What stands out worked out from the figures below

Sterling has the youngest population (median age 39.4).

Brooklyn has the shortest commute (27 min average).

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	Sterling	Brooklyn
People
Population	3,629Lowest	8,517Highest
Median age	39.4±5.9Lowest 4% below CT	45.6±2.5Highest 11% above CT
	Brooklyn and Sterling are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Kids under 18	22.8%±5.9Highest CT: 20.2%	20.6%±4.6Lowest CT: 20.2%
	Sterling and Brooklyn are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Age 65+	13%±3.8Lowest CT: 18.5%	17.6%±2.9Highest CT: 18.5%
	Brooklyn and Sterling are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Bachelor’s degree+adults 25+	18%Lowest CT: 42.5%	23.9%Highest CT: 42.5%
Enrolled in collegeshare of residents	3.7%±1.9Lowest CT: 7.1%	5.4%±1.7Highest CT: 7.1%
	Brooklyn and Sterling are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Cost of living
Household incomemedian	$102,695±$12kHighest 7% above CT	$96,207±$15kLowest about the CT average
	Sterling and Brooklyn are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Home valuemedian, owner-occupied	$283,400±$17kLowest 23% below CT	$315,200±$28kHighest 14% below CT
	Brooklyn and Sterling are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Rentmedian gross, monthly	—	$1,125±$98 24% below CT
Property taxmedian, yearly	$4,551Highest 31% below CT	$4,538Lowest 32% below CT
Renters paying 30%+of income on rent	32%±18.1Lowest CT: 52.6%	38.5%±19.3Highest CT: 52.6%
	Brooklyn and Sterling are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Below poverty line	8.3%Highest CT: 10%	2.3%Lowest CT: 10%
Housing
Homeownersof occupied homes	81.1%Lowest CT: 66.5%	81.7%Highest CT: 66.5%
Typical home builtmedian year	1988Highest 21 yrs newer than CT	1978Lowest 11 yrs newer than CT
Getting to work
Average commuteone way	35 minHighest 34% above CT	27 minLowest about the CT average
Work from home	11.6%±6.4Highest CT: 16%	10.7%±5.4Lowest CT: 16%
	Sterling and Brooklyn are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Schools
Public school scoresrank in state, math + reading	#119 of 149 in CT	#113 of 149 in CT
School district	Sterling School District	Brooklyn School District
High school in town	None in town	None in town
On TownTapestry
Old photos in Our Story	None yet	None yet

CT 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.