What stands out worked out from the figures below

Albany has the most affordable homes ($212k median).

Reading has the most people working from home (22.9%).

What matters to you?

Pick a few. We’ll pull those rows to the top and mark which town comes out ahead on each. There’s no overall score: what matters is up to you.

Raising kidsAffordabilityOwning a homeShort commuteWorking from homeYounger crowdSettled, older crowdGrowing town

Measure	Albany	Reading
People
Population	135Lowest	699Highest
Growth since 20102010 → 2020 census	—	+3.2% VT: +2.8%
Median age	42.9±14Lowest about the VT average	51.1±7.6Highest 19% above VT
	Reading and Albany are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Kids under 18	20.7%±11.4Highest VT: 17.9%	18.5%±4.2Lowest VT: 17.9%
	Albany and Reading are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Age 65+	11.1%±19.1Lowest VT: 21.4%	28.2%±3.3Highest VT: 21.4%
	Reading and Albany are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Bachelor’s degree+adults 25+	41.1%Lowest VT: 43.8%	46%Highest VT: 43.8%
Enrolled in collegeshare of residents	0.7%±7.7Lowest VT: 7%	3.1%±2.5Highest VT: 7%
	Reading and Albany are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Cost of living
Household incomemedian	—	$85,000±$19k 5% above VT
Home valuemedian, owner-occupied	$211,800±$56kLowest 33% below VT	$377,200±$72kHighest 19% above VT
Rentmedian gross, monthly	—	$1,100±$331 11% below VT
Property taxmedian, yearly	$2,867Lowest 43% below VT	$5,754Highest 14% above VT
Renters paying 30%+of income on rent	—	63.3%±31.7 VT: 48.4%
Below poverty line	3.7%Lowest VT: 10.1%	8.4%Highest VT: 10.1%
Housing
Homeownersof occupied homes	100%Highest VT: 73.2%	84.9%Lowest VT: 73.2%
Typical home builtmedian year	1938Lowest 38 yrs older than VT	1969Highest 7 yrs older than VT
Getting to work
Average commuteone way	20 minLowest 14% below VT	33 minHighest 41% above VT
Work from home	9%±6.3Lowest VT: 16.9%	22.9%±10.6Highest VT: 16.9%
	Reading and Albany are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Schools
School district	—	Mountain Views Unified Union School District #76
High school in town	—	None in town
On TownTapestry
Old photos in History	None yet	None yet

VT average · Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-year estimates 2020–2024; 2010 & 2020 decennial census; NCES Common Core of Data. “±” is the Census margin of error. Property tax is top-coded by the Census at $10,000+. School rank compares math and reading proficiency against the state average.