What stands out worked out from the figures below

Jacksonville has the most affordable homes ($223k median).

Mendon has the most people working from home (22.5%).

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	Jacksonville	Mendon
People
Population	106Lowest	1,113Highest
Growth since 20102010 → 2020 census	—	+8.5% VT: +2.8%
Median age	50.6±12.1Lowest 17% above VT	53.4±10.5Highest 24% above VT
	Mendon and Jacksonville are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Kids under 18	6.6%±26.1Lowest VT: 17.9%	14.6%±5.2Highest VT: 17.9%
	Mendon and Jacksonville are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Age 65+	25.5%±23.3Lowest VT: 21.4%	29%±1.3Highest VT: 21.4%
	Mendon and Jacksonville are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Bachelor’s degree+adults 25+	19.2%Lowest VT: 43.8%	49.4%Highest VT: 43.8%
Enrolled in collegeshare of residents	0%±13.3Lowest VT: 7%	3.1%±2.1Highest VT: 7%
	Mendon and Jacksonville are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Cost of living
Household incomemedian	$83,281±$30kLowest about the VT average	$100,524±$23kHighest 24% above VT
	Mendon and Jacksonville are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Home valuemedian, owner-occupied	$223,400±$61kLowest 29% below VT	$357,000±$44kHighest 13% above VT
Rentmedian gross, monthly	—	$1,230±$651 about the VT average
Property taxmedian, yearly	$3,795Lowest 25% below VT	$5,342Highest 6% above VT
Renters paying 30%+of income on rent	—	88.6%±42.7 VT: 48.4%
Below poverty line	3.8%Lowest VT: 10.1%	8.2%Highest VT: 10.1%
Housing
Homeownersof occupied homes	100%Highest VT: 73.2%	92.2%Lowest VT: 73.2%
Typical home builtmedian year	1950Lowest 26 yrs older than VT	1977Highest 1 yr newer than VT
Getting to work
Average commuteone way	24 minHighest about the VT average	17 minLowest 28% below VT
Work from home	8.2%±10.3Lowest VT: 16.9%	22.5%±8.9Highest VT: 16.9%
	Mendon and Jacksonville 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.