What stands out worked out from the figures below

Beecher Falls has the most affordable homes ($98k median).

Benton has the most people working from home (2.6%).

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	Beecher Falls	Benton
People
Population	67Lowest	386Highest
Median age	57.5±2.6Lowest 48% above U.S.	62.1±1.9Highest 60% above U.S.
Kids under 18	9%±40.6Highest U.S.: 22%	6.7%±4.2Lowest U.S.: 22%
	Beecher Falls and Benton are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Age 65+	32.8%±43.2Lowest U.S.: 17.2%	37.3%±12.5Highest U.S.: 17.2%
	Benton and Beecher Falls are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Bachelor’s degree+adults 25+	5.2%Lowest U.S.: 35.7%	18.2%Highest U.S.: 35.7%
Enrolled in collegeshare of residents	0%±21.1Lowest U.S.: 6.4%	1.8%±1.4Highest U.S.: 6.4%
	Benton and Beecher Falls are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Cost of living
Household incomemedian	$26,042±$24kLowest 68% below U.S.	$67,895±$4kHighest 16% below U.S.
Home valuemedian, owner-occupied	$98,100±$36kLowest 71% below U.S.	$288,300±$46kHighest 13% below U.S.
Property taxmedian, yearly	$2,438Lowest 22% below U.S.	$2,922Highest 6% below U.S.
Renters paying 30%+of income on rent	—	100%±100 U.S.: 51.1%
Below poverty line	10.4%Lowest U.S.: 12.5%	15.9%Highest U.S.: 12.5%
Housing
Homeownersof occupied homes	100%Highest U.S.: 65.2%	92.1%Lowest U.S.: 65.2%
Typical home builtmedian year	1950Lowest 30 yrs older than U.S.	1980Highest same as U.S.
Getting to work
Average commuteone way	—	32 min 22% above U.S.
Work from home	0%±27.8Lowest U.S.: 15.1%	2.6%±3.4Highest U.S.: 15.1%
	Benton and Beecher Falls 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

U.S. 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.