A Neighborhoods Guide to Far Rockaway, NY
Far Rockaway is a specific, boundable place, and it gets flattened more often than almost any other market this site covers -- lumped into a generic "the Rockaways" narrative with Rockaway Beach, Rockaway Park, Belle Harbor, and Neponsit, or quietly merged with the adjacent, genuinely separate neighborhood of Bayswater. Neither is accurate. Far Rockaway occupies the easternmost section of the Rockaway Peninsula, an area of roughly 1,251 acres running generally from Beach 32nd Street east to the Nassau County line, and it has its own history, its own governance under Queens Community Board 14, and its own current redevelopment story that has nothing to do with the surf-culture identity of Rockaway Beach further west. This guide walks through Far Rockaway's actual sub-areas -- Downtown Far Rockaway, the Far Rockaway Beach Bungalow Historic District, and the Redfern Avenue corridor -- and draws a clear line around the neighborhoods it borders but is not part of.
Where Far Rockaway Actually Starts and Ends
Far Rockaway sits at the eastern tip of the Rockaway Peninsula, bounded by Jamaica Bay to the north and northwest, the Atlantic Ocean to the south, and the Nassau County line to the east. Across that county line sit the Five Towns -- Lawrence, Cedarhurst, Woodmere, Hewlett, and Inwood -- which share the LIRR Far Rockaway Branch with Far Rockaway but are a separate Nassau County market, not a part of this Queens neighborhood. To the west, Far Rockaway is separated from Rockaway Beach and Rockaway Park by two genuinely distinct, adjacent neighborhoods in between: Arverne and Edgemere. Neither Arverne nor Edgemere is a sub-part of Far Rockaway, and Far Rockaway is not a sub-part of either. The same separation applies further west still to Belle Harbor and Neponsit, which are their own neighborhoods entirely and should never be treated as Far Rockaway addresses.
Bayswater sits directly adjacent to Far Rockaway along Jamaica Bay, and sourcing on exactly how the two relate is inconsistent -- some references describe Bayswater as effectively part of Far Rockaway, others treat it as fully separate. This guide takes the more conservative, distinct-neighborhood view: Bayswater is its own place, with its own early-1900s shingle-style, Queen Anne, and Dutch Colonial wood-frame housing stock, and buyers should not assume a Far Rockaway search automatically includes it, or vice versa. Governance-wise, Far Rockaway is unincorporated New York City territory within the Borough of Queens, covered by Queens Community Board 14 -- the same advisory-only board that also covers Rockaway Beach, Rockaway Park, Belle Harbor, Neponsit, Arverne, Bayswater, and Edgemere. CB14 has no power to direct any city agency; there is no separate mayor, village board, or municipal charter here. Two ZIP codes, 11691 and 11693, are commonly associated with Far Rockaway, though 11693 also appears in some sourcing tied to Rockaway Beach and Broad Channel, so it is not a clean, single-ZIP boundary.
Downtown Far Rockaway: The 2017 Rezoning and What Followed
Downtown Far Rockaway is the neighborhood's commercial core, and it is also the site of the most consequential planning decision Far Rockaway has seen in decades. In September 2017, the New York City Council approved the Special Downtown Far Rockaway District, rezoning 23 blocks from largely commercial use to mixed-use, permitting up to 3,100 new residences along with active ground-floor retail and inclusionary affordable housing requirements. The following year, the city announced plans for 670 affordable apartments as part of that pipeline. Public investment tied to the rezoning is cited at roughly $228 million total, including a $139 million street and infrastructure reconstruction project and a new, roughly 18,000-square-foot Queens Public Library branch designed by Snohetta that opened in July 2024, with a construction cost estimated at $30 to $40 million across sources that do not fully agree on a single figure.
That combination -- a formal rezoning permitting thousands of new units, a nine-figure public infrastructure commitment, and a signature new library building -- is a genuinely different story from the rest of the peninsula's more residential, lower-rise character, and it is worth treating Downtown Far Rockaway as its own distinct sub-area rather than folding it into a generalized picture of the neighborhood.
The Far Rockaway Beach Bungalow Historic District
A second, entirely different sub-area worth knowing on its own terms is the Far Rockaway Beach Bungalow Historic District, centered on Beach 24th, 25th, and 26th Streets. Roughly 100 surviving bungalows there were built starting in 1921 to designs by architect Henry Hohauser, who later became known for his Art Deco hotel work in Miami Beach. The district was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2013, following advocacy from the Beachside Bungalow Preservation Association, founded in 1984. The bungalow community thrived roughly through 1950, then declined as automobile travel drew visitors elsewhere and the rail line serving the peninsula deteriorated; many bungalows were demolished by the 1980s amid broader disinvestment in the area.
The historic district's survival to National Register listing is a preservation success story sitting inside a neighborhood that also carries real, documented decades of decline -- both things are true at once, and neither cancels the other out.
Redfern Avenue: NYCHA History and the Rockaway Village Project
Redfern Avenue is a specific corridor worth flagging separately from both Downtown and the bungalow district. Redfern Houses, a NYCHA public-housing complex of nine buildings ranging six to seven stories, was built in August 1959. Thirty first-floor apartments there were damaged by Hurricane Sandy in October 2012, and NYCHA launched a $123 million PACT rehabilitation of the complex in October 2017 to address that damage and modernize the buildings.
