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Otsego, WI

Last updated
Key Indicators
A quick look at key numbers

Population

755
Source: U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey (ACS) 2020-2024 5-Year Estimates

Median Age

52.1
years ∙ half population younger than 52.1, half older

Diversity Index

Low High
11.8%
chance two random people differ in race and ethnicity

Nativity

1.1%
foreign-born population
98.9%Native
1.1% Foreign-born

Geographic Context

Location, size, and surroundings

About

Otsego is a town in Columbia County, Wisconsin, United States.
Location
Town in Columbia County, WI, US
Co-ordinates
DEC43.407129° N, 89.192597° W
DMS43° 24′ 25.66″ N, 89° 11′ 33.35″ W

Population Density & area

24.84/sq mi (9.61/km²)
Total Area
31 sq mi (80.1 km²)
Land Area
30.4 sq mi (78.6 km²) · 98.1%
Water Area
0.6 sq mi (1.5 km²) · 1.9%

Demographics & Living

Who lives here, how households are formed, and community composition

Population Composition

Key characteristics of the population

Sex Distribution

55.1% male
Male 55.1%
Female 44.9%
males per 100 females
Otsego 122.7
Columbia County 104.8
Wisconsin 100.3

Nativity

1.1%
foreign-born population
98.9%Native
1.1% Foreign-born
% Foreign-born
Otsego 1.1%
Columbia County 2.4%
Wisconsin 5.2%
Age Distribution
How the population is spread across age groups

Median Age

52.1
years ∙ half population younger than 52.1, half older
Otsego
52.1
Columbia County
43.7
Wisconsin
40.2

Dependency ratio

Low High
77.6
dependents per 100 working-age adults
Otsego 77.6
Columbia County 67.1
Wisconsin 66.4

AGE DISTRIBUTION

Distribution of age group
Median age
Otsego Columbia County Wisconsin
Age Group
Children (Under 18) 16.4% 20.5% 21.4%
Working age (18-64) 56.3% 59.9% 60.1%
Senior (65+) 27.3% 19.6% 18.5%
Dependency ratio
Total dependency ratio 77.6 67.1 66.4
Child dependency ratio 29.2 34.3 35.6
Old-age dependency ratio 48.5 32.7 30.8
Racial & Ethnic Composition
Racial and ethnic makeup and how it compares

Race & Ethnicity

White
93.8%
Black
0%
Asian
0%
Hispanic
2.9%
Other
3.3%
Note: White, Black, and Asian refer to individuals belonging to a single race and not of Hispanic origin. Hispanics may be of any race.

Diversity Index

Low High
11.8%
chance two random people differ in race and ethnicity
Otsego 11.8%
Columbia County 18.2%
Wisconsin 37%
Note: The Diversity Index (DI), based on the Blau Index, measures the probability that two randomly selected individuals differ in race and ethnicity. Values range from 0 (no diversity) to 1 (high diversity) and are shown as percentages.

RACIAL & ETHNIC COMPOSITION

Race & Ethnicity
Percentage of Otsego population
Racial and ethnic composition — Otsego vs Columbia County vs Wisconsin. Source: ACS 2020-2024 5-Year Estimates.
Otsego Columbia County Wisconsin
Hispanic or Latino 2.9% 4.1% 8%
Mexican 2.9% 2.4% 5.4%
Puerto Rican 0% 0.4% 1.1%
Cuban 0% 0.1% 0.1%
Other Hispanic / Latino 0% 1.3% 1.3%
Not Hispanic or Latino 97.1% 95.9% 92%
One race 93.8% 93.3% 88.3%
White 93.8% 90.3% 78.6%
Black or African American 0% 1.6% 5.9%
American Indian and Alaska Native 0% 0.4% 0.5%
Asian 0% 0.8% 2.9%
Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander 0% 0% 0%
Some Other Race 0% 0.2% 0.3%
Two or more races (Multiracial) 3.3% 2.6% 3.7%
Household & Families Composition
Household size, type, and family structure

Household structure

70.7% family
Family 70.7%
Non family 29.3%
% family households
Otsego 70.7%
Columbia County 65.5%
Wisconsin 60.5%

Average household size

2.3
persons per household
Otsego
2.3
Columbia County
2.35
Wisconsin
2.33

Household & Family COMPOSITION

Households
Percentage of Otsego population
Otsego Columbia County Wisconsin
Total households 328 24,158 2,479,480
Average houshold size 2.3 2.35 2.33
Family households 232 15,819 1,500,296
Average family size 2.59 2.84 2.95
Married couple family 214 12,608 1,161,326
Other families 18 3,211 338,970
Male householder 13 1,219 112,650
Female householder 5 1,992 226,320
Non-family households 96 8,339 979,184
One-person households 47 6,743 781,452
Male householder 20 3,080 373,428
Senior (65+) living alone 10 904 109,743
Female householder 27 3,663 408,024
Senior (65+) living alone 21 2,026 210,915
Other living arrangements 49 1,596 197,732

