In addition, Norfolk is home to many people who could be described as "urban sophisticates", which are people who are not only wealthy and employed in professional occupations, but highly educated to boot. Urban sophisticates have urbane tastes - whether they reside in a big or small city, a suburb, or a little town. Urban sophisticates support bookstores, quality clothing stores, enjoy luxury travel, and in big cities, they are truly the patrons of the arts, attending and supporting institutions such as opera, symphony, ballet, and theatre.
Norfolk 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, Norfolk’s overall crime rate ranks among the lowest in the country, making it one of the safest places to raise a family.
In Norfolk, however, the average commute to work is quite long. On average, people spend 36.72 minutes each day getting to work, which is significantly higher than the national average. One bright side is that local public transit is widely used, so it may be an option to avoid the headache of driving in the heavy traffic by leaving the car at home and taking transit.
In Norfolk, a lot of people use the train to get to work every day though Norfolk is a relatively small town. Those that ride the train are primarily traveling out of town to good jobs in other cities.
If knowledge is power, Norfolk is a pretty powerful place. 58.55% of the adults in Norfolk 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 Norfolk in 2022 was $70,548, which is upper middle income relative to Massachusetts, and wealthy relative to the rest of the US. This equates to an annual income of $282,192 for a family of four.
Norfolk is a somewhat ethnically-diverse town. The people who call Norfolk home describe themselves as belonging to a variety of racial and ethnic groups. The greatest number of Norfolk residents report their race to be White, followed by Black or African-American. Important ancestries of people in Norfolk include Irish, English, Italian, German, and Scottish.
The most common language spoken in Norfolk is English. Other important languages spoken here include Spanish and Portuguese.
