Is Ditmas Park Safe? Brooklyn Livability, Crime & Rent
Ditmas Park scores 6.6: a leafy, walk-up neighborhood with dense trees and safety credentials, but noise is an active concern.
Ditmas Park at a glance
- Borough
- Brooklyn
- Livability score
- 6.6/10
- Borough rank (NYC Open Data guides)
- #6 of 28
- Safety verdict
- Safer Than Average
- Crimes (12 mo)
- 1,633
- ZIP codes
- 11230 (55%), 11218 (25%), 11226 (20%)Share of residential units, NYC PLUTO 26v2
- Subway stations
- 5 (Church Av, Beverley Rd, Cortelyou Rd)
- Data updated
- 2026-09-14
Is Ditmas Park Safe?
Ditmas Park, Brooklyn scores 6.6/10 for overall livability, ranking #6 of 28 Brooklyn neighborhoods scored from NYC Open Data. Ditmas Park scores 6.6: a leafy, walk-up neighborhood with dense trees and safety credentials, but noise is an active concern.
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 Ditmas Park safety page. Safety varies by block — check a specific Ditmas Park 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 yourself on tree-lined blocks where Victorian homes and low-rise walk-ups dominate—every address is a walk-up, giving the neighborhood a consistent, human-scaled feel. The tree density here is high at 8.6/10, with an average of 227 trees within a 200-meter radius, creating a genuinely leafy streetscape. Cortelyou Road anchors the area with dining and local commerce, while the B and Q trains (Church Av, Beverley Rd, Cortelyou Rd, Newkirk Plaza) and the F at 18 Av keep you connected to the rest of the city. The suburban bones are real: the nearest parks, Flatbush Malls and Lt. Federico Narvaez Tot Lot; the 3 nearest parks average 436 meters from the neighborhood's center.
Livability & Restoration
Trees
227 trees
Expected in a 200m circle (NYC Parks tree inventory) | Density: 8.6/10 (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
2 parks
NYC Parks properties inside the neighborhood | largest: Flatbush Malls | nearest to the center: Lt. Federico Narvaez Tot Lot, 191m | 3 nearest average 436m from the neighborhood's center
Acoustic Quality
5/10
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.
More than a point above the Brooklyn median: denser trees, fewer noise complaints per resident, or both.
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
7.5/10
Borough median: 5.5/10
Outdoor & Green Space
Avg Tree Count
227
Trees expected in a 200m circle
Tree Density
8.6/10
1,805 trees per km² in NYC Parks' tree inventory (street and park trees); city percentile, 1 = sparsest
Largest Parks In or Near the Neighborhood
- Flatbush Malls
- Lt. Federico Narvaez Tot Lot
Nearest to the neighborhood's center: Lt. Federico Narvaez Tot Lot, about 191m. The 3 nearest NYC Parks properties average 436m from the center (approximate park centers, not entrances).
Practical Living
Practical (HPD violations): 6/10 (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 3,032 residential tax lots in the neighborhood by PLUTO building class (NYC Department of City Planning).
Who Ditmas Park Is For
Tree-focused residents
Tree density of 8.6/10 and 227 average trees per 200m radius. ART/Livability score of 6.3 reflects this greenery advantage.
Safety-conscious renters
Ditmas Park has a lower crime rate per resident than 69% of Brooklyn neighborhoods; rodent complaints are very high at 321. The tradeoff: noise complaints are moderate at 1,962.
Transit commuters
Commute score of 7.5 beats the borough median of 5.5, with B, Q and F train stations in the neighborhood.
Pros & Cons
Strengths
Exceptional tree density
8.6/10 tree density with 227 trees per 200m radius—dense green coverage supports the suburban feel.
Above-average neighborhood safety
Lower crime rate per resident than 69% of Brooklyn neighborhoods; crime down 5.1% year-over-year.
Direct transit access
B and Q trains at Church Av, Beverley Rd, Cortelyou Rd and Newkirk Plaza; F train at 18 Av. Multiple lines reduce dependency on single route.
Trade-offs
Moderate noise complaints
1,962 noise complaints (Moderate category).
Score Any Address in Ditmas Park
Get detailed livability scores based on building health, transit access, safety, noise levels, and 15+ NYC data sources.
Search an Address in Ditmas ParkFrequently Asked Questions about Ditmas Park
1Is Ditmas Park safe?
