Kenyon Residences · National Register of Historic Places
Laurens’s story
200 years in pictures
2 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
- 1826Laurens is settled
LaurensNY
It counts 2 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
5 bordering townsMap →
Kenyon Residences · Photo: ErixS · CC BY-SA 3.0
Population
2,301
2025 Census estimate · −0.5% since 2020
Median home value
$170K
Census ACS
Household income
$72K
median
Median age
44.0
years
Jobs based here
346
A commuter town
Is Laurens a good place to live?
Laurens’ best subject grades are an A for history and an A− for civic life; its weakest is a D for hazard risk. Only 33 of New York’s 1,216 towns score lower on hazard risk. Most errands need a car: it is less walkable than 75% of U.S. towns. Its National Register listings include Kenyon Residences and Bassett Family House. Laurens has fewer than 2,500 residents, so it gets subject grades but no overall grade.
What makes Laurens stand out
Where Laurens beats most towns.
A commuter town
93% of working residents leave Laurens for work
Where Laurens’s working residents go each day. Line width shows the share.
346jobs based in Laurens
7%of working residents work in town
17 mimedian commute distance
Census LEHD 2023
How Laurens grades
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within New York), ordered by how far Laurens is from typical.
Hazard riskInland flooding tops the listDOpen →Jobs & income$72K median household incomeC−Open →SchoolsSchools trail most of those comparedC−Open →WalkabilityEPA walkability 4.1 of 20; 7.7% of households have no car; 2.2% of workers walk, bike or ride transitCOpen →HealthAurelia Osborn Fox Memorial Hospital 6.3 miles awayBOpen →Cost of livingTypical home $170K, 2.5 years of the Oneonta area’s $69K median household incomeB−Open →
Character Graded, but not part of the overall grade.
Outdoors1 mile of trail; 2% conserved landC+Open →History2 places on the National Register; 2 notable people born hereAOpen →Civic life3.6 community nonprofits per 1,000 residentsA−Open →
Described, not graded Taste, not quality: snow or an older crowd is neither good nor bad.
ClimateSnowy winters, 80° summer afternoons, 83″ of snow–Open →Who lives hereMedian age 44.0; 30% of adults have a four-year degree–Open →
How TownRatings grades towns →
Getting set up
The full setup list →Moving to Laurens: who provides what
Who provides power, water and the rest in Laurens, and how to reach them.
PowerNew York State Elec & Gas22.6¢/kWh · EIA 2025HIFLD · EIA
WaterValley Stream Mobile Home ParkNo health-based violations in 5 years · EPAEPA
Internet5 providers93% of addresses get 100/20 MbpsFCC
Trash & dumpNot on file yetWe don’t have Laurens’ trash rules yet
Register to voteOnlineIn New York you can register online until 10 days before Election Day, in person until 10 days before Election Day, or by mail (postmarked 15 days before and received 10 days before).vote.govWho runs elections hereOtsego County Board of ElectionsOtsego County; contacts on the Handbook page.FVAP, Sep 2025
ZIP codes13796, 13820, 13810, 1386113796 42% · 13820 32% · 13810 14% · 13861 7%Census 2020
EPA SDWIS (Oct 9, 2026) · HIFLD + EIA-861 2025 · Census 2020 ZCTAs · NCES 2024–25 · registration: vote.gov, updated Aug 3, 2026.
The data
Ordered by what stands out in Laurens.
Natural hazardsHazard risk grade D
Compared with most of New York and the rest of the country, the FEMA risk score in Laurens is higher
The national flood insurance program has paid 2 claims in Laurens since 2003. FEMA puts just over four fifths of the town’s expected hazard losses down to inland flooding, and 13% to cold waves. Federal disaster aid has reached households in Laurens after 6 declared disasters, most recently in 2011.
81risk score of 100
FEMA risk score
Inland floodingCold waves
2
paid flood claims since 2003
6
federal disasters paid out here
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA disaster declarations and aid · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
SchoolsC−
Laurens’ public schools trail 76% of New York districts
The public schools here belong to the Laurens Central School District. Its one school is below. Laurens’ only public school teaches 287 students.
24%of NY districts it outscoresC−School Grade
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Laurens Central SchoolLargest public high schoolGrades PK–12 | Grades PK–12 | 287 | C+ |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within NY on state tests and graduation
Work & commuteJobs & income grade C−
Most of Laurens’ workers commute out: the town has 0.4 jobs for each of them
Just 7% of Laurens’s working residents have a job in town. This New York town had 346 jobs in 2023, up 39 from 2013. The median commute is under 17 miles. The top destinations are Oneonta (14%), Otsego (12%) and Oneonta (9%).
7%work in town
| Laurens | New York towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median household income | $72,000 | $82,000 | $80,000 |
| Working residents who work in town | 6.9% | 10% | 8% |
| Average trip to work | 26 minutes | 25 minutes | 25 minutes |
Where working residents work
In Laurens7%
Oneonta14%
Otsego12%
Oneonta9%
New York8%
17 mi
median commute distance
346
jobs based in Laurens
A commuter town
jobs vs. working residents
C
Walkability grade: more walkable than 25% of U.S. towns
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
Climate
Laurens: snowy winters and pleasant summers
In Laurens, the July high is 80°F, where New York’s towns sit at 81°F and U.S. towns at 85°F.
