Is Cypress Hills Safe? Brooklyn Livability, Crime & Rent
Cypress Hills scores 6.2 composite: two-family blocks with good upkeep and trees, and a higher-than-average crime rate.
Cypress Hills at a glance
- Borough
- Brooklyn
- Livability score
- 6.2/10
- Borough rank (NYC Open Data guides)
- #12 of 28
- Safety verdict
- Higher Than Average
- Crimes (12 mo)
- 2,378
- ZIP codes
- 11208 (73%), 11207 (27%)Share of residential units, NYC PLUTO 26v2
- Subway stations
- 3 (Crescent St, Norwood Av, Cleveland St)
- Data updated
- 2026-09-26
Is Cypress Hills Safe?
Cypress Hills, Brooklyn scores 6.2/10 for overall livability, ranking #12 of 28 Brooklyn neighborhoods scored from NYC Open Data. Cypress Hills scores 6.2 composite: two-family blocks with good upkeep and trees, and a higher-than-average crime rate.
The livability score draws on HPD housing violations, subway access, NYC Parks' tree inventory and parks, and 311 noise complaints per resident from NYC Open Data, refreshed periodically rather than live. It does not include crime; NYPD complaint and shooting figures are on the Cypress Hills safety page. Safety varies by block — check a specific Cypress Hills address below for a block-level breakdown.
Score Overview
Vertical line = borough median. Scale: 0-10.
Practical measures HPD housing violations per residential lot over the last 12 months (higher = fewer violations). Borough medians are computed across DwellCheck's Brooklyn neighborhood guides.
Neighborhood Character
You'll find a neighborhood of two-family houses: they are 55% of residential tax lots, with walk-ups at 18% and one-family houses at 17%. Trees are fairly dense, about 191 in a typical 200m circle and a tree density of 7.1/10.
The J runs along the neighborhood with three stations inside it: Crescent St and Norwood Av (J, Z) and Cleveland St (J). Commute scores 5.5/10, the same as the Brooklyn median. Four NYC Parks properties sit inside, among them Sperandeo Brothers Playground and George Walker Jr. Park; Sam Leggio Triangle is the nearest to the center, 329m away.
DwellCheck's safety verdict is higher than average: Cypress Hills has a lower crime rate per resident than 44% of Brooklyn neighborhoods, with 9 shootings in 12 months.
Livability & Restoration
Trees
191 trees
Expected in a 200m circle (NYC Parks tree inventory) | Density: 7.1/10 (city percentile)
In Toronto, 10 more trees on a city block went with a rise in self-rated health comparable to being 7 years younger (Kardan et al., 2015, Scientific Reports). In a cross-sectional study of London boroughs, each additional street tree per km of street went with 1.18 fewer antidepressant prescriptions per 1,000 residents (Taylor et al., 2015, Landscape and Urban Planning).
Park Access
4 parks
NYC Parks properties inside the neighborhood | largest: Sperandeo Brothers Playground | nearest to the center: Sam Leggio Triangle, 329m | 3 nearest average 638m from the neighborhood's center
Acoustic Quality
3/10
Noise proxy score (higher = quieter)
Environmental noise exposure increases the occurrence of hypertension and cardiovascular disease; WHO's night-noise guidelines call average outdoor night noise above 55 dB increasingly dangerous for public health (Basner et al., 2014, The Lancet).
What is the ART Score?
ART stands for Attention Restoration Theory (Kaplan & Kaplan, 1989) — the framework environmental psychologists use to measure whether a place helps your brain recover from mental fatigue, or pushes it deeper into overload. Cities deplete directed attention (the effortful focus you use at work); exposure to restorative environments replenishes it.
DwellCheck uses the idea in two separate places, and they measure different things. The neighborhood ART score below comes from neighborhood-wide data: up to 5 points from tree density (a city percentile) and up to 5 from how few 311 noise complaints there are per resident. An address report has no ART score. It runs the Wellness checks below, and their points go into the address’s overall score.
Within a point of the Brooklyn median.
What an address report checks instead (Wellness)
- ±Sensory environment. A calm score minus a busy score, each starting at 50. Busy: a firehouse within 100m (+15) or 200m (+8), and 311 noise complaints within 200m over 6 months (15+ adds 5, 40+ adds 12, 80+ adds 20, and 3 more at 20+ complaints that include vehicle or street noise). Calm: a library (+15), community garden (+12) or public plaza or atrium (POPS; +15 indoor, +8 outdoor) within 200m, and a park within 300m (+10; +15 at 1+ acre; +20 at 5+ acres). A difference of +20 or more adds 8 points; −10 to −29 costs 2; −30 or less costs 4. Bars, museums, tourists and foot traffic are not counted.
