What stands out worked out from the figures below

Ames has the highest household income ($113k).

North Hudson has the most people working from home (4.7%).

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	Ames	North Hudson
People
Population	87Lowest	208Highest
Median age	48.8±15.2Lowest 23% above NY	55.6±6.4Highest 40% above NY
	North Hudson and Ames are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Kids under 18	14.9%±41.5Highest NY: 20.5%	12.5%±11.5Lowest NY: 20.5%
	Ames and North Hudson are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Age 65+	21.8%±36.6Highest NY: 17.9%	20.7%±10.9Lowest NY: 17.9%
	Ames and North Hudson are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Bachelor’s degree+adults 25+	42.3%Highest NY: 40.2%	29.4%Lowest NY: 40.2%
Enrolled in collegeshare of residents	9.2%±8.7Highest NY: 7%	1%±6.9Lowest NY: 7%
	Ames and North Hudson are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Cost of living
Household incomemedian	$112,500±$63kHighest 31% above NY	$77,292±$53kLowest 10% below NY
	Ames and North Hudson are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Home valuemedian, owner-occupied	$157,800±$13kLowest 63% below NY	$170,000±$52kHighest 60% below NY
	North Hudson and Ames are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Property taxmedian, yearly	$3,143Highest 52% below NY	$1,924Lowest 71% below NY
Renters paying 30%+of income on rent	—	100%±100 NY: 52.1%
Below poverty line	1.1%Lowest NY: 14%	6.8%Highest NY: 14%
Housing
Homeownersof occupied homes	100%Highest NY: 54.3%	95%Lowest NY: 54.3%
Typical home builtmedian year	1938Lowest 21 yrs older than NY	1971Highest 12 yrs newer than NY
Getting to work
Average commuteone way	44 minHighest 34% above NY	23 minLowest 28% below NY
Work from home	0%±30.4Lowest NY: 14.9%	4.7%±6.9Highest NY: 14.9%
	North Hudson and Ames are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
On TownTapestry
Old photos in History	None yet	None yet

NY 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.