Westwood is a medium-sized town located in the state of Massachusetts. With a population of 16,533 people and three associated neighborhoods, Westwood is the 125th largest community in Massachusetts.
Westwood home prices are not only among the most expensive in Massachusetts, but Westwood real estate also consistently ranks among the most expensive in America.
Also of interest is that Westwood has more people living here who work in computers and math than 95% of the places in the US.
Of important note, Westwood is also a town of artists. Westwood has more artists, designers and people working in media than 90% of the communities in America. This concentration of artists helps shape Westwood’s character.
One interesting thing about the economy is that relatively large numbers of people worked from their home: 23.41% of the workforce. While this number may seem small overall, as a fraction of the total workforce this is high compared to the rest of the county. These workers are often telecommuters who work in knowledge-based, white-collar professions. For example, Silicon Valley has large numbers of people who telecommute. Other at-home workers may be self-employed people who operate small businesses out of their homes.
Because of many things, Westwood is a very good place for families to consider. With an enviable combination of good schools, low crime, college-educated neighbors who tend to support education because of their own experiences, and a high rate of home ownership in predominantly single-family properties, Westwood really has some of the features that families look for when choosing a good community to raise children. Is Westwood perfect? Of course not, and if you like frenetic nightlife, it will be far from your cup of tea. But overall this is a solid community, with many things to recommend it as a family-friendly place to live.
One downside of living in Westwood is that it can take a long time to commute to work. In Westwood, the average commute to work is 31.71 minutes, which is quite a bit higher than the national average. On the other hand, local public transit is widely used in the town, so leaving the car at home and taking transit is often a viable alternative.
Even though Westwood is a smaller town, it has many people who hop on public transportation – mostly the train for their daily commute to work. Typically, these people are commuting to good jobs in the surrounding cities.
If knowledge is power, Westwood is a pretty powerful place. 71.02% of the adults in Westwood have earned a 4-year college degree, masters degree, MD, law degree, or even PhD. Compare that to the national average of 21.84% for all cities and towns.
The per capita income in Westwood in 2022 was $86,172, which is wealthy relative to Massachusetts and the nation. This equates to an annual income of $344,688 for a family of four.
Westwood is a very ethnically-diverse town. The people who call Westwood home describe themselves as belonging to a variety of racial and ethnic groups. The greatest number of Westwood residents report their race to be White, followed by Asian. Important ancestries of people in Westwood include Irish, Italian, English, German, and Greek.
The most common language spoken in Westwood is English. Other important languages spoken here include Chinese and Spanish.