83″snow a winter
Typical low → high °F
Winter16–33°
Spring32–55°
Summer55–78°
Fall39–59°
Oct 3
typical first frost
May 17
typical last frost
+1.1°
vs. the 20th-century average
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
HealthB
On CDC estimates, Laurens is healthier than 61% of U.S. towns
Laurens: 5.6% of adults 18 to 64 have no health insurance, against 5.9% in New York’s towns and 8.1% across U.S. towns. Against the New York average, Laurens comes out ahead on 6 CDC measures out of 32, and behind on 6. Among adults here, 14% report frequent physical distress.
61%healthier than U.S. townsBHealth Grade
| Laurens | New York towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Obesity (CDC PLACES) | 32% | 33% | 35% |
| Frequent physical distress (CDC PLACES) | 14% | 14% | 14% |
| Depression (CDC PLACES) | 21% | 21% | 23% |
| No health insurance, 18–64 (CDC PLACES) | 5.6% | 5.9% | 8.1% |
32 measures vs. New York
6 better20 too close to call6 worse
| What stands out | Laurens | NY |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer uninsured adults | 5.6% | 7.9% |
| Fewer adults facing housing insecurity | 11% | 14.5% |
| More adults with COPD | 8.1% | 6% |
Aurelia Osborn Fox Memorial Hospital
6.3 mi away · emergency room
3 of 3
care shortages: primary care, dental, mental health
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
OutdoorsC+
Laurens keeps 2.1% of its land conserved
0.7 miles of trail wind through 2 parks and preserves. The biggest park or preserve is Gilbert Lake State Park, at 183 acres.
2.1%conserved
2.1%
conserved · 569 of 26,818 acres
0.7 mi
of trails · 0 per sq mi
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Gilbert Lake State Park | — | 183 |
| 2. Milford State Forest | — | 119 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
HousingCost of living grade B−
A home in Laurens sells for about $178K at the median
31% of Laurens renter households spend 30% or more of their income on rent. Laurens: 84% of households are owner-occupiers.
$178Kmedian sale price
| Laurens | New York towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Renters paying 30%+ of income on rent | 31% | 49% | 48% |
| Households that own their home | 84% | 75% | 73% |
0
homes sold in September
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
Nearby attractions
All 30 attractions →National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum and 13 more within 40 miles
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Laurens. Close and well known come first.
Big draw15 mi MuseumNational Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum315K visitors a year35 mi LandmarkFort Dayton38 mi CaveHowe Caverns
40 mi Stadium & arenaUtica Memorial Auditorium
16 mi MuseumFenimore Art Museum
39 mi MuseumMunson-Williams-Proctor Arts InstituteSources: National Park Service · ski areas © OpenSkiMap / OpenStreetMap contributors · Wikidata · Wikipedia readership · photos via Wikimedia Commons
Photo credits
National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum: Beyond My Ken, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Utica Memorial Auditorium: Doug Kerr, CC BY-SA 2.0 · Fenimore Art Museum: Ser Amantio di Nicolao, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Munson-Williams-Proctor Arts Institute: Kenneth C. Zirkel, CC BY-SA 4.0
Keep exploring
Everything we know about Laurens
19pages on Laurens
The big questions
Out and about
The story
Day to day
After high school
Colleges nearby
2 within 15 miles of the center of Laurens
SUNY OneontaUniversity or college · Public · Oneonta5.4 mi$8,831 in-state tuitionHartwick CollegeUniversity or college · Private nonprofit · Oneonta5.9 mi$54,962 tuition
About 1 of every 100 Laurens residents are enrolled in college, against 7 across New York.
About Laurens
Town in New York, United States
Laurens is a town in Otsego County, New York, United States. The population was 2,424 at the 2010 census. The Town of Laurens is in the southern half of the county, north of the City of Oneonta. There is also a village named Laurens, located in the town.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
- Area
- 42 sq mi
- Elevation
- 1,119 ft
- Area code
- 518
Laurens’s neighbors
5 towns share a border with Laurens.
New LisbonOneontaMorrisMilfordOtegoLaurens
How the neighbors grade
| Town | NY rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Laurens | — | — | B− | — | C− | B |
| New Lisbon | — | — | B− | — | C+ | B |
| Oneonta | #611 | C− | C+ | — | C− | B+ |
| Morris | — | — | B+ | — | B− | B |
| Milford | #439 | C+ | B+ | — | C− | B+ |
| Otego | #661 | D | B | — | C− | B− |
Laurens, New Lisbon and Morris have fewer than 2,500 residents, so they get subject grades but no overall grade. Laurens, New Lisbon, Oneonta, Morris, Milford and Otego report no FBI crime data of their own. Compare Laurens with a neighbor →
Questions about Laurens
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Is Laurens, NY a good place to live?
It counts 2 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
Is Laurens, NY expensive?
The typical home is worth about $170,000, 68% below the New York typical home.
What is Laurens, NY known for?
2 notable people were born here, including Charles Day and David G. Carr.