Community Guide
Local Knowledge. Shore Results. Updated October 2026In Highlands, climbing the North Tower of the Twin Lights is a normal way to spend an evening. The twin brownstone lighthouses were built in 1862, high above Sandy Hook Bay, and from the top you can see the Manhattan skyline with your own eyes. No binoculars needed. Highlands sits on some of the highest ground on the Jersey coast, and people have used this hill as a lookout for centuries.
The Twin Lights come with a long list of firsts, including early use of the Fresnel lens in this country and one of the first electrically lit seacoast lighthouses in America. In 1899, Guglielmo Marconi demonstrated wireless telegraphy here, sending America's Cup race results to the New York Herald. Walt Whitman wrote about his visits in a set of poems called "Fancies at Navesink," and James Fenimore Cooper drew on Highlands for his novel The Water-Witch. Gertrude "Trudy" Ederle belongs on that list too. Her family summered in Highlands, and her father taught her to swim in these waters as a girl. In 1926 she became the first woman to swim the English Channel, and she beat the existing men's record doing it.
I'm Matt Quinn. I was born and raised in Ocean County, and I went to Monmouth University, living in Long Branch and Elberon during college. Before real estate I worked construction, served as a police officer, worked as a health inspector, and spent more than ten years as Manchester Township's Chief Code Enforcement Officer. I also hold a zoning officer certification. I've seen what's behind the walls of a lot of shore houses. I'll tell you what a town is really like, and I'll tell you if it's the wrong fit for you.
On This Page
- Highlands at a Glance
- What Makes Highlands Different
- Is Highlands the Right Fit for You?
- What It's Really Like to Live in Highlands
- Schools & Everyday Family Life
- What to Know Before Making the Move
- Common Questions About Living in Highlands
- A Local Perspective on Living Here
- Thinking About Moving to Highlands?
- Homes, Market Report & Nearby Towns
Highlands at a Glance
Highlands is in the Bayshore region of northern Monmouth County. It sits on a high bluff overlooking Sandy Hook, Sandy Hook Bay and the entrance to New York Harbor, and that elevation is where the name comes from. The population is around 4,600 to 4,900. Highlands has been a commuter town for New York since ferry service started in the 1980s, and the Seastreak ferry still runs between Highlands and Manhattan.
The first thing buyers should know: Highlands took one of the hardest hits on the Jersey coast during Hurricane Sandy in 2012. An estimated 1,250 of the town's roughly 1,500 homes were destroyed or severely damaged. That storm changed how the town thinks about flood resilience.
What Makes Highlands Different
Landmarks: The Twin Lights Historic Site, a National Historic Landmark since 2006, is still the town's defining feature. It's a free museum and a lighthouse you can climb, with views of Sandy Hook and the New York skyline that are hard to beat. The Highlands-Sea Bright Bridge connects the borough to the shore towns to the south, replacing a long line of earlier ferries and drawbridges. Hartshorne Woods Park has plenty of hiking and mountain biking on the same high, wooded hills that gave the town its name.
Most desirable pockets: Homes on or near the bluff over Sandy Hook Bay have the best views and carry the premium. Flood risk hits the lower downtown differently than the hillside, so weigh elevation carefully. The downtown waterfront, closest to the marinas and restaurants, is the most walkable, but it's also the area Sandy hit hardest.
Defining character: Highlands combines dramatic, historic high ground with a hard-earned resilience story. It's a small Bayshore town that took catastrophic damage and rebuilt with a real focus on flood mitigation and on keeping its identity.
Is Highlands the Right Fit for You?
Highlands works if you want maritime history, big coastal views and a small-town waterfront feel, plus a workable connection to New York by ferry and easy access to the southern shore over the Highlands-Sea Bright Bridge. It's a good match if you like a lived-in local culture, where people greet each other by name at spots like Bahrs Landing and Waterwitch Grocer & Gourmet.
It's a hard fit if you're nervous about flooding. Highlands' Sandy history is severe, and any downtown or waterfront property needs specific flood-zone and elevation homework. Also know that Sandy Hook, even though it's tied closely to the town's identity, is a separate federal recreation area. It isn't part of the borough.
