What stands out worked out from the figures below

Windham has the most expensive homes ($354k median).

Athens has the most affordable homes ($240k median).

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	Windham	Athens
People
Population	594Highest	431Lowest
Median age	44.2±7.4Lowest about the VT average	47.3±6.5Highest 10% above VT
	Athens and Windham are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Kids under 18	17.5%±7.9Highest VT: 17.9%	13.9%±6.5Lowest VT: 17.9%
	Windham and Athens are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Age 65+	23.2%±8.1Highest VT: 21.4%	21.6%±4.6Lowest VT: 21.4%
	Windham and Athens are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Bachelor’s degree+adults 25+	48.1%Highest VT: 43.8%	30.3%Lowest VT: 43.8%
Enrolled in collegeshare of residents	0.8%±1.1Lowest VT: 7%	4.9%±3Highest VT: 7%
Cost of living
Household incomemedian	$94,500±$12kHighest 16% above VT	$68,438±$30kLowest 16% below VT
	Windham and Athens are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Home valuemedian, owner-occupied	$353,900±$20kHighest 12% above VT	$240,400±$32kLowest 24% below VT
Rentmedian gross, monthly	—	$1,125±$537 9% below VT
Property taxmedian, yearly	$5,951Highest 18% above VT	$5,438Lowest 8% above VT
Renters paying 30%+of income on rent	41.2%±94Lowest VT: 48.4%	43.5%±39Highest VT: 48.4%
	Athens and Windham are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Below poverty line	9.9%Lowest VT: 10.1%	12.1%Highest VT: 10.1%
Housing
Homeownersof occupied homes	82.9%Highest VT: 73.2%	73.7%Lowest VT: 73.2%
Typical home builtmedian year	1982Highest 6 yrs newer than VT	1973Lowest 3 yrs older than VT
Getting to work
Average commuteone way	27 minLowest 14% above VT	36 minHighest 53% above VT
Work from home	20.5%±5.6Highest VT: 16.9%	19.3%±7.5Lowest VT: 16.9%
	Windham and Athens are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
On TownTapestry
Old photos in Our Story	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.