What stands out worked out from the figures below

Brooklyn has the shortest commute (27 min average).

Sterling has the youngest population (median age 39.4).

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	Brooklyn	Sterling
People
Population	8,517Highest	3,629Lowest
Median age	45.6±2.5Highest 11% above CT	39.4±5.9Lowest 4% below CT
	Brooklyn and Sterling are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Kids under 18	20.6%±4.6Lowest CT: 20.2%	22.8%±5.9Highest CT: 20.2%
	Sterling and Brooklyn are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Age 65+	17.6%±2.9Highest CT: 18.5%	13%±3.8Lowest CT: 18.5%
	Brooklyn and Sterling are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Bachelor’s degree+adults 25+	23.9%Highest CT: 42.5%	18%Lowest CT: 42.5%
Enrolled in collegeshare of residents	5.4%±1.7Highest CT: 7.1%	3.7%±1.9Lowest CT: 7.1%
	Brooklyn and Sterling are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Cost of living
Household incomemedian	$96,207±$15kLowest about the CT average	$102,695±$12kHighest 7% above CT
	Sterling and Brooklyn are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Home valuemedian, owner-occupied	$315,200±$28kHighest 14% below CT	$283,400±$17kLowest 23% below CT
	Brooklyn and Sterling are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Rentmedian gross, monthly	$1,125±$98 24% below CT	—
Property taxmedian, yearly	$4,538Lowest 32% below CT	$4,551Highest 31% below CT
Renters paying 30%+of income on rent	38.5%±19.3Highest CT: 52.6%	32%±18.1Lowest CT: 52.6%
	Brooklyn and Sterling are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Below poverty line	2.3%Lowest CT: 10%	8.3%Highest CT: 10%
Housing
Homeownersof occupied homes	81.7%Highest CT: 66.5%	81.1%Lowest CT: 66.5%
Typical home builtmedian year	1978Lowest 11 yrs newer than CT	1988Highest 21 yrs newer than CT
Getting to work
Average commuteone way	27 minLowest about the CT average	35 minHighest 34% above CT
Work from home	10.7%±5.4Lowest CT: 16%	11.6%±6.4Highest CT: 16%
	Sterling and Brooklyn are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Schools
Public school scoresrank in state, math + reading	#113 of 149 in CT	#119 of 149 in CT
School district	Brooklyn School District	Sterling School District
High school in town	None in town	None in town
On TownTapestry
Old photos in History	None yet	None yet

CT 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.