menu

Shirley, MA

This is a small community in a single neighborhood. As throughout the site, some neighborhood-level data are reserved for subscribers.





Overview


Shirley is a somewhat small town located in the state of Massachusetts. With a population of 6,851 people and just one neighborhood, Shirley is the 215th largest community in Massachusetts.

Housing costs in Shirley are among some of the highest in the nation, although real estate prices here don't compare to real estate prices in the most expensive communities in Massachusetts.

Occupations and Workforce

Shirley is a decidedly white-collar town, with fully 85.86% of the workforce employed in white-collar jobs, well above the national average. Overall, Shirley is a town of professionals, managers, and sales and office workers. There are especially a lot of people living in Shirley who work in management occupations (17.68%), office and administrative support (10.24%), and teaching (7.91%).

Also of interest is that Shirley has more people living here who work in computers and math than 95% of the places in the US.

Of important note, Shirley is also a town of artists. Shirley has more artists, designers and people working in media than 90% of the communities in America. This concentration of artists helps shape Shirley’s character.

A relatively large number of people in Shirley telecommute to their jobs. Overall, about 19.52% of the workforce works from home. While this may seem like a small number, as a fraction of the total workforce it ranks among the highest in the country. 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.

Setting & Lifestyle

Shirley is a good choice for families with children because of several factors. Many other families with children live here, making it a place where both parents and children are more likely to develop social ties with other families. The town’s good public school district and large population of college-educated adults provide an environment conducive to academic success. Many people own their own single-family homes, providing areas for children to play and stability in the community. Finally, Shirley’s overall crime rate is lower than average for the country.

One downside of living in Shirley, however, is that residents on average have to contend with a long commute, spending on average 36.77 minutes every day commuting to work.

Demographics

The population of Shirley is very well educated relative to most cities and towns in the nation, where the average community has 21.84% of its adult population holding a 4-year degree or higher: 35.59% of adults in Shirley have a bachelor's degree or even advanced degree.

The per capita income in Shirley in 2022 was $48,541, which is lower middle income relative to Massachusetts, and wealthy relative to the rest of the US. This equates to an annual income of $194,164 for a family of four.

Shirley is a very ethnically-diverse town. The people who call Shirley home describe themselves as belonging to a variety of racial and ethnic groups. The greatest number of Shirley residents report their race to be White, followed by Black or African-American. Important ancestries of people in Shirley include Irish, English, Italian, French, and Scottish.

The most common language spoken in Shirley is English. Other important languages spoken here include Spanish and Polish.

Notable & Unique Neighborhood Characteristics

The way a neighborhood looks and feels when you walk or drive around it, from its setting, its buildings, and its flavor, can make all the difference. This neighborhood has some really cool things about the way it looks and feels as revealed by NeighborhoodScout's exclusive research. This might include anything from the housing stock to the types of households living here to how people get around.

People

In a nation where 1 out of every 4 children lives in poverty, the neighborhood stands out as being ranked among the lowest 0.0% of neighborhoods affected by this global issue.

In addition, of particular note, 17.7% of the people in the neighborhood currently reside in a correction facility, held due to punishment for a crime.

Also, if you're planning where to retire, the neighborhood in Shirley is a great option to consider. According to NeighborhoodScout's exclusive retirement dream area analysis, it's peaceful and quiet, has above average safety ratings compared to other neighborhoods in MA, offers a wide range of housing options, and has already attracted an enviable mix of college educated seniors. This neighborhood ranks as better for retirement living than 86.3% of the neighborhoods in Massachusetts. If you are considering retiring to Massachusetts, this is a good neighborhood to look at.

Length of Commute

Regardless of the means by which residents commute, this neighborhood has a length of commute that is notable. Long commutes can be brutal. They take time, money, and energy, leaving less of you for yourself and your family. The residents of the neighborhood unfortunately have the distinction of having, on average, a longer commute than most any neighborhood in America. 9.9% of commuters here travel more than one hour just one-way to work. That is more than two hours per day. This percentage with two-hour + round-trip commutes is higher than NeighborhoodScout found in 95.4% of all neighborhoods in America.