What It's Really Like to Live in Highlands
Daily life here centers on the water and the hills above it. You walk the waterfront past working marinas, coffee shops and restaurants, or head up Lighthouse Hill for the view and a piece of history. Residents mention local businesses by name: Bahrs Landing, Sea & Sand, The Farmacie, Waterwitch Grocer & Gourmet and Gems Bagels among them.
The community calendar fills the year: a St. Patrick's Day Parade, Clam Fest, Oktoberfest, farmers markets and waterfront festivals. August 2026 marked 100 years since Trudy Ederle's English Channel swim, and she's a real point of hometown pride. Newer redevelopment like Scenic Highlands is adding homes and walkable streets, and local voices are working to keep the town's character as that happens.
Schools & Everyday Family Life
Younger students attend Highlands Elementary School in town, pre-kindergarten through 6th grade. They then move to Henry Hudson Regional School for 7th through 12th grade, part of the same system that serves neighboring Atlantic Highlands. The district consolidated fairly recently, so confirm current program details directly.
What to Know Before Making the Move
Sandy's damage here was severe, and flood risk is still a central issue. Roughly 1,250 of the town's 1,500 homes were destroyed or severely damaged in 2012. Get specific, current flood-zone and elevation information for any property, especially downtown and along the waterfront.
Sandy Hook is not part of Highlands. It's closely tied to the town's identity and economy, but it's a federal recreation area under separate jurisdiction. Keep that in mind if beach access is part of your decision.
Check the ferry commute from your specific address. Seastreak runs from Highlands and from neighboring Atlantic Highlands. Look at the current schedule, parking and drive time to the terminal before you count on it for a daily commute.
Redevelopment like Scenic Highlands is reshaping parts of town. Confirm current construction status and how it might affect a specific property or block before you buy. I'm a certified zoning officer, and I'd confirm current zoning with the borough before assuming what's planned next door.
Common Questions About Living in Highlands
Is Highlands at risk of flooding?
Yes. The town took catastrophic damage during Hurricane Sandy, and flood risk is a central factor for downtown and waterfront properties. Elevation and flood-zone homework matter a lot here.
What are the Twin Lights?
A pair of historic 1862 lighthouses on Lighthouse Hill in Highlands. They're known for a list of technology firsts, including early use of the Fresnel lens, and they're where Marconi demonstrated wireless telegraphy in 1899.
Is Sandy Hook part of Highlands?
No. Sandy Hook is a separate federal recreation area, though it's closely connected to Highlands physically and in local identity.
How's the commute to New York from Highlands?
Workable by ferry. Seastreak runs between Highlands and Manhattan, and there's also a terminal in neighboring Atlantic Highlands. Check the current schedule against your own commute.
Who was Trudy Ederle, and why does Highlands celebrate her?
Gertrude "Trudy" Ederle learned to swim in Highlands as a girl, where her family summered. In 1926 she became the first woman to swim the English Channel, beating the existing men's record. August 2026 marked the 100th anniversary of that swim.
A Local Perspective on Living Here
Longtime residents describe Highlands through its resilience. The town took catastrophic storm damage and rebuilt with intention, and it kept the small, tight-knit character that made it worth rebuilding. The high ground and the maritime history are part of daily life here. This town has sat on some of the most scenic, strategic terrain on the Jersey coast for centuries, and it produced Trudy Ederle, a young woman who learned to swim in its waters and went on to break a record held by men.
Thinking About Moving to Highlands?
If you like Highlands' history and views but flood risk gives you pause, look at neighboring Atlantic Highlands. It has similarly dramatic elevation, with flood exposure that depends on the specific property. Middletown Township, which includes Sandy Hook itself, is a larger and more varied option nearby.
In a town with a storm history like this one, it pays to ask the hard flood questions up front. Ask me those questions before you fall for the view.
Homes, Market Report & Nearby Towns
Want to see how Highlands compares to another town? Run the comparison yourself