What stands out worked out from the figures below

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

Troy has the most people working from home (3.7%).

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 town

Measure	Ira	Troy
People
Population	381Highest	219Lowest
Median age	54.1±5.5Lowest 26% above VT	65.3±26.4Highest 52% above VT
	Troy and Ira are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Kids under 18	10.5%±4.7Lowest VT: 17.9%	16.4%±7.9Highest VT: 17.9%
	Troy and Ira are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Age 65+	28.9%±3.3Lowest VT: 21.4%	51.1%±17.2Highest VT: 21.4%
Bachelor’s degree+adults 25+	37.1%Highest VT: 43.8%	9.3%Lowest VT: 43.8%
Enrolled in collegeshare of residents	3.4%±3.5Highest VT: 7%	3.2%±6.3Lowest VT: 7%
	Ira and Troy 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	$91,688±$8kHighest 13% above VT
Home valuemedian, owner-occupied	$272,900±$18kHighest 14% below VT	$187,500±$46kLowest 41% below VT
Rentmedian gross, monthly	$942±$52 24% below VT	—
Property taxmedian, yearly	$4,146Highest 18% below VT	$2,480Lowest 51% below VT
Renters paying 30%+of income on rent	36.4%±100 VT: 48.4%	—
Below poverty line	14.4%Highest VT: 10.1%	13.7%Lowest VT: 10.1%
Housing
Homeownersof occupied homes	90.7%Lowest VT: 73.2%	100%Highest VT: 73.2%
Typical home builtmedian year	1975Highest 1 yr older than VT	1970Lowest 6 yrs older than VT
Getting to work
Average commuteone way	28 minHighest 20% above VT	19 minLowest 19% below VT
Work from home	2.3%±2.2Lowest VT: 16.9%	3.7%±5.1Highest VT: 16.9%
	Troy and Ira are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
On TownTapestry
Old photos in History	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.