What stands out worked out from the figures below

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Bell has the most homeowners (26.5%).

Vernon has the most people working from home (9.7%).

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 townOutdoorsyWalkable streets

Measure	Bell	Vernon
People
Population	32,476Highest	331Lowest
Growth since 20102010 → 2020 census	-5.4% CA: +6.1%	—
Median age	34.3±1.4Lowest 9% below CA	35.4±2.3Highest 7% below CA
	Vernon and Bell are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Kids under 18	26.3%±2.5Lowest CA: 22%	30.2%±5Highest CA: 22%
	Vernon and Bell are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Age 65+	11.4%±1.5Lowest CA: 15.7%	25.4%±9.4Highest CA: 15.7%
Bachelor’s degree+adults 25+	9.7%Lowest CA: 37.1%	18.1%Highest CA: 37.1%
Enrolled in collegeshare of residents	6.5%±1.1Lowest CA: 7.6%	15.1%±6.1Highest CA: 7.6%
Cost of living
Household incomemedian	$61,020±$5kLowest 38% below CA	$70,667±$14kHighest 29% below CA
	Vernon and Bell are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Home valuemedian, owner-occupied	$591,600±$32kLowest 19% below CA	$916,700±$166kHighest 25% above CA
Rentmedian gross, monthly	$1,575±$59Highest 23% below CA	$1,439±$109Lowest 29% below CA
	Bell and Vernon are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Property taxmedian, yearly	$4,770Highest 7% below CA	$3,667Lowest 28% below CA
Renters paying 30%+of income on rent	64%±5.3Highest CA: 55.3%	29.2%±10.5Lowest CA: 55.3%
Below poverty line	21.6%Highest CA: 12%	7.3%Lowest CA: 12%
Housing
Homeownersof occupied homes	26.5%Highest CA: 55.9%	9.8%Lowest CA: 55.9%
Typical home builtmedian year	1956Lowest 20 yrs older than CA	2012Highest 36 yrs newer than CA
Getting to work
Average commuteone way	30 minHighest 5% above CA	25 minLowest 12% below CA
Work from home	4.1%±1.5Lowest CA: 17.2%	9.7%±8Highest CA: 17.2%
	Vernon and Bell are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Work in townworking residents	4.2%Lowest	36%Highest
Typical commute distancemedian, straight-line	9.3 miHighest	5.3 miLowest
Jobs per working residentover 1.5 = a job hub	0.90Lowest	113.48Highest
Top workplaceoutside town	Los Angeles (25%)	Los Angeles (23%)
Between these townsresidents who work in the others	4% work in Vernon	Few work in Bell
Outdoors
Conserved landshare of the town	0.6%Highest	0%Lowest
Trailsmapped miles	0.0 mi	0.0 mi
Trail densitymiles per sq mi	0.0 mi	0.0 mi
Parks & preservesnamed on the map	3Highest	0Lowest
Street connectivityintersections per sq mi, a walkability measure	99.0Highest	45.4Lowest
Schools
Public school scoresrank in state, math + reading	#131 of 574 in CA	—
School district	Magnolia Science Academy Bell District · Los Angeles Unified	Los Angeles Unified
High school in town	Bell Senior High	None in town
Students per teacherat that high school	20.7	—
On TownTapestry
Old photos in History	12 photos →	12 photos →

CA average · Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-year estimates 2020–2024; 2010 & 2020 decennial census; NCES Common Core of Data; commute flows: Census LEHD Origin-Destination Employment Statistics. “±” 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.