A typical home in each town, bought with 20% down at 6.3% for 30 years, plus property tax at the town’s own rate and insurance. Change the numbers to fit you.

Down paymentRate%

Ashton$420/mo

Typical home $61K (Census) · tax rate 1.96% · Housing →

Goose Lake Township$730/mo

Typical home $118K (Census) · tax rate 1.13% · Housing →

The difference: $310 a month, about $3,700 a year, between Goose Lake Township and Ashton.

Estimates, not a quote: your price, rate, tax bill and insurance will differ. Tax rate = the Census median tax bill over the median home value.

Life in each

What daily life feels like in each

The weather, the land, the history and the people, row by row. None of it is a grade: more snow is a plus to a skier.

Seasons

AshtonGoose Lake Township

Snow a year43″31″

January low1°F 12°F

July high84°F 87°F

Growing season (days)137d 165d

Hazard risk (U.S. pctl)30th 47th

Outdoors & history

AshtonGoose Lake Township

Trails—30 mi

Conserved land—7%

Settled1879 —

Archive photos1 —

Famous people born here1 —

Community

AshtonGoose Lake Township

Posts this month0 0

Neighbors joined0 0

A dot marks the most on each row. Climate: NOAA 1991–2020 normals at the nearest station. Hazard risk: FEMA National Risk Index, expected yearly damage vs U.S. towns.

Where they are

123 miles apart

Straight-line miles between town centers.

AshtonSD Goose Lake TownshipCharles Mix County

Ashton ↔ Goose Lake Township123 miles apart

Everything, side by side

What matters to you?

Pick a few. Those rows jump to the top and the best fit on each is marked. There’s no overall score: what matters is up to you.

Only big differences vs South Dakota average

AshtonGoose Lake Township

People

Population 204Highest 167Lowest

Median age 31.5±19.1Lowest 17% below SD 33.8±18.5Highest 11% below SD

Goose Lake Township and Ashton are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.

Kids under 18 38.2%±10.2Highest SD: 24.2% 36.5%±28.1Lowest SD: 24.2%

Ashton and Goose Lake Township are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.

Age 65+ 14.2%±12.1Highest SD: 18% 13.2%±18.7Lowest SD: 18%

Ashton and Goose Lake Township are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.

Bachelor’s degree+adults 25+ 19.6%Highest SD: 31.9% 12.9%Lowest SD: 31.9%

Enrolled in collegeshare of residents 3.4%±6.4Lowest SD: 5% 5.4%±9.3Highest SD: 5%

Goose Lake Township and Ashton are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.

Cost of living

Household incomemedian $54,712±$26kHighest 27% below SD $46,875±$39kLowest 38% below SD

Ashton and Goose Lake Township are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.

Home valuemedian, owner-occupied $60,800±$32kLowest 76% below SD $117,500±$81kHighest 54% below SD

Goose Lake Township and Ashton are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.

Property taxmedian, yearly $1,194Lowest 56% below SD $1,333Highest 51% below SD

Renters paying 30%+of income on rent 0%±100 SD: 39.8% —

Below poverty line 14.7%Lowest SD: 11.9% 28.7%Highest SD: 11.9%

Housing

Homeownersof occupied homes 86.2%Highest SD: 68.6% 83%Lowest SD: 68.6%

Typical home builtmedian year 1938Lowest 42 yrs older than SD 1965Highest 15 yrs older than SD

Getting to work

Average commuteone way 10 minHighest 42% below SD 10 minLowest 43% below SD

Work from home 39.1%±22.8Highest SD: 9.7% 19.4%±9.8Lowest SD: 9.7%

Ashton and Goose Lake Township are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.

Work in townworking residents 2.4%Highest 0%Lowest

Typical commute distancemedian, straight-line 31.8 miHighest 18.3 miLowest

Jobs per working residentover 1.5 = a job hub 0.20Highest 0.09Lowest

Top workplaceoutside town Redfield (15%)Lake Andes (18%)

Between these townsresidents who work in the others Few work in Goose Lake TownshipFew work in Ashton

Outdoors

Conserved landshare of the town 0%Lowest 7%Highest

Trailsmapped miles 0.2 miLowest 29.8 miHighest

Trail densitymiles per sq mi 0.5 mi 0.5 mi

Parks & preservesnamed on the map 0 0

Street connectivityintersections per sq mi, a walkability measure 69.2Highest 0.6Lowest

South Dakota average“±” Census margin of errorACS 2020–2024

Deciding?

Ask the people who live there

The numbers stop at the town line. Neighbors can tell you about the commute at 7am, the schools, the winters and the feel of the place.

Ashton neighborsTown Square →

Your question goes to Ashton’s Town Square.

Goose Lake Township neighborsTown Square →

Your question goes to Goose Lake Township’s Town Square.

Add a town

Set another town beside Ashton and Goose Lake Township

One tap adds it. Up to 4 towns at once.

Towns like Ashton

+ Compare

Artesian148 people · $88K homes

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Wessington192 people · $102K homes

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Hoven329 people · $88K homes

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Monroe233 people · $49K homes

Not sure which town to add? Find your place ranks South Dakota towns on what matters to you.Find your place →

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2010 & 2020 censuses, LEHD commute flows; Zillow Home Value Index; NCES Common Core of Data; FBI crime reporting; CDC PLACES; FEMA National Risk Index; NOAA U.S. Climate Normals 1991–2020; USGS PAD-US and OpenStreetMap. “±” is the Census margin of error; differences inside it are never called. Property tax is top-coded by the Census at $10,000+. There is no overall score: which town is better depends on what matters to you.

Ashton vs Goose Lake Township

Two towns, two different strengths

Where they differ most

A typical home costs $310 more a month in Goose Lake Township

What daily life feels like in each

123 miles apart

What matters to you?

Ask the people who live there

Set another town beside Ashton and Goose Lake Township

Towns like Ashton

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