Housing Profile

Housing stock, ownership, rentals, and cost burdens

Total housing units

333
housing units
Otsego 333
Columbia County 26,880
Wisconsin 2,778,572

Occupancy status

98.5% occupied
Occupied 98.5%
Vacant 1.5%
vacancy rate
Otsego 1.5%
Columbia County 10.1%
Wisconsin 10.8%
Housing Characteristics
How the housing supply is structured and used

Types of Housing unit

98.8%
Single family houses
Single family houses
98.8%
Apartments in multi-unit structures
0.9%
Mobile homes
0.3%
Boat, RV, van, etc
0%

Median Year Built

1970
Half of houses were built before 1970, and half after.
Historic ∙ 1939 or earlier
24.6%
Postwar & mid-century ∙ 1940 - 1969
25.2%
Late 20th century ∙ 1970 - 1999
33.3%
Modern ∙ 2000 or later
16.8%
Note: Median year built reflects occupied units only; distribution includes all units.

Housing Characteristics

Units, rooms & bedrooms
Physical characteristics of housing units
Otsego Columbia County Wisconsin
Rooms per unit
Median rooms 6.8 6.1 5.6
1–3 rooms 0% 9.5% 13.2%
4–6 rooms 42% 46.6% 52%
7+ rooms 57.9% 43.9% 34.9%
Bedrooms
No bedroom / studio 0% 2.2% 2.1%
1 bedroom 1.2% 7% 10%
2 bedrooms 11.7% 25.4% 27.8%
3 bedrooms 60.4% 40.7% 40%
4+ bedrooms 26.7% 24.6% 20.1%
At a glance
Median year built 1970 1977 1975
Total housing units 333 26,880 2,778,572
Occupancy Profile
Who is inside and how they use it

Homeownership

95.7% owners
Renter-occupied 4.3%
Owner-occupied 95.7%
homeownership rate
Otsego 95.7%
Columbia County 76.7%
Wisconsin 67.8%

Average household size

2.26
Owner-occupied
3.29
Renter-occupied
owner-occupied average size
Otsego 2.26
Columbia County 2.45
Wisconsin 2.49

Housing Characteristics

Occupied unit characteristics
Tenure, crowding, and utilities
Otsego Columbia County Wisconsin
Total occupied units 328 24,158 2,479,480
Year moved in
2020 or later 10% 18.8% 23.1%
2010 to 2019 34.8% 36.9% 38%
2000 to 2009 28% 19.6% 17.1%
1999 or earlier 27.1% 24.7% 21.8%
Occupants per room
1.00 or fewer 98.5% 98.1% 98.3%
1.01 to 1.50 1.5% 1.3% 1.2%
1.51 or more 0% 0.7% 0.5%
Vehicles availability
No vehicles 0.6% 4.4% 6.4%
1 vehicle 14.9% 26.7% 33%
2 vehicles 33.5% 38.8% 39.5%
3 or more vehicles 50.9% 30.1% 21.1%
House heating fuel used
Gas 85.3% 77.1% 76.6%
Electricity 0% 16% 17.8%
Solar 0.6% 0.1% 0.1%
Fuel oil, kerosene etc 2.4% 1.3% 1.4%
All other fuels 11.6% 4.5% 3.5%
No fuel used 0% 0.9% 0.6%
Selected characteristics
Lacking complete plumbing 0.9% 1.1% 0.4%
Lacking complete kitchen 0% 1.9% 0.8%
No telephone service available 0.6% 1.5% 0.8%
Housing Value
What owner-occupied units are worth

Median home value

$371,900
owner-occupied units
Median value(USD)
Otsego
$371,900
Columbia County
$283,200
Wisconsin
$266,500

Housing Cost Burden

27.6%
of homeowners with a mortgage are cost-burdened
% Cost-Burdened Households
Owners with a mortgage
27.6%
Owners without a mortgage
5.7%
Renters
30%
Note: Households spending 30% or more of their income on housing costs are considered cost-burdened.