Diversity

Did you know that the neighborhood has more Scottish and French ancestry people living in it than nearly any neighborhood in America? It's true! In fact, 7.4% of this neighborhood's residents have Scottish ancestry and 10.1% have French ancestry.

The Neighbors

There are two complementary measures for understanding the income of a neighborhood's residents: the average and the extremes. While a neighborhood may be relatively wealthy overall, it is equally important to understand the rate of people - particularly children - who are living at or below the federal poverty line, which is extremely low income. Some neighborhoods with a lower average income may actually have a lower childhood poverty rate than another with a higher average income, and this helps us understand the conditions and character of a neighborhood.

The neighbors in the neighborhood in Shirley are wealthy, making it among the 15% highest income neighborhoods in America. NeighborhoodScout's exclusive analysis reveals that this neighborhood has a higher income than 85.1% of the neighborhoods in America. In addition, 0.0% of the children seventeen and under living in this neighborhood are living below the federal poverty line, which is a lower rate of childhood poverty than is found in 100.0% of America's neighborhoods.

A neighborhood is far different if it is dominated by enlisted military personnel rather than people who earn their living by farming. It is also different if most of the neighbors are clerical support or managers. What is wonderful is the sheer diversity of neighborhoods, allowing you to find the type that fits your lifestyle and aspirations.

In the neighborhood, 59.3% of the working population is employed in executive, management, and professional occupations. The second most important occupational group in this neighborhood is sales and service jobs, from major sales accounts, to working in fast food restaurants, with 15.1% of the residents employed. Other residents here are employed in manufacturing and laborer occupations (14.1%), and 11.5% in clerical, assistant, and tech support occupations.

Languages

The languages spoken by people in this neighborhood are diverse. These are tabulated as the languages people preferentially speak when they are at home with their families. The most common language spoken in the neighborhood is English, spoken by 88.1% of households. Other important languages spoken here include Spanish, Polish and Langs. of India.

Ethnicity / Ancestry

Culture is the shared learned behavior of peoples. Undeniably, different ethnicities and ancestries have different cultural traditions, and as a result, neighborhoods with concentrations of residents of one or another ethnicities or ancestries will express those cultures. It is what makes the North End in Boston so fun to visit for the Italian restaurants, bakeries, culture, and charm, and similarly, why people enjoy visiting Chinatown in San Francisco.

In the neighborhood in Shirley, MA, residents most commonly identify their ethnicity or ancestry as Irish (24.0%). There are also a number of people of English ancestry (14.4%), and residents who report Italian roots (11.7%), and some of the residents are also of French ancestry (10.1%), along with some Scottish ancestry residents (7.4%), among others.

Getting to Work

How you get to work – car, bus, train or other means – and how much of your day it takes to do so is a large quality of life and financial issue. Especially with gasoline prices rising and expected to continue doing so, the length and means of one's commute can be a financial burden. Some neighborhoods are physically located so that many residents have to drive in their own car, others are set up so many walk to work, or can take a train, bus, or bike. The greatest number of commuters in neighborhood spend between 45 minutes and one hour commuting one-way to work (27.6% of working residents), longer and tougher than most commutes in America.

Here most residents (75.8%) drive alone in a private automobile to get to work. In a neighborhood like this, as in most of the nation, many residents find owning a car useful for getting to work.


Real Estate includes:
Average Home Values
Rental Market
Housing Market Details
Neighborhood Setting
Economics & Demographics include:
Lifestyle & Special Character
Household Types
Commute To Work
Migration & Mobility
Race & Ethnic Diversity
Employment Industries & Occupations
Income & Unemployment Rate
Higher Education Attainment
Crime includes:
Neighborhood Crime Index
Crimes Per Square Mile
Property Crime Comparison
Violent Crime Comparison
Schools include:
School Ratings
Schools In District
Public School Test Scores
School District Enrollment
Educational Expenditures

comparable neighborhoods nearby