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%

Vandemere$1,240/mo

Typical home $184K (Zillow) · tax rate est. 1.8% · Housing →

Mesic$1,030/mo

Typical home $174K (Zillow) · tax rate 0.85% · Housing →

The difference: $210 a month, about $2,500 a year, between Vandemere and Mesic.

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.

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

VandemereMesic

Snow a year1″0″

January low34°F 36°F

July high88°F 89°F

Growing season (days)224d 272d

Hazard risk (U.S. pctl)99th 99th

Outdoors & history

VandemereMesic

Settled1874 —

Community

VandemereMesic

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.

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 North Carolina average

VandemereMesic

People

Population 209Highest 205Lowest

Median age 57.5±15.1Highest 47% above NC 53.7±14Lowest 37% above NC

Vandemere and Mesic are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.

Kids under 18 23%±11.7Highest NC: 21.8% 13.7%±14.9Lowest NC: 21.8%

Vandemere and Mesic are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.

Age 65+ 32.1%±9.7Lowest NC: 17.2% 33.7%±10.4Highest NC: 17.2%

Mesic and Vandemere are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.

Bachelor’s degree+adults 25+ 20.8%Highest NC: 35.7% 11.8%Lowest NC: 35.7%

Enrolled in collegeshare of residents 0.5%±6.8Lowest NC: 6.4% 10.2%±8.2Highest NC: 6.4%

Mesic and Vandemere are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.

Cost of living

Household incomemedian $35,833±$35kLowest 50% below NC $47,750±$42kHighest 34% below NC

Mesic and Vandemere are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.

Home valuemedian, owner-occupied $108,100±$45kLowest 63% below NC $160,500±$21kHighest 44% below NC

Mesic and Vandemere are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.

Property taxmedian, yearly — $1,369 28% below NC

Renters paying 30%+of income on rent 100%±100Highest NC: 48.9% 0%±100Lowest NC: 48.9%

Vandemere and Mesic are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.

Below poverty line 29.2%Highest NC: 13% 13.2%Lowest NC: 13%

Housing

Homeownersof occupied homes 76.5%Lowest NC: 66.6% 85.9%Highest NC: 66.6%

Typical home builtmedian year 1992Highest 1 yr newer than NC 1977Lowest 14 yrs older than NC

Getting to work

Average commuteone way 20 minLowest 21% below NC 25 minHighest about the NC average

Work from home 5.6%±6.4Highest NC: 16.3% 0%±18.7Lowest NC: 16.3%

Vandemere and Mesic are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.

Work in townworking residents 0% 0%

Typical commute distancemedian, straight-line 33.3 miHighest 26.3 miLowest

Jobs per working residentover 1.5 = a job hub 0.05 0.05

Top workplaceoutside town New Bern (12%)New Bern (21%)

Between these townsresidents who work in the others Few work in MesicFew work in Vandemere

Outdoors

Conserved landshare of the town 1.4%Highest 0.5%Lowest

Trailsmapped miles 0.9 miHighest 0.3 miLowest

Trail densitymiles per sq mi 0.6 miHighest 0.3 miLowest

Parks & preservesnamed on the map 0 0

Street connectivityintersections per sq mi, a walkability measure 17.2Highest 12.2Lowest

North Carolina 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.

Vandemere neighborsTown Square →

Your question goes to Vandemere’s Town Square.

Mesic neighborsTown Square →

Your question goes to Mesic’s Town Square.

Add a town

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Towns like Vandemere

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Falcon272 people · $204K homes

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Waco171 people · $93K homes

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Hamilton243 people · $69K homes

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Proctorville109 people · $93K homes

Not sure which town to add? Find your place ranks North Carolina towns on what matters to you.Find your place →

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.

Vandemere vs Mesic

Two towns, two different strengths

Where they part ways

Vandemere and Mesic share a border

A typical home costs $210 more a month in Vandemere

What daily life feels like in each

What matters to you?

Ask the people who live there

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