What stands out worked out from the figures below

Crystal has the oldest population (median age 63.2).

Perham has the most people working from home (8.4%).

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	Crystal	Perham
People
Population	247Lowest	326Highest
Median age	63.2±8.4Highest 41% above ME	53±12.9Lowest 18% above ME
	Crystal and Perham are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Kids under 18	16.2%±11.8Lowest ME: 18.1%	19.6%±8.5Highest ME: 18.1%
	Perham and Crystal are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Age 65+	49%±5.3Highest ME: 22.4%	24.5%±2.3Lowest ME: 22.4%
Bachelor’s degree+adults 25+	22.9%Highest ME: 36.2%	18.7%Lowest ME: 36.2%
Enrolled in collegeshare of residents	0%±6.3Lowest ME: 5.8%	2.5%±1.9Highest ME: 5.8%
	Perham and Crystal are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Cost of living
Household incomemedian	$48,125±$13kLowest 36% below ME	$62,500±$22kHighest 16% below ME
	Perham and Crystal are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Home valuemedian, owner-occupied	$129,200±$60kHighest 56% below ME	$117,600±$9kLowest 60% below ME
	Crystal and Perham are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Rentmedian gross, monthly	$1,563±$922 37% above ME	—
Property taxmedian, yearly	$943Lowest 69% below ME	$1,641Highest 46% below ME
Renters paying 30%+of income on rent	14.3%±100Lowest ME: 48.4%	33.3%±100Highest ME: 48.4%
	Perham and Crystal are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Below poverty line	14.7%Highest ME: 10.7%	2.5%Lowest ME: 10.7%
Housing
Homeownersof occupied homes	92.8%Highest ME: 74.3%	92.5%Lowest ME: 74.3%
Typical home builtmedian year	1974Lowest 3 yrs older than ME	1976Highest 1 yr older than ME
Getting to work
Average commuteone way	27 minHighest 10% above ME	25 minLowest about the ME average
Work from home	0%±15.1Lowest ME: 15.9%	8.4%±7.2Highest ME: 15.9%
	Perham and Crystal are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
On TownTapestry
Old photos in History	None yet	None yet

ME 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.