Fort Lauderdale’s neighborhoods conjure up too many stereotypes to count. You’ve got hipster areas, preppy places, neighborhoods where college kids thrive, and of course, ghettos.
It seems as if there’s a neighborhood for everyone in Fort Lauderdale.
And while the city consistently ranks as one of the best places to live in Florida thanks in part to tons of entertainment and jobs, it’s not all rainbows and sunshine in Fort Lauderdale. Some neighborhoods aren’t as safe as others.
So the question arises, which Fort Lauderdale neighborhoods are the most dangerous and which are the safest?
Today, we’ll use Saturday Night Science to determine which Fort Lauderdale hoods need a little tender loving care. We examined 51 of Fort Lauderdale’s neighborhoods to find out the most dangerous places to live.
$24,019 median income
$40,588 median income
$38,162 median income
$26,676 median income
$36,795 median income
$61,192 median income
$43,376 median income
$41,951 median income
$98,125 median income
$56,481 median income
The receipts
Compare the top ten
Pick a metric. The bars rescale. The red line is Florida’s statewide median.
Florida statewide median: $375,662
Florida statewide median: $74,568
Saturday Night Science
Methodology: How we determined the most dangerous Fort Lauderdale neighborhoods in 2026
To figure out how bad a place is to live in, we only needed to know what kinds of things people like and then decide what places have the least amount of those things. We plugged the following criteria into Saturday Night Science to get the worst neighborhoods in Fort Lauderdale:
- High crime (Estimated)
- High unemployment (Less jobs)
- Low median income (Less pay)
- Low population density (No things to do)
- Low home values (No one’s willing to pay to live here)
Then, we ranked each neighborhood in Fort Lauderdale, Florida for each of these criteria from worst to best.
Next, we averaged the individual rankings for each criterion into a “Worst Score.”
The neighborhood with the lowest “Worst Score” ranks as the most dangerous neighborhood of Fort Lauderdale.
The article is an opinion based on facts and is meant as infotainment. We updated this article for 2026. Skip to the end to see the list of all 51 neighborhoods ranked from worst to best.
The full plate
Most dangerous neighborhoods to live in Fort Lauderdale for 2026
Click any column to sort. Search by neighborhood name.
| Rank | Neighborhood | Population | Home Value | Median Income |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Home Beautiful Park | 1,015 | $214,400 | $24,019 |
| 2 | Dillard Park | 1,508 | $178,267 | $40,588 |
| 3 | Lake Aire Palm View | 1,738 | $189,650 | $38,162 |
| 4 | Durrs Homeowners | 3,074 | $198,133 | $26,676 |
| 5 | Dorsey-Riverbend | 6,355 | $140,800 | $36,795 |
| 6 | Lauderdale West | 1,162 | $198,000 | $61,192 |
| 7 | Lauderdale Manors | 9,769 | $180,980 | $43,376 |
| 8 | Progresso Village | 4,023 | $292,100 | $41,951 |
| 9 | Palm-Aire Village | 327 | $149,700 | $98,125 |
| 10 | Poinciana Park | 1,642 | $307,140 | $56,481 |
| 11 | City View Townhome | 205 | $303,600 | $49,648 |
| 12 | Sunset | 3,590 | $218,467 | $69,581 |
| 13 | Melrose Manors | 4,435 | $255,233 | $70,588 |
| 14 | South Middle River | 8,204 | $260,583 | $49,570 |
| 15 | Bay Colony Club | 152 | $243,000 | $49,643 |
| 16 | Riverside Park | 4,495 | $386,600 | $34,380 |
| 17 | Boulevard Park Isles | 716 | $409,800 | $61,092 |
| 18 | Edgewood | 3,574 | $250,333 | $78,403 |
| 19 | Flamingo Park | 1,000 | $278,500 | $72,317 |
| 20 | Coral Ridge Isles | 3,673 | $426,067 | $55,075 |
| 21 | Bay Colony | 451 | $243,000 | $49,643 |
| 21 | River Run | 920 | $369,200 | $114,676 |
