CitytisticsShortlist

Kensington, CT vs Lake Pocotopaug, CT

Kensington

Connecticut

vs

Lake Pocotopaug

Connecticut

Across 31 directional measures we can compare, Kensington leads on 13 and Lake Pocotopaug on 18. Counting measures is not an overall verdict: their importance depends on your priorities. Median rent is 0% higher in Lake Pocotopaug, and so is median household income.

Median gross rent
$1,351$1,357
Kensington is 0% lower
Median household income
$109,447$118,150
Kensington is 7% lower
Median home value
$330,400$310,300
Kensington is 6% higher

The Citytistics read

  • After the median rent, with other prices set to the US average, the median household has about $92,100 a year left in Kensington and $100,600 in Lake Pocotopaug. Money goes further in Lake Pocotopaug, by about $8,500 a year.
  • A household earning Kensington's median of $109,447 would need about $109,500 in Lake Pocotopaug to keep the same money after rent and local prices.
  • Between the 2019 and 2024 surveys, pay outran rent by 0.5 points a year in Kensington, and pay outran rent by 7.9 points a year in Lake Pocotopaug.

How these are calculated

ConnecticutLake Pocotopaug, CTKensington, CTKensingtonKensington

Which fits you?

Both start on the Citytistics Index (CTX). Move the sliders to weigh what matters to you and the score becomes your own mix.

Your weights

Top 1 of 1 matching places. Places in the top 1% show their national rank.

#PlaceCTXAffordabilityEconomyEducationSafetyCommuteAmenitiesGrowth
01Kensington, CTComposite 71.3 / 100
96
836066n/a7970n/a

CTX is the Citytistics Index: better than that share of the places we rate. It tops out at 99, so the top 1% show their national rank (#1 is best). Change any weight to rank on your own mix. How the CTX is built

Every measure

The dots show where each place sits among the 6,645 places we track. The bar is the median. A small dot after a value marks the better one.

MeasureKensingtonLake PocotopaugAmong all places
Cost of living
Median gross rent1$1,351$1,357
Rent to income114.8%13.8%
Property tax rate11.9%2.0%
Home price to income13.0x2.6x
Prices vs US average2102.8102.8
Fair market rent, 2 bedrooms3$1,933$1,933
Housing
Property tax paid (median)1$6,385$6,157
Median home value1$330,400$310,300
Home prices, 1-year change45.7%5.6%
Home prices, 5-year change461.6%60.3%
Homeownership184.9%83.3%
Renters paying 30%+164.2%36.7%
Owner costs with a mortgage1$2,224$2,357
Vacant homes16.1%11.7%
Median year built119621976
Jobs and income
Median household income1$109,447$118,150
Income per person1$52,971$58,753
Unemployment15.2%3.8%
Average annual pay5$84,680$73,241
Pay growth, 1 year52.2%4.1%
Jobs5531,85574,367
Poverty rate13.2%6.8%
Mean commute120 min28 min
Works from home113.8%16.1%
Commutes by transit12.7%0.0%
People
Population19,9624,875
Median age148.748.0
Bachelor's or higher140.6%40.6%
High school or higher192.3%94.0%
Household size12.32.3
Born abroad19.5%6.7%
No health insurance12.0%3.3%
Homes with broadband194.2%93.1%
Moving
Moved here in the past year14.4%6.4%
Moved from another state12.2%2.4%
Net movers per 1,000 people6-2.80.5
Income of households moving in6$74,995$86,604
Income of households moving out6$83,300$88,409
Local life
Restaurants and bars per 10k722.925.7
Shops per 10k731.938.0
Arts, recreation and fitness per 10k74.17.1
Doctors' offices and clinics per 10k723.619.1
Child care centers per 10k72.42.8
Parks per 10k821.14.1
Playgrounds per 10k818.14.1
Grocery stores per 10k81.02.0
Restaurants, cafes and bars per 10k841.220.5
Libraries per 10k84.00.0
Named paths and bike trails82.10.0
Transit stops per sq mi80.70.0
Nearest National Park Service site943.8n/a
National Park Service sites within 60 miles92n/a
National Register listings101n/a
Schools
Public schools11157
Public school students1151319,075
Students per teacher1113.211.2
Hazards and air
Natural hazard risk1297.483.8
Hurricane risk1293.287.7
Tornado risk1290.543.3
Wildfire risk1256.943.6
Heat wave risk1296.442.2
Median air quality index134242
Good air days1366.6%66.6%

Data bundle checked 2026-11-14; individual source vintages vary. Rent needed at the 30% line: Kensington $54,040, Lake Pocotopaug $54,280 a year.

Sources and methods

The small numbers beside each measure point here. Links go to the publisher.

  1. American Community Survey 5-year estimates · US Census Bureau · 2020 to 2024 estimatesTables B01002, B01003, B05002, B07003, B08013, B08301, B15003, B17001, B19013, B19301, B23025, B25002, B25003, B25010, B25035, B25064, B25070, B25077, B25088, B25103, B28002, S2701
  2. Regional Price Parities · US Bureau of Economic Analysis · Latest release, retrieved 2026-11-14
  3. Fair Market Rents · US Department of Housing and Urban Development · Fiscal year 2027
  4. House Price Index · Federal Housing Finance Agency · Latest release, retrieved 2026-11-14
  5. Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages · US Bureau of Labor Statistics · 2025 annual averages
  6. SOI Tax Stats, county-to-county migration · Internal Revenue Service · Tax years 2022 to 2023Counts tax returns and the people on them; flows under 20 returns are suppressed.
  7. County Business Patterns · US Census Bureau · 2023 data
  8. OpenStreetMap · © OpenStreetMap contributors, available under the Open Database License (ODbL) · Map data as of 2026-11
  9. National Park Service sites · Wikidata (CC0), units operated by the National Park Service · Retrieved 2026-11
  10. National Register of Historic Places · National Park Service · Listings through 2026-05-22
  11. Common Core of Data · National Center for Education Statistics · 2024 release
  12. National Risk Index · Federal Emergency Management Agency · Latest release, retrieved 2026-11-14NRI data and maps
  13. Air Quality System, annual AQI by county · US Environmental Protection Agency · 2025 dataAirData download files

Derived by Citytistics from the tables above: rent to income (B25064, B19013); property tax rate (B25103, B25077); home price to income (B25077, B19013).

Survey figures are estimates with margins of error. Formulas and definitions: methodology.

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