What stands out worked out from the figures below

Erving has the most affordable homes ($272k median).

New Braintree has the most people working from home (7.4%).

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	Erving	New Braintree
People
Population	1,703Highest	973Lowest
Growth since 20102010 → 2020 census	-7.5%Lowest MA: +7.4%	-0.3%Highest MA: +7.4%
Median age	43.3±2.4Lowest 8% above MA	47.8±4.6Highest 20% above MA
	New Braintree and Erving are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Kids under 18	16.3%±3.2Lowest MA: 19.4%	20%±4.4Highest MA: 19.4%
	New Braintree and Erving are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Age 65+	22.6%±2.4Lowest MA: 17.9%	25.6%±2.5Highest MA: 17.9%
	New Braintree and Erving are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Bachelor’s degree+adults 25+	24.1%Lowest MA: 47.3%	41.4%Highest MA: 47.3%
Enrolled in collegeshare of residents	2.8%±1.3Lowest MA: 7.9%	2.9%±1.6Highest MA: 7.9%
	New Braintree and Erving are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Cost of living
Household incomemedian	$77,656±$9kLowest 25% below MA	$99,500±$8kHighest 4% below MA
Home valuemedian, owner-occupied	$271,800±$20kLowest 52% below MA	$408,800±$27kHighest 27% below MA
Rentmedian gross, monthly	$1,163±$213Lowest 34% below MA	$1,484±$316Highest 16% below MA
	New Braintree and Erving are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Property taxmedian, yearly	$1,870Lowest 69% below MA	$5,508Highest 8% below MA
Renters paying 30%+of income on rent	46.5%±23Lowest MA: 51.8%	51.4%±51.2Highest MA: 51.8%