- +Third places (Oldenburg, 1989). Public libraries, public plazas and atriums (POPS) and community gardens within 400m: 1–2 add 5 points, 3 or more add 10. Cafés and community centers are not counted. In a meta-analysis of longitudinal studies, loneliness or social isolation went with a 29% higher risk of incident coronary heart disease (Valtorta et al., 2016, Heart).
- 0Street vitality (Jacobs, 1961). Permitted block parties, farmers markets and similar community events in the borough over the past 12 months. The event data has no coordinates, so this is a borough-wide count shown for context. It doesn’t change the score.
Health mechanism. The theory holds that natural settings let directed attention recover. The evidence is mixed: a systematic review of 31 studies (Ohly et al., 2016, Journal of Toxicology and Environmental Health, Part B) found that time in natural environments improved 3 of 13 pooled attention measures (Digit Span Forward, Digit Span Backward and Trail Making Test B) and showed no marked benefit on the other 10.
Theoretical foundations. Kaplan & Kaplan (1989), The Experience of Nature; Jacobs (1961), The Death and Life of Great American Cities; Oldenburg (1989), The Great Good Place.
Transit & Commute
Subway Stations
Commute Score
5.5/10
Borough median: 5.5/10
Outdoor & Green Space
Avg Tree Count
191
Trees expected in a 200m circle
Tree Density
7.1/10
1,519 trees per km² in NYC Parks' tree inventory (street and park trees); city percentile, 1 = sparsest
Largest Parks In or Near the Neighborhood
- Sperandeo Brothers Playground
- George Walker Jr. Park
- Chestnut Street Garden
- Sam Leggio Triangle
Nearest to the neighborhood's center: Sam Leggio Triangle, about 329m. The 3 nearest NYC Parks properties average 638m from the center (approximate park centers, not entrances).
Practical Living
Practical (HPD violations): 8/10 (Brooklyn median 7.5). It measures HPD housing violations per residential lot over the last 12 months (higher = fewer violations).
Building Mix (Residential Tax Lots)
Share of the 4,805 residential tax lots in the neighborhood by PLUTO building class (NYC Department of City Planning).
Who Cypress Hills Is For
J and Z train commuters
Three stations on the J (two also on the Z); commute 5.5/10, equal to the borough median.
Two-family house seekers
Two-family houses are 55% of residential tax lots, and Practical scores 8/10 against a borough median of 7.5.
People who like tree-lined blocks
Tree density 7.1/10 and about 191 trees in a typical 200m circle.
Pros & Cons
Strengths
Fewer housing violations than the borough
Practical scores 8/10 against a Brooklyn median of 7.5.
Tree cover
Tree density 7.1/10; ART/Livability 4.6 against a borough median of 4.4.
Few rodent complaints
55 rodent complaints in 12 months, 1.3 per 1,000 residents, labelled Low.
Trade-offs
Crime above average
A lower crime rate per resident than 44% of Brooklyn neighborhoods; 2,378 crimes and 9 shootings in 12 months.
Outdoor below the borough
Outdoor scores 5.4/10 against a Brooklyn median of 5.9; the 3 nearest parks average 638m from the center.
One subway corridor
All three stations are on the J line (Crescent St, Norwood Av, Cleveland St).
Score Any Address in Cypress Hills
Get detailed livability scores based on building health, transit access, safety, noise levels, and 15+ NYC data sources.
Search an Address in Cypress HillsFrequently Asked Questions about Cypress Hills
1Is Cypress Hills safe?
By NYPD data, Cypress Hills is rated "Higher Than Average", with a lower crime rate per resident than 44% of Brooklyn neighborhoods. 2,378 crime incidents and 9 shooting incidents over the past 12 months. See the safety page for the full breakdown.
2What is the average rent in Cypress Hills?
Rents in Cypress Hills, Brooklyn vary significantly by building and apartment type. Market pricing isn't aggregated for this neighborhood yet; use DwellCheck to research specific addresses for HPD registration, HPD violations, and other building-level records. DwellCheck doesn't show rent-stabilization status; request the apartment's rent history from DHCR for that.
