What stands out worked out from the figures below

Danforth has the most affordable homes ($85k median).

Shirley has the most expensive homes ($220k median).

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	Danforth	Shirley
People
Population	452Highest	234Lowest
Median age	51.9±5.3Highest 16% above ME	42±8.2Lowest 6% below ME
	Danforth and Shirley are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Kids under 18	14.8%±6.6Lowest ME: 18.1%	16.2%±9.2Highest ME: 18.1%
	Shirley and Danforth are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Age 65+	22.6%±5.8Lowest ME: 22.4%	26.5%±10.1Highest ME: 22.4%
	Shirley and Danforth are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Bachelor’s degree+adults 25+	4.5%Lowest ME: 36.2%	30.6%Highest ME: 36.2%
Enrolled in collegeshare of residents	2.4%±2.9Lowest ME: 5.8%	4.3%±5.1Highest ME: 5.8%
	Shirley and Danforth are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Cost of living
Household incomemedian	$42,264±$11kLowest 43% below ME	$61,875±$22kHighest 17% below ME
	Shirley and Danforth are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Home valuemedian, owner-occupied	$85,200±$20kLowest 71% below ME	$219,600±$36kHighest 26% below ME
Rentmedian gross, monthly	$629±$22 45% below ME	—
Property taxmedian, yearly	—	$2,522 17% below ME
Renters paying 30%+of income on rent	11.5%±71.8 ME: 48.4%	—
Below poverty line	12%Lowest ME: 10.7%	17%Highest ME: 10.7%
Housing
Homeownersof occupied homes	79.4%Lowest ME: 74.3%	99%Highest ME: 74.3%
Typical home builtmedian year	1981Lowest 4 yrs newer than ME	1984Highest 7 yrs newer than ME
Getting to work
Average commuteone way	27 minHighest 9% above ME	21 minLowest 17% below ME
Work from home	3%±2.8Lowest ME: 15.9%	5.3%±4.9Highest ME: 15.9%
	Shirley and Danforth 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.