Selden: Convenient access to stores, parks, SCCC campus draw buyers

THE SCOOP A place of pocket parks and playgrounds, and the main-campus home of Suffolk County Community College, Selden is paradoxically both far from and close to everything.

Despite being miles from the nearest Long Island Rail Road station, "Literally anything that I need is five to 10 minutes away," said Neil Manzella, the Town of Brookhaven councilmember whose district includes Selden, where he and his family live.

"I can make it to the mall in 15 minutes," he said. "I can make it to a restaurant in five. Any store that I need is along the Middle Country corridor" through which the multilane Middle Country Road/Route 25 runs. "That's what drew me to it — that you have access to everything you could possibly need without losing that suburban, neighborhood feel."

Indeed, the 4.5-square-mile community of 22,000 boasts three supermarkets — Aldi, Lidl and ShopRite. There are chain stores galore, from such big-boxes as Home Depot to a panoply of Panera and Planet Fitness.

"We moved here around 1973," said Linda Miller, a retired secretary and president of the Selden Civic Association. "We came out from Nassau [County] to visit some friends and we just absolutely loved it," she recalled. "It was quiet and peaceful and spread out, and we've been here ever since."

Selden has public playgrounds at Covair Lane, the Iroquois Avenue Park and the Rose Caracappa Memorial Park, named after the late Suffolk County Legislator who was the mother of current Suffolk Legislator Nick Caracappa.

Another greenspace, Magnolia Drive Park, is undergoing a sprucing up. "It needed so much work," Manzella said. "We removed the playground and replanted trees there last Arbor Day with the Boy Scouts and Girl Scouts and preserved that whole area."

Conversely, there is a crown jewel: Veterans Ballfield Park, home of the 15-acre Middle Country Athletic Complex — what Manzella calls "the largest athletic field in the Town of Brookhaven and probably one of the largest on the Island itself. There are two stadium-sized baseball fields, two softball fields, two DekHockey rinks, a basketball court, a tennis court, a multipurpose football field, a playground and a concession stand."

Named for 19th-century lieutenant governor Henry Selden, best known as the attorney who defended suffragette Susan B. Anthony in court, the hamlet "feels like a community," said Miller. "You go into the store, you can start a conversation with anybody, even if you don't know them, because we all feel like we live here together. We all feel like we're neighbors with one another."

SALE PRICES Between April 9, 2024, and April 8, 2025, there were 230 home sales with a median sale price of $550,000, according to OneKey MLS. During that period a year earlier, there were 229 home sales with a median sale price of $500,000.

CONDOS AND CO-OPS There is one co-op, priced at $235,000, on the market.

OTHER STATS

Population 21,707

Median age 39

Median home value $560,000

Monthly LIRR ticket from Ronkonkoma $387

School districts, graduation rates Middle Country (90%), Sachem (93%), Comsewogue (92%)

Libraries Middle Country, Sachem, Comsewogue

Transit Suffolk County Transit Routes 52A, 52B, 53, 58

Sources: 2023 American Community Survey; OneKey MLS via InfoSparks by ShowingTime; LIRR, data.nysed.gov, Suffolk County Transit

ON THE MARKET

$899,000

A sprawling, eight-bedroom, five-bath Colonial boasting 3,647 square feet on 0.36 acres, this 1935 home has been modernized with such amenities as central A/C and an eat-in kitchen with stainless-steel appliances and granite counters, new hardwood flooring and a living-room electric fireplace. Yearly taxes are $15,968.32. Valdrin Mulaj, Daniel Gale Sothebys International Realty, 631-561-9959.

$699,990

Boasting six bedroom and three baths, this expanded ranch with a second story is two homes in one, with a first-floor kitchen and a second-floor kitchenette. On a corner lot with landscaping including inground sprinklers, this 2,357-square foot abode has a single-car garage and a fenced-in yard with shed. Taxes are $11,543.63. Taihee Kim, 631-512-1000.

$479,000

A mid-century modern ranch with a fireplace in an exposed-brick wall, this three-bedroom, one-bath home built in 1961 features a finished basement and a kitchen with granite counters and an undermount sink. The abode includes a covered carport, backyard patio and fenced lawn with a stately tree. Taxes are $9,256.78. An offer is pending. Danielle I. Lenard and Jon David Lenard, Signature Premier Properties, 516-540-2685.

RECENTLY SOLD

$790,000

Texas Street

Style Colonial

Bedrooms 4

Bathrooms 3

Built 1985

Lot size 0.35 acre

Taxes $18,338

+/- List price +$21,000

Days on market 230

$580,000

Plaza Lane

Style Colonial

Bedrooms 4

Bathrooms 1½

Built 1967

Lot size 0.23 acre

Taxes $11,268

+/- List price -$19,900

Days on market 155

$382,500

Maplewood Avenue

Style Ranch

Bedrooms 2

Bathrooms 1

Built 1941

Lot size 0.23 acre

Taxes $6,305

+/- List price +$32,501

Days on market 60

ON ONEKEY MLS

Number of listings 64

Price range $235,000 to $899,000

Tax range $4,716 to $15,968