Financial characteristics

Property value and housing costs
Tenure, crowding, and utilities
Otsego Columbia County Wisconsin
Property value
Median Value $371,900 $283,200 $266,500
Under $100,000 1.3% 7.2% 9.1%
$100,000 - $200,000 10.9% 19.4% 23%
$200,000 - $300,000 24.8% 27.3% 25.5%
$300,000 - $500,000 36% 32.8% 29.4%
$500,000 - $1,000,000 24.5% 11.6% 11.4%
$1,000,000 and more 2.5% 1.8% 1.7%
Owner-occupied households
With a mortgage 61.1% 63.3% 61.1%
Without a mortgage 38.9% 36.7% 38.9%
Median monthly owner costs
With a mortgage $1,833 $1,747 $1,689
Without a mortgage $843 $673 $659
Gross rent
Median rent $1,167 $978 $1,087

Education Profile

How educated is the community and how education pays off

Adults with a college degree

21.8%
of adults 25+ with a bachelor's degree or higher
Otsego 21.8%
Columbia County 26%
Wisconsin 33.4%

Adults without a high school diploma

5.4%
of adults (25+) without a high school diploma
Otsego 5.4%
Columbia County 6%
Wisconsin 6.4%
School Enrollment
Who is enrolled in school and at what level

School enrollment

107
population (age 3+) enrolled in school
Nursery / Preschool
6.5%
K–12
83.2%
College / Undergraduate
10.3%
Graduate / Professional
0%

College-going rate (18-24 yr olds)

31.3%
of 18-24-year-olds in college or graduate school
Otsego
31.3%
Columbia County
19%
Wisconsin
39.8%

Enrollment & school type

Enrollment levels, college-going rate, and public vs private school split
Population 3+ currently enrolled in a school
Otsego Columbia County Wisconsin
Total enrolled (age 3+) 107 11,428 1,356,381
Nursery / preschool 6.5% 4.6% 5.3%
K–12 83.2% 79.4% 69.3%
Kindergarten 1.9% 5.7% 5.5%
Elementary: Grades 1–4 20.6% 23.5% 20.2%
Elementary: Grades 5–8 26.2% 22.8% 21.3%
High School: Grades 9–12 34.6% 27.3% 22.3%
College or graduate school 10.3% 16.1% 25.3%
College, undergraduate 10.3% 14% 20.7%
Graduate, professional school 0% 2.1% 4.7%
College-going rate · 18-24 yr olds 31.3% 19% 39.8%
School type
Public school 98.1% 85.5% 82.4%
Private school 1.9% 14.5% 17.6%
Education Attainment by Level & Gender
What is the highest level of education completed among adults

Education attainment

615
population 25 years and over
Total adults (25+)
Less than 9th grade
1.5%
9th-12th, no diploma
3.9%
HS graduate
40.7%
Some college no degree
17.7%
Associates degree
14.5%
Bachelors degree
15.6%
Graduate or professional degree
6.2%

Attainment by gender

Male vs Female
Adults (25+) · Share within each education level
% male · % female
Less than 9th grade
100% · 0%
9th-12th, no diploma
70.8% · 29.2%
HS graduate
58.4% · 41.6%
Some college no degree
56% · 44%
Associates degree
67.4% · 32.6%
Bachelors degree
35.4% · 64.6%
Graduate or professional degree
50% · 50%

Educational Attainment Overview

Distribution and key education attainment rates for adults (25+)
Highest credential completed · adults 25+
Otsego Columbia County Wisconsin
Population (25+) 615 42,187 4,099,973
Less than 9th grade 1.5% 2% 2.3%
9th–12th, no diploma 3.9% 4% 4.1%
High school diploma or GED 40.7% 30.2% 29.4%
Some college, no degree 17.7% 25.1% 19.5%
Associate's degree 14.5% 12.7% 11.3%
Bachelor's degree or higher 21.8% 26% 33.4%
Bachelor's degree 15.6% 18% 22%
Graduate or professional 6.2% 8% 11.4%
High School or higher 94.6% 94% 93.6%
Earnings by education level
percentage as applicable

Median Earnings

$52,375
Median earnings for adults 25+, by level
Less than HS graduate
$—
HS graduate
$55,052
Some college or associates
$46,477
Bachelors degree
$71,250
Graduate or professional degree
$70,625

Poverty Rate

0%
for ages 25+, with bachelors degree or higher
Less than HS graduate
6.1%
HS graduate
13.2%
Some college or associates
3%
Bachelors degree or higher
0%

Outcomes by Education Level

Earnings and poverty rates across education levels (25+)
Adults 25+
Otsego Columbia County Wisconsin
Median earnings
Population 25+, with earnings $52,375 $54,669 $53,060
Less than high school graduate $— $37,875 $36,585
High school graduate (includes equivalency) $55,052 $46,327 $42,367
Some college or associate's degree $46,477 $54,509 $49,438
Bachelor's degree $71,250 $68,161 $66,239
Graduate or professional degree $70,625 $70,644 $79,916
Poverty rates
Less than high school graduate 6.1% 23.2% 22.6%
High school graduate (includes equivalency) 13.2% 10.3% 12.2%
Some college or associate's degree 3% 4.4% 7.9%
Bachelor's degree or higher 0% 3% 3.7%

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