What stands out worked out from the figures below

Andover has the most people working from home (29.6%).

Ira has the most affordable homes ($273k median).

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	Andover	Ira
People
Population	616Highest	381Lowest
Median age	49.2±5.1Lowest 14% above VT	54.1±5.5Highest 26% above VT
	Ira and Andover are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Kids under 18	11.5%±4.9Highest VT: 17.9%	10.5%±4.7Lowest VT: 17.9%
	Andover and Ira are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Age 65+	22.7%±4.3Lowest VT: 21.4%	28.9%±3.3Highest VT: 21.4%
	Ira and Andover are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Bachelor’s degree+adults 25+	43.3%Highest VT: 43.8%	37.1%Lowest VT: 43.8%
Enrolled in collegeshare of residents	2.8%±1.5Lowest VT: 7%	3.4%±3.5Highest VT: 7%
	Ira and Andover are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Cost of living
Household incomemedian	$102,500±$38kHighest 26% above VT	$71,827±$5kLowest 12% below VT
	Andover and Ira are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Home valuemedian, owner-occupied	$382,900±$68kHighest 21% above VT	$272,900±$18kLowest 14% below VT
Rentmedian gross, monthly	$1,389±$364Highest 13% above VT	$942±$52Lowest 24% below VT
Property taxmedian, yearly	$5,190Highest about the VT average	$4,146Lowest 18% below VT
Renters paying 30%+of income on rent	69.4%±47.1Highest VT: 48.4%	36.4%±100Lowest VT: 48.4%
	Andover and Ira are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Below poverty line	4.6%Lowest VT: 10.1%	14.4%Highest VT: 10.1%
Housing
Homeownersof occupied homes	82.8%Lowest VT: 73.2%	90.7%Highest VT: 73.2%
Typical home builtmedian year	1980Highest 4 yrs newer than VT	1975Lowest 1 yr older than VT
Getting to work
Average commuteone way	25 minLowest 7% above VT	28 minHighest 20% above VT
Work from home	29.6%±12.9Highest VT: 16.9%	2.3%±2.2Lowest VT: 16.9%
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.