Highland Park is a borough in Middlesex County, New Jersey, situated on the northern bank of the Raritan River directly across from the city of New Brunswick. With a population of about 15,000, it is a dense, walkable community that lies within the New York City metropolitan area, in the Raritan Valley of central New Jersey. The borough's defining relationship is with the river and with New Brunswick opposite it, a connection that gives residents immediate access to Rutgers University, major healthcare institutions and one of the state's busiest commuter rail corridors. The community is known for its pedestrian-friendly character and its Raritan Avenue downtown, a commercial spine of restaurants, shops and services that runs through the borough. Highland Park's housing stock is largely early-to-mid-20th-century, with single-family homes, duplexes and smaller multifamily buildings set on a traditional street grid. This density and layout make it one of the more walkable suburbs in the region, a point of distinction among its neighbors. Public school students attend Highland Park Public Schools, the borough's own district, which operates local elementary and middle schools plus Highland Park High School. The borough's diversity, its university-adjacent location and its active local business district give it a lively, engaged character that differs from the more car-dependent suburbs surrounding it. For residents, Highland Park offers a blend of small-town community and urban convenience. The riverfront, nearby parks and the cultural and athletic resources of Rutgers are all within easy reach, while New Brunswick's dining, arts and transit link the borough to the wider New York region. Buyers drawn to walkability, diversity and proximity to a major university will find Highland Park a distinctive Middlesex County option.