Living in Denville, NJ: Downtown, Lakes and the Morristown Line

Lakefront house among fall foliage, the kind of lake setting found in Denville, NJ lake communities

Short answer: If you’re browsing Denville NJ homes for sale, expect a walkable downtown around Broadway and Diamond Spring Road, several private lake communities such as Indian Lake and Cedar Lake, and a train station served by NJ Transit’s Morristown Line and Montclair-Boonton Line. The 2026 general tax rate is 2.879, and parts of town sit near the Rockaway River floodplain.

Denville Township covers about 12.7 square miles in the middle of Morris County and had 17,107 residents at the 2020 census. People call it the “Hub of Morris County,” and on a map you can see why: I-80, Route 46, Route 53 and Route 10 all run through it.

Denville Quick Facts

Item Detail
County Morris
Population (2020 census) 17,107
Rail station Denville, Estling Lake Rd. off Route 53 (Morristown Line and Montclair-Boonton Line)
Station parking Two NJ Transit lots, $4/day; Lot 2 also sells quarterly permits at $150
Highways through town I-80, US 46, Route 53, Route 10
K-8 schools Lakeview Elementary, Riverview Elementary, Valleyview Middle (Denville Township School District)
High school Morris Knolls High School (Morris Hills Regional District)
2026 general tax rate 2.879 per $100 of assessed value
2025 general / effective tax rate 2.789 / 1.949
Hospital Saint Clare’s Denville Hospital, 25 Pocono Rd.

Downtown Denville

Downtown takes up a few blocks where Broadway, East Main Street, Diamond Spring Road, Center Street and First Avenue meet. The township’s own planning documents describe a small business district full of independent shops and restaurants, with sidewalks that connect to nearby parks and trails. A Sunday farmers market runs from winter into summer and pulls in vendors from across northwestern New Jersey.

If walking to dinner matters to you, check how far a home is from Broadway. The lake neighborhoods and the more wooded sections are farther from the center, so walkability changes a lot from street to street.

Lake Communities in Denville

A big share of Denville’s housing sits around private lakes. Each lake association owns its own lake, so beach rights, dues and rules depend on the association, not on the township. The 2024 Open Space and Recreation Plan draft lists these:

  • Indian Lake: roughly 1,200 homes, three beaches and the Indian Lake Community Club.
  • Cedar Lake: a private lake with a clubhouse and courts for tennis, volleyball and basketball.
  • Lake Arrowhead: started in 1927, made up of three connected lakes and a club.
  • Rock Ridge: a community club with a beach, a recreation hall and hiking trails.
  • Estling Lake: a small community of about 64 homes with a beach and community house, fed by Den Brook.

The plan’s maps also show Rainbow Lakes. Lake names don’t always line up with town borders, so check which municipality a listing is actually in. For a lake-area home, ask about association dues, whether membership is mandatory, and any dam or dredging assessments. Also ask whether the house is on public sewer or a private septic system. For lake towns nearby, see our guide to lake communities in Sussex and Morris County.

Commuting: Denville Station and the Highways

NJ Transit lists Denville station on Estling Lake Road, about a tenth of a mile off Route 53. Two lines stop there: the Morris & Essex (Morristown Line) and the Montclair-Boonton Line. On the Montclair-Boonton side, service at Denville is limited to rush hour in the peak direction, so pull up the current timetable before you plan a daily commute around it. The station is accessible, with ticket machines but no ticket agent. Parking is split between two NJ Transit lots on Estling Lake Road. Both cost $4 a day, and both are free on evenings and weekends.

For drivers, I-80, Route 46, Route 53 and Route 10 all cross the township. NJ Transit local buses 875 and 880 also serve the township, and Lakeland Bus Lines runs service to the Port Authority Bus Terminal. If rail access weighs heavily in your search, our post on buying near the Montclair-Boonton Line covers the trade-offs.

Schools

The Denville Township School District runs three schools for pre-K through eighth grade: Lakeview Elementary, Riverview Elementary and Valleyview Middle School. For grades 9 to 12, Denville students go to Morris Knolls High School at 50 Knoll Drive. The school has a Rockaway mailing address and is part of the Morris Hills Regional District, which serves Denville and Rockaway Township. Confirm the school assignment for a specific address with the district. Performance data is on the NJ School Performance Reports site, and our Morris County school districts guide explains how the county’s districts are set up.

Parks and Open Space

  • Gardner Field: 14 acres off Route 46 along Savage Road, with sports fields, courts, pickleball and an accessible playground.
  • James F. Dyer Park at Cook’s Pond: swimming, fishing and picnicking from Memorial Day through Labor Day, with fees that depend on residency.
  • Muriel Hepner Nature Park: about 60 acres on Diamond Spring Road across from Valleyview Middle School, with a pond, trails and boardwalks.
  • Veterans Memorial Park: 71 acres on Zeek Road, including a turf field.
  • Tourne County Park: about 561 acres split among Denville, Boonton and Mountain Lakes, with more than 10 miles of trails and a view of the New York City skyline from the top.

Flooding and the Rockaway River

The Rockaway River runs through Denville, and the township’s open space plan names the river basin as its main flooding problem. After Hurricane Irene, Denville worked with Morris County, Green Acres and FEMA to buy 11 flood-prone homes on Riverside Drive. Those houses were torn down and the land became Denville Park Meadow. The township also uses NJDEP’s Blue Acres program for voluntary buyouts. For any home near the river or Den Brook, check the FEMA flood zone, ask your insurance agent for a flood insurance quote, and read the seller’s disclosure closely.

Property Taxes and Prices

According to the Morris County Board of Taxation, Denville’s general tax rate is 2.879 in 2026, compared with 2.789 in 2025. The NJ Division of Taxation lists Denville’s 2025 effective rate (the rate adjusted to market value) at 1.949. To estimate a bill, multiply the assessed value by the general rate and divide by 100. You can compare Denville with nearby towns in our Morris County property tax rates by town table.

We couldn’t find a published NJ REALTORS town-level report for Denville. For county context, the NJ REALTORS report for Morris County puts the September 2026 single-family median sales price at $737,500, up 2.1% from a year earlier. For a Denville-specific number, a comparative market analysis based on recent local sales is far more useful than a county average.

Frequently Asked Questions

Does Denville, NJ have a train station?

Yes. Denville station is on Estling Lake Road near Route 53. NJ Transit’s Morristown Line stops there, and the Montclair-Boonton Line adds limited rush-hour service. Daily parking in the NJ Transit lots costs $4.

What lakes are in Denville, NJ?

The main private lake communities are Indian Lake, Cedar Lake, Lake Arrowhead, Rock Ridge and Estling Lake, and the township’s maps also show Rainbow Lakes. Each lake is run by its own association, which sets its own membership rules and dues.

What high school do Denville students attend?

Students in grades 9 to 12 attend Morris Knolls High School in the Morris Hills Regional District. Kindergarten through eighth grade is handled by the Denville Township School District at Lakeview, Riverview and Valleyview.

What is the property tax rate in Denville, NJ?

The Morris County Board of Taxation lists Denville’s 2026 general tax rate as 2.879. The 2025 general rate was 2.789, and the 2025 effective rate was 1.949.

Sources

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