What stands out worked out from the figures below

Chester has the highest household income ($142k).

New Hampton has the most affordable homes ($384k 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	Chester	New Hampton
People
Population	5,300Highest	2,509Lowest
Growth since 20102010 → 2020 census	+9.7%Lowest NH: +4.6%	+9.8%Highest NH: +4.6%
Median age	47.2±3.8Lowest 9% above NH	51.7±2.7Highest 19% above NH
	New Hampton and Chester are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Kids under 18	19.6%±3.7Highest NH: 18.2%	13.8%±4.3Lowest NH: 18.2%
	Chester and New Hampton are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Age 65+	17.4%±4Lowest NH: 20.1%	24.8%±5Highest NH: 20.1%
	New Hampton and Chester are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Bachelor’s degree+adults 25+	41.1%Highest NH: 40.6%	32.1%Lowest NH: 40.6%
Enrolled in collegeshare of residents	4.4%±2.1Highest NH: 6%	4.2%±1.9Lowest NH: 6%
	Chester and New Hampton are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Cost of living
Household incomemedian	$142,212±$19kHighest 44% above NH	$95,250±$35kLowest 4% below NH
	Chester and New Hampton are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Home valuemedian, owner-occupied	$552,300±$42kHighest 37% above NH	$383,700±$37kLowest 5% below NH
Rentmedian gross, monthly	—	$749±$433 50% below NH
Property taxmedian, yearly	$8,464Highest 27% above NH	$4,973Lowest 25% below NH
Renters paying 30%+of income on rent	19%±72.7Lowest NH: 48.2%	21.3%±21.6Highest NH: 48.2%
	New Hampton and Chester are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Below poverty line	4%Lowest NH: 7.2%	13.2%Highest NH: 7.2%
Housing
Homeownersof occupied homes	97.7%Highest NH: 72.8%	87.7%Lowest NH: 72.8%
Typical home builtmedian year	1991Highest 12 yrs newer than NH	1989Lowest 10 yrs newer than NH
Getting to work
Average commuteone way	35 minHighest 31% above NH	33 minLowest 22% above NH
Work from home	16.4%±5.1Highest NH: 16.8%	11.9%±3.9Lowest NH: 16.8%
	Chester and New Hampton 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	#90 of 120 in NH	—
School district	Chester School District	Newfound Area School District
High school in town	None in town	None in town
On TownTapestry
Old photos in History	None yet	None yet

NH 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.