Redfern Avenue is also the site of the Rockaway Village project, a proposed development of 1,700 affordable housing units across eight buildings of eight to fifteen stories, with 590 parking spaces and more than 110,000 square feet of commercial and community space planned alongside the housing. Between the existing NYCHA campus and the Rockaway Village proposal, Redfern Avenue is one of the more active redevelopment locations in Far Rockaway and is worth tracking separately from the Downtown rezoning footprint.
Real Estate Character Across Far Rockaway's Sections
Housing stock varies meaningfully by sub-area. Outer sections of Far Rockaway carry small-lot one- and two-family houses, while larger multi-unit apartment buildings concentrate closer to Downtown. Several large NYCHA public-housing campuses sit adjacent to Downtown Far Rockaway, and beachfront "towers-in-the-park" developments such as Wavecrest Gardens -- 1,661 market-rate units spread across ten buildings -- add another housing type to the mix, alongside a smaller number of co-op buildings. None of that describes Bayswater, which, again, is a distinct, adjacent neighborhood with its own early-1900s shingle-style, Queen Anne, and Dutch Colonial housing stock rather than a Far Rockaway sub-section.
No reliable current 2026 median home price, rent, or co-op maintenance figure specific to any of these Far Rockaway sub-areas was confirmed in the research behind this page, and none is invented here to fill that gap. What is documented, from a May 2009 New York Post report, is that of 126 speculative homes built in Far Rockaway between 2004 and 2006, at least 76 percent had been foreclosed on or were in some stage of foreclosure by the time of that report -- real historical context on the mid-2000s speculative building bust in this specific neighborhood, not a current-market data point. Anyone evaluating a specific property here -- whether near Downtown, in the bungalow district, along Redfern Avenue, or in an outer section -- should get current pricing and comparable-sales information from a local real estate agent, current tax figures from the NYC Department of Finance for that specific parcel, and a flood-zone insurance quote from a licensed broker given this peninsula's Hurricane Sandy history. Nothing on this page is legal, tax, insurance, or financial advice.
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Get a Free Agent Referral →Independent research. No ads. No sponsored listings. Data drawn from research on Far Rockaway, a neighborhood in the Borough of Queens, New York City, occupying the easternmost section of the Rockaway Peninsula. Area approximately 1,251 acres. Boundaries: generally Beach 32nd Street east to the Nassau County line, Jamaica Bay/Bayswater to the north/northwest, the Atlantic Ocean to the south; separated from Rockaway Beach and Rockaway Park by the distinct, adjacent neighborhoods of Arverne and Edgemere; borders the Five Towns (Lawrence, Cedarhurst, Woodmere, Hewlett, Inwood) in Nassau County to the east, which share the LIRR Far Rockaway Branch. Bayswater is treated here as a distinct, adjacent neighborhood rather than a Far Rockaway sub-part, per inconsistent sourcing on that boundary. Falls under Queens Community Board 14 (advisory-only; also covers Rockaway Beach, Rockaway Park, Belle Harbor, Neponsit, Arverne, Bayswater, and Edgemere); no separate mayor, village board, or municipal charter. ZIP codes 11691 and 11693, with 11693 also appearing in some sourcing tied to Rockaway Beach/Broad Channel. September 2017 NYC Council rezoning of 23 blocks of Downtown Far Rockaway (Special Downtown Far Rockaway District) permitting up to 3,100 new residences; 670 affordable apartments announced in 2018; approximately $228 million in public investment since the rezoning, including a $139 million infrastructure reconstruction project and a roughly 18,000-square-foot Snohetta-designed Queens Public Library branch that opened July 2024 at an estimated $30-40 million. Far Rockaway Beach Bungalow Historic District: approximately 100 bungalows on Beach 24th/25th/26th Streets, built starting 1921 to designs by architect Henry Hohauser, listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2013 following advocacy by the Beachside Bungalow Preservation Association (founded 1984); community thrived to roughly 1950, declined afterward, with many bungalows demolished by the 1980s. Redfern Houses NYCHA complex (nine buildings, six to seven stories) built August 1959; 30 first-floor apartments damaged by Hurricane Sandy (October 29, 2012); $123 million PACT rehabilitation launched October 2017. Rockaway Village project proposed for Redfern Avenue: 1,700 affordable units across eight buildings (8-15 stories), 590 parking spaces, 110,000+ square feet of commercial/community space. Real estate character: small-lot one- and two-family houses in outer sections; larger multi-unit buildings near Downtown; several NYCHA campuses adjacent to Downtown; Wavecrest Gardens (1,661 market-rate units, 10 buildings); a mix of co-op buildings. A May 2009 New York Post report found at least 76 percent of 126 speculative homes built in Far Rockaway 2004-2006 had been foreclosed on or were in some stage of foreclosure -- historical context, not a current figure. No precise current 2026 median home price, rent, property tax rate, flood insurance premium, or co-op maintenance figure specific to Far Rockaway was confirmed, and none is invented here. This page does not conflate Far Rockaway with Rockaway Beach, Rockaway Park, Belle Harbor, or Neponsit, and does not treat Bayswater, Arverne, or Edgemere as Far Rockaway sub-areas. Confirm current price, tax, and insurance figures with a local real estate agent, the NYC Department of Finance, and a licensed insurance broker before making any purchase decision. Nothing on this page is legal, tax, insurance, or financial advice.