By NYPD data, Ditmas Park is rated "Safer Than Average", with a lower crime rate per resident than 69% of Brooklyn neighborhoods. 1,633 crime incidents and 1 shooting incident over the past 12 months. See the safety page for the full breakdown.
2What is the average rent in Ditmas Park?
Rents in Ditmas Park, 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 Ditmas Park?
Ditmas Park has a commute score of 7.5/10. 5 subway stations serve the area: Church Av, Beverley Rd, Cortelyou Rd.
4What are the best streets in Ditmas Park?
The best streets depend on your priorities. Use DwellCheck to compare specific addresses across livability, safety, transit, and environmental factors.
5What is Ditmas Park known for?
Ditmas Park sits in Brooklyn and ranks #6 of 28 Brooklyn neighborhoods scored from NYC Open Data on DwellCheck's livability score (6.6/10). It's served by 5 subway stations (Church Av, Beverley Rd, Cortelyou Rd). Ditmas Park scores 6.6: a leafy, walk-up neighborhood with dense trees and safety credentials, but noise is an active concern.
6What is it like to live in Ditmas Park?
DwellCheck scores Ditmas Park, 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). Ditmas Park's composite is 6.6/10. Ditmas Park scores 6.6: a leafy, walk-up neighborhood with dense trees and safety credentials, but noise is an active concern. For the block-by-block view, run any specific Ditmas Park address through DwellCheck.
7Where is Ditmas Park?
Ditmas Park is in Brooklyn, New York City. DwellCheck maps it to the Flatbush (West)-Ditmas Park-Parkville Neighborhood Tabulation Area (BK1402), which falls in the Census tabulation area that approximates Brooklyn Community District 14 (Flatbush-Midwood). Its main ZIP codes are 11230, 11218 and 11226. Subway stations in the neighborhood include Church Av, Beverley Rd and Cortelyou Rd.
8What ZIP code is Ditmas Park in?
Ditmas Park spans ZIP codes 11230 (55% of residential units), 11218 (25%) and 11226 (20%). Shares are of the 16,101 residential units in the Flatbush (West)-Ditmas Park-Parkville Neighborhood Tabulation Area (BK1402), from NYC PLUTO 26v2 tax-lot records.
9Can you walk around Ditmas Park at night?
Ditmas Park is classified as "Safer Than Average" by NYPD complaint data. Over the past 12 months it recorded 1 shooting incident and 1,633 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 Ditmas Park dangerous?
By NYPD data, Ditmas Park is rated "Safer Than Average", with a lower crime rate per resident than 69% of Brooklyn neighborhoods. 1,633 crime incidents over 12 months. Block-level risk varies; check the address-level safety score for any specific street or building.
11What parts of Ditmas Park 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 Ditmas Park a good place to live?
Ditmas Park scores 6.6/10 for overall livability and has a lower crime rate per resident than 69% of Brooklyn neighborhoods. Ditmas Park scores 6.6: a leafy, walk-up neighborhood with dense trees and safety credentials, but noise is an active concern. 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 Ditmas Park?
The composite score is 6.6. The Commute score of 7.5 is your biggest advantage; Practical (6) sits below the borough median of 7.5.
14Is Ditmas Park safe?
Ditmas Park has a lower crime rate per resident than 69% of Brooklyn neighborhoods—you're in a safer pocket. Crime has fallen 5.1% in the past 12 months, with 1,633 total crimes. Noise complaints are moderate at 1,962, suggesting street-level disturbances, and rodent complaints are very high.
15What is the building stock like?
One-family houses are the largest group, on 45% of residential tax lots. Victorian homes and low-rise walk-ups define the block face—no elevator buildings tracked in the 7 monitored addresses. This limits options for those needing elevator access.
16How green is Ditmas Park?
Tree density of 8.6/10 with an average of 227 trees per 200-meter radius. ART/Livability score of 6.3 reflects this advantage. Flatbush Malls and Lt. Federico Narvaez Tot Lot are the largest parks; the 3 nearest average 436m from the neighborhood's center.
17How is transit access?
B and Q trains serve Church Av, Beverley Rd, Cortelyou Rd and Newkirk Plaza; the F train serves 18 Av. Commute score of 7.5 is above the borough median of 5.5. Multiple lines reduce single-route dependency.
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