3How is transit access in Cypress Hills?
Cypress Hills has a commute score of 5.5/10. 3 subway stations serve the area: Crescent St, Norwood Av, Cleveland St.
4What are the best streets in Cypress Hills?
The best streets depend on your priorities. Use DwellCheck to compare specific addresses across livability, safety, transit, and environmental factors.
5What is Cypress Hills known for?
Cypress Hills sits in Brooklyn and ranks #12 of 28 Brooklyn neighborhoods scored from NYC Open Data on DwellCheck's livability score (6.2/10). It's served by 3 subway stations (Crescent St, Norwood Av, Cleveland St). Cypress Hills scores 6.2 composite: two-family blocks with good upkeep and trees, and a higher-than-average crime rate.
6What is it like to live in Cypress Hills?
DwellCheck scores Cypress Hills, Brooklyn from NYC Open Data on practical (HPD housing violations per residential lot over the last 12 months (higher = fewer violations)), commute (subway stations and lines in the neighborhood), ART (tree density and 311 noise complaints per resident), outdoor (trees and park proximity). Cypress Hills's composite is 6.2/10. Cypress Hills scores 6.2 composite: two-family blocks with good upkeep and trees, and a higher-than-average crime rate. For the block-by-block view, run any specific Cypress Hills address through DwellCheck.
7Where is Cypress Hills?
Cypress Hills is in Brooklyn, New York City. DwellCheck maps it to the Cypress Hills Neighborhood Tabulation Area (BK0501), which falls in the Census tabulation area that approximates Brooklyn Community District 5 (East New York-Cypress Hills). Its main ZIP codes are 11208 and 11207. Subway stations in the neighborhood include Crescent St, Norwood Av and Cleveland St.
8What ZIP code is Cypress Hills in?
Cypress Hills spans ZIP codes 11208 (73% of residential units) and 11207 (27%). Shares are of the 13,060 residential units in the Cypress Hills Neighborhood Tabulation Area (BK0501), from NYC PLUTO 26v2 tax-lot records.
9Can you walk around Cypress Hills at night?
Cypress Hills is classified as "Higher Than Average" by NYPD complaint data. Over the past 12 months it recorded 9 shooting incidents and 2,378 total crime incidents. Walking at night carries the same risk profile as anywhere in NYC: stay on commercial corridors with foot traffic, avoid empty side streets after midnight, and prefer subway lines that run 24/7.
10Is Cypress Hills dangerous?
By NYPD data, Cypress Hills is rated "Higher Than Average", with a lower crime rate per resident than 44% of Brooklyn neighborhoods. 2,378 crime incidents over 12 months. Block-level risk varies; check the address-level safety score for any specific street or building.
11What parts of Cypress Hills should I avoid?
NYPD complaint records carry approximate incident coordinates, but a neighborhood total can't tell you which blocks drive it, so we don't publish an "avoid this street" list. For a specific block, use DwellCheck's address-level safety score, which counts NYPD crime complaints within a 300m radius of the building over the latest 12 months of published data and compares that count with the borough average.
12Is Cypress Hills a good place to live?
Cypress Hills scores 6.2/10 for overall livability and has a lower crime rate per resident than 44% of Brooklyn neighborhoods. Cypress Hills scores 6.2 composite: two-family blocks with good upkeep and trees, and a higher-than-average crime rate. Whether it's a good fit depends on what you weight: families, solo renters, and remote workers each prioritize different factors (noise, transit access, parks, building quality).
13What is the average DwellScore in Cypress Hills?
The composite score is 6.2. Practical (8) and ART/Livability (4.6) are above the Brooklyn medians of 7.5 and 4.4, Commute (5.5) equals its median, and Outdoor (5.4) is below 5.9.
14Is Cypress Hills safe?
DwellCheck rates it higher than average: it has a lower crime rate per resident than 44% of Brooklyn neighborhoods, with 2,378 crimes and 9 shootings in 12 months. The trend is stable (+4.6%).
15Which subway stations are in Cypress Hills?
Crescent St (J, Z), Norwood Av (J, Z) and Cleveland St (J).
16How noisy is Cypress Hills?
There were 4,003 noise complaints in 12 months, 92.5 per 1,000 residents, labelled Moderate among the NYC neighborhoods DwellCheck tracks.
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