| 23 | Croissant Park | 2,047 | $286,550 | $82,928 |
| 24 | Landings | 1,165 | $440,000 | $57,979 |
| 25 | Tarpon River | 3,466 | $416,425 | $68,617 |
| 26 | Middle River Terrace | 3,725 | $386,467 | $49,516 |
| 27 | Knoll Ridge | 2,247 | $406,400 | $51,607 |
| 28 | Imperial Point | 7,118 | $391,840 | $78,000 |
| 29 | Coral Shores | 238 | $521,600 | $59,698 |
| 29 | North Golf Estates | 379 | $637,000 | $65,967 |
| 31 | Sunrise Key | 375 | $535,200 | $30,395 |
| 32 | Bermuda Riviera | 1,028 | $239,800 | $70,750 |
| 33 | Lake Estates | 395 | $637,000 | $65,967 |
| 34 | Harbordale | 2,524 | $586,040 | $71,099 |
| 35 | Central Beach Alliance | 2,213 | $394,100 | $103,681 |
| 36 | Flagler Heights | 3,680 | $336,200 | $64,792 |
| 37 | Harbour Isles | 317 | $581,600 | $118,295 |
| 38 | Poinsettia Heights | 2,613 | $417,350 | $84,340 |
| 39 | Sailboat Bend | 2,941 | $426,800 | $79,258 |
| 40 | River Oaks | 3,672 | $429,533 | $79,550 |
| 40 | Seven Isles | 305 | $573,400 | $128,204 |
| 42 | Harbour Inlet | 441 | $581,600 | $118,295 |
| 43 | Lake Ridge | 3,068 | $382,000 | $70,934 |
| 44 | Harbor Beach | 703 | $581,600 | $184,148 |
| 44 | Lauderdale Harbours | 628 | $1,005,100 | $80,703 |
| 47 | Coral Ridge Country Club | 5,170 | $581,583 | $97,260 |
| 47 | Downtown | 4,634 | $398,767 | $95,335 |
| 47 | Victoria Park | 7,151 | $649,825 | $81,570 |
| 49 | Galt Mile | 2,133 | $420,867 | $83,697 |
| 50 | Coral Ridge | 4,880 | $748,025 | $95,293 |
| 51 | Rio Vista | 2,802 | $918,400 | $130,188 |
Source: U.S. Census ACS 2020-2024. All 51 Fort Lauderdale neighborhoods.
Summary
Summary: The worst neighborhoods around Fort Lauderdale
Well, there you have it — the worst of the neighborhoods in Fort Lauderdale with Home Beautiful Park landing at the bottom of the pack.
The worst neighborhoods in Fort Lauderdale are Home Beautiful Park, Dillard Park, Lake Aire Palm View, Durrs Homeowners, Dorsey-Riverbend, Lauderdale West, Lauderdale Manors, Progresso Village, Palm-Aire Village, and Poinciana Park.
As mentioned earlier, the neighborhoods in Fort Lauderdale aren’t all bad. Rio Vista takes the cake as the best place to live in Fort Lauderdale.
We ranked the neighborhoods from worst to best in the chart below. Not sold on Florida? Take the two-minute Find Your Place quiz and see which state actually fits you.
Questions and answers
Worst Neighborhoods In Fort Lauderdale FAQs
What is the most dangerous neighborhood in Fort Lauderdale?
Home Beautiful Park ranks as the worst neighborhood in Fort Lauderdale for 2026, according to Saturday Night Science. Dillard Park and Lake Aire Palm View are next on the list.
What are the worst neighborhoods in Fort Lauderdale?
The worst-ranked neighborhoods in Fort Lauderdale are Home Beautiful Park, Dillard Park, Lake Aire Palm View, Durrs Homeowners, Dorsey-Riverbend, Lauderdale West, Lauderdale Manors, Progresso Village, Palm-Aire Village, and Poinciana Park. We scored all 51 neighborhoods in the city.
Why does Home Beautiful Park rank as the worst?
Home Beautiful Park posts the roughest combined numbers in Fort Lauderdale: a median household income of $24,019 and a median home value of $214,400, with crime, unemployment, and density folded into the score.
Are these neighborhoods dangerous everywhere?
No. The scores are neighborhood-wide averages, and conditions change block by block and hour by hour. Plenty of people live in these neighborhoods without incident; the numbers just say the odds run tougher.
How do you rank the worst neighborhoods?
Each neighborhood is scored on crime, unemployment, income, density, and home values, using Census tract and FBI data. The worst combined score tops the list.
