What stands out worked out from the figures below

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

Baltimore has the most people working from home (9.8%).

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	Ira	Baltimore
People
Population	381Highest	361Lowest
Median age	54.1±5.5Highest 26% above VT	51.2±10.3Lowest 19% above VT
	Ira and Baltimore are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Kids under 18	10.5%±4.7Highest VT: 17.9%	8.9%±6.7Lowest VT: 17.9%
	Ira and Baltimore are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Age 65+	28.9%±3.3Highest VT: 21.4%	14.7%±4.2Lowest VT: 21.4%
Bachelor’s degree+adults 25+	37.1%Highest VT: 43.8%	25.5%Lowest VT: 43.8%
Enrolled in collegeshare of residents	3.4%±3.5Highest VT: 7%	2.2%±2.7Lowest VT: 7%
	Ira and Baltimore are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Cost of living
Household incomemedian	$71,827±$5kLowest 12% below VT	$107,500±$16kHighest 32% above VT
Home valuemedian, owner-occupied	$272,900±$18kHighest 14% below VT	$219,400±$27kLowest 31% below VT
Rentmedian gross, monthly	$942±$52 24% below VT	—
Property taxmedian, yearly	$4,146Lowest 18% below VT	$4,329Highest 14% below VT
Renters paying 30%+of income on rent	36.4%±100Highest VT: 48.4%	26.7%±100Lowest VT: 48.4%
	Ira and Baltimore are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Below poverty line	14.4%Highest VT: 10.1%	1.1%Lowest VT: 10.1%
Housing
Homeownersof occupied homes	90.7%Highest VT: 73.2%	85.8%Lowest VT: 73.2%
Typical home builtmedian year	1975Lowest 1 yr older than VT	1977Highest 1 yr newer than VT
Getting to work
Average commuteone way	28 minHighest 20% above VT	21 minLowest 11% below VT
Work from home	2.3%±2.2Lowest VT: 16.9%	9.8%±4.4Highest VT: 16.9%
On TownTapestry
Old photos in Our Story	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.