A typical home in each town, bought with 20% down at 6.3% for 30 years, plus property tax at the town’s own rate and insurance. Change the numbers to fit you.

Down paymentRate%

O'Brien$220/mo

Typical home $33K (Census) · tax rate est. 1.8% · Housing →

Aquilla$1,950/mo

Typical home $290K (Zillow) · tax rate est. 1.8% · Housing →

The difference: $1,730 a month, about $20,800 a year, between Aquilla and O'Brien.

Estimates, not a quote: your price, rate, tax bill and insurance will differ. Tax rate = the Census median tax bill over the median home value.

Report cards

Grades and rankings, side by side

Our letter grades for safety, schools and health, then every Texas ranking list both towns are on. A grade is one measure; read the page behind it.

Schools

–O'BrienNot graded AAquillaBetter than 85% of districts in the state

Life in each

What daily life feels like in each

The weather, the land, the history and the people, row by row. None of it is a grade: more snow is a plus to a skier.

Seasons

O'BrienAquilla

Snow a year4″0″

January low31°F —

July high97°F —

Growing season (days)232d —

Hazard risk (U.S. pctl)30th 43rd

Community

O'BrienAquilla

Posts this month0 0

Neighbors joined0 0

A dot marks the most on each row. Climate: NOAA 1991–2020 normals at the nearest station. Hazard risk: FEMA National Risk Index, expected yearly damage vs U.S. towns.

Where they are

186 miles apart

Straight-line miles between town centers.

O'BrienTX AquillaTX

O'Brien ↔ Aquilla186 miles apart

Everything, side by side

What matters to you?

Pick a few. Those rows jump to the top and the best fit on each is marked. There’s no overall score: what matters is up to you.

Only big differences vs Texas average

O'BrienAquilla

People

Population 130Highest 79Lowest

Median age 24.3±26Lowest 32% below TX 31.2±10.4Highest 12% below TX

Aquilla and O'Brien are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.

Kids under 18 28.5%±20.4Lowest TX: 25% 31.6%±28.6Highest TX: 25%

Aquilla and O'Brien are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.

Age 65+ 30.8%±29.7Highest TX: 13.4% 10.1%±53.8Lowest TX: 13.4%

O'Brien and Aquilla are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.

Bachelor’s degree+adults 25+ 8.3%Lowest TX: 33.8% 10.2%Highest TX: 33.8%

Enrolled in collegeshare of residents 1.5%±11.7Highest TX: 6.2% 1.3%±19.1Lowest TX: 6.2%

O'Brien and Aquilla are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.

Cost of living

Household incomemedian — $36,250±$7k 54% below TX

Home valuemedian, owner-occupied $33,300±$28k 88% below TX —

Property taxmedian, yearly — $480 89% below TX

Renters paying 30%+of income on rent 66.7%±100 TX: 51.7% —

Below poverty line 72.3%Highest TX: 13.8% 12.7%Lowest TX: 13.8%

Housing

Homeownersof occupied homes 80%Lowest TX: 62.6% 85.7%Highest TX: 62.6%

Typical home builtmedian year 1945Lowest 47 yrs older than TX 2001Highest 9 yrs newer than TX

Getting to work

Average commuteone way 14 minLowest 46% below TX 27 minHighest about the TX average

Work from home 0%±60 TX: 14.4% 0%±38.5 TX: 14.4%

Work in townworking residents 0%Lowest 1.9%Highest

Typical commute distancemedian, straight-line 81.8 miHighest 62.3 miLowest

Jobs per working residentover 1.5 = a job hub 0.08Lowest 1.94Highest

Top workplaceoutside town Haskell (10%)Dallas (12%)

Between these townsresidents who work in the others Few work in AquillaFew work in O'Brien

Outdoors

Conserved landshare of the town 0% 0%

Trailsmapped miles 0.0 mi 0.0 mi

Trail densitymiles per sq mi 0.0 mi 0.0 mi

Parks & preservesnamed on the map 0 0

Street connectivityintersections per sq mi, a walkability measure 39.9Lowest 53.7Highest

Texas average“±” Census margin of errorACS 2020–2024

Deciding?

Ask the people who live there

The numbers stop at the town line. Neighbors can tell you about the commute at 7am, the schools, the winters and the feel of the place.

O'Brien neighborsTown Square →

Your question goes to O'Brien’s Town Square.

Aquilla neighborsTown Square →

Your question goes to Aquilla’s Town Square.

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Towns like O'Brien

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Springlake98 people · $23K homes

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Rochester228 people · $55K homes

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2010 & 2020 censuses, LEHD commute flows; Zillow Home Value Index; NCES Common Core of Data; FBI crime reporting; CDC PLACES; FEMA National Risk Index; NOAA U.S. Climate Normals 1991–2020; USGS PAD-US and OpenStreetMap. “±” is the Census margin of error; differences inside it are never called. Property tax is top-coded by the Census at $10,000+. There is no overall score: which town is better depends on what matters to you.

O'Brien vs Aquilla

Two towns, two different strengths

Where they differ most

A typical home costs $1,730 more a month in Aquilla

Grades and rankings, side by side

What daily life feels like in each

186 miles apart

What matters to you?

Ask the people who live there

Set another town beside O'Brien and Aquilla

Towns like O'Brien

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