Rego Park vs Forest Hills: Which Queens Neighborhood Is Right for You in 2026?

Short answer: the gap between Rego Park and Forest Hills is in the houses, not the apartments.

Buy an apartment and the two neighborhoods cost close to the same money. In the most recent 2026 readings from PropertyShark, the median co-op sale price was $334,000 in Rego Park and $330,000 in Forest Hills. Per square foot, Rego Park co-ops actually priced slightly higher, $427 against $411. Houses are a different market entirely. The median house sold for about $1.1 million in Rego Park and about $1.7 million in Forest Hills. Same border, same school district, a $600,000 spread on a single-family home and almost no spread at all on a co-op.

Every comparison of these two neighborhoods quotes one blended median and calls it a day. That number is close to useless. In May 2026, Rego Park’s blended median was $460,000 and Forest Hills came in at $437,000, which would tell you Rego Park is the pricier neighborhood. It isn’t. A blended median tracks whatever happened to close that month. Six houses closing in Forest Hills moves it more than fifty-seven co-ops do.

So before you compare anything, decide what you are actually buying. The answer changes the entire picture.

Rego Park holds roughly 10,190 residential properties. About 5,174 of them are individually owned co-op units. Another 2,133 are condos. Only 1,825 are single-family houses, with about 1,051 two-to-four family properties on top of that. Half the neighborhood is co-op. That is not an accident of the market, it is what was built here in the 1950s, and it is why the median year of construction sits at 1955.

That stock is concentrated in large complexes north of Queens Boulevard, places like Saxon Hall and Park City, plus the pocket of Tudor and colonial houses south of the boulevard that locals call the Crescents. If you want a house in Rego Park, there are far fewer of them than buyers assume.

Forest Hills runs deeper on both ends. It has the same dense prewar and postwar co-op corridor near Austin Street, and it also has Forest Hills Gardens and Cord Meyer, which are among the most expensive residential blocks in Queens. That top end is what pulls the Forest Hills house median toward $1.7 million while Rego Park sits near $1.1 million.

Forest Hills does command more money, but not evenly. On condos, the May 2026 median was $939,000 in Forest Hills against $510,000 in Rego Park. Treat that gap carefully. Only 18 condo sales closed in Forest Hills that month and 19 in Rego Park, and a handful of new-construction closings can swing a median that thin. Co-op data is far more reliable in both places because the sample is much larger, 57 sales in Forest Hills and 54 in Rego Park.

Here is what that means in practice. If you are selling a two-bedroom co-op in Rego Park and buying one in Forest Hills, you are not making a big financial leap. You are making a lateral move. If you are selling a house in Rego Park to buy one in Forest Hills, you are writing a very large check for the difference.

Forest Hills has the better transit position and everyone prices it in. The 71st-Continental Avenue station carries the E, F, M and R, and the E and F run express on Queens Boulevard. The Long Island Rail Road station at Forest Hills reaches Penn Station or Grand Central Madison in about 15 minutes. I take that train myself. It is the single biggest reason people pay the premium.

Rego Park runs on 63rd Drive and 67th Avenue, both local M and R stops. The express trains pass through without stopping. On a Midtown commute that costs you roughly 15 to 20 minutes each way. If you work in Long Island City, downtown Brooklyn, or anywhere in Queens, that penalty mostly disappears and the R becomes an advantage.

Forest Hills orbits Austin Street. Independent shops, restaurants, a walkable stretch you can spend an afternoon on. Forest Park sits on the southern edge with hundreds of acres of trails. The neighborhood feels like a small town that happens to have express trains.

Rego Park is built for errands. Rego Center, Costco, and Queens Center are all within a short walk or one bus ride, and Flushing Meadows Corona Park is next door. Nobody calls it charming. Plenty of my clients call it convenient, and after thirty years in a house, convenient often wins.

Both neighborhoods sit in NYC School District 28, so the school question is largely a wash between them.

Forest Hills is absorbing real development pressure right now. A proposed 21-story mixed-use building at 100-12 Queens Boulevard, known as The Frances, moved into City Planning Commission public hearings in June 2026. It would add roughly 390 apartments, about 97 of them income-restricted. A separate 17-story proposal at 102-51 Queens Boulevard would add 216 more, including 54 income-restricted units. The wider Rego Park and Forest Hills area already added about 2,755 housing units between 2010 and 2025.

If you own a co-op along that corridor, this is worth watching. New supply competes with your resale, and construction affects the years you are living there.

Choose Forest Hills if you want the express train or the LIRR, walkable Austin Street, prewar character, or a detached house and the budget to buy one.

Choose Rego Park if you want more square footage for the money on a house, big-box shopping at your door, a shorter trip to Queens and Brooklyn jobs, or a quieter block south of the boulevard.

If you are buying a co-op, choose on the building. Not the neighborhood. At these price levels the building’s financials, maintenance, flip tax, sublet policy and board temperament will affect your money and your timeline far more than which side of Yellowstone Boulevard you land on.

	Rego Park	Forest Hills
Median co-op sale price	$334,000	$330,000
Co-op price per square foot	$427	$411
Median condo sale price	$510,000	$939,000
Median house sale price	$1.1 million	$1.7 million
Overall median, Q2 2026	$417,000	$450,000
Subway	M, R (local)	E, F, M, R (express)
LIRR	No station	About 15 minutes to Penn Station or Grand Central
School district	District 28	District 28

Source: PropertyShark, 2026. Rego Park property-type figures reflect Q2 2026, Forest Hills property-type figures reflect May 2026.

I sell in both neighborhoods. The question I get most often is not which one is better. It is whether the move is worth doing at all, and that answer depends on your building, your equity, and what you want the next ten years to look like.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is Rego Park cheaper than Forest Hills?

It depends on the property type. Co-ops are priced almost identically, with 2026 medians of $334,000 in Rego Park and $330,000 in Forest Hills. Houses are not close, with medians around $1.1 million in Rego Park and $1.7 million in Forest Hills.

What is the median co-op price in Rego Park and Forest Hills?

As of the most recent 2026 data, $334,000 in Rego Park and $330,000 in Forest Hills. Rego Park co-ops sold at about $427 per square foot and Forest Hills at about $411. Co-op figures are the most reliable in both neighborhoods because roughly 55 co-op sales close per reporting period in each.

Is Forest Hills or Rego Park better for commuting to Manhattan?

Forest Hills. The 71st-Continental station carries the E and F express trains, and the LIRR reaches Penn Station or Grand Central Madison in about 15 minutes. Rego Park is served only by the local M and R at 63rd Drive and 67th Avenue, which adds roughly 15 to 20 minutes to a Midtown commute.

Are Rego Park and Forest Hills in the same school district?

Yes. Both fall within NYC School District 28. Specific school zoning still varies block by block, so confirm the zoned school for any exact address before you buy.

Why are Forest Hills houses so much more expensive than Rego Park houses?

Forest Hills contains Forest Hills Gardens and Cord Meyer, two of the highest-priced residential pockets in Queens. Those sales pull the neighborhood house median upward. Rego Park’s house stock is smaller and more uniform, with about 1,825 single-family properties overall.

Is Rego Park or Forest Hills better for downsizing?

Both work, and the choice usually comes down to the building rather than the neighborhood. Rego Park offers a deeper supply of co-ops, with about 5,174 individually owned units, and puts shopping and medical offices within walking distance. Forest Hills offers better transit and a more walkable main street.

Should I sell my Forest Hills co-op and buy in Rego Park?

Financially it is close to a lateral move, since the two co-op medians are within $4,000 of each other. The move makes sense when the new building lowers your monthly costs, gives you an elevator or a doorman, or puts you closer to family. Run the maintenance and the flip tax on both sides before you decide.

Have a question about your home or your next move in Queens or on Long Island? I answer them every day. Call or text me at 347-612-2964, or schedule a consultation at claudialooi.com/consultation/.

Claudia Looi
Real estate agent in Elmhurst, Rego Park, Forest Hills, and Jackson Heights, and in Deer Park and West Islip on Long Island
Licensed Real Estate Salesperson, SRS, ABR, SFR
Keller Williams Landmark II
347-612-2964
Schedule a consultation: https://claudialooi.com/consultation/