What stands out worked out from the figures below

Proctor has the most affordable homes ($206k median).

Waltham has the most people working from home (20.6%).

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	Proctor	Waltham
People
Population	1,586Highest	452Lowest
Median age	47.3±8.9Lowest 10% above VT	60.8±7.3Highest 41% above VT
	Waltham and Proctor are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Kids under 18	17.2%±5Highest VT: 17.9%	12.8%±7.4Lowest VT: 17.9%
	Proctor and Waltham are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Age 65+	23.5%±2.6Lowest VT: 21.4%	45.4%±3.1Highest VT: 21.4%
Bachelor’s degree+adults 25+	28%Lowest VT: 43.8%	39%Highest VT: 43.8%
Enrolled in collegeshare of residents	3.9%±1.9Highest VT: 7%	3.1%±2.1Lowest VT: 7%
	Proctor and Waltham are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Cost of living
Household incomemedian	$75,060±$12kLowest 8% below VT	$97,500±$14kHighest 20% above VT
	Waltham and Proctor are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Home valuemedian, owner-occupied	$206,000±$20kLowest 35% below VT	$329,700±$51kHighest 4% above VT
Rentmedian gross, monthly	$1,059±$200Lowest 14% below VT	$1,096±$113Highest 11% below VT
	Waltham and Proctor are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Property taxmedian, yearly	$3,944Lowest 22% below VT	$5,714Highest 13% above VT
Renters paying 30%+of income on rent	39.4%±15.6Highest VT: 48.4%	29.2%±58.6Lowest VT: 48.4%
	Proctor and Waltham are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Below poverty line	10%Highest VT: 10.1%	5.3%Lowest VT: 10.1%
Housing
Homeownersof occupied homes	86.3% VT: 73.2%	86.3% VT: 73.2%
Typical home builtmedian year	1938Lowest 38 yrs older than VT	1986Highest 10 yrs newer than VT
Getting to work
Average commuteone way	22 minLowest 5% below VT	28 minHighest 18% above VT
Work from home	10%±5Lowest VT: 16.9%	20.6%±5.7Highest VT: 16.9%
	Waltham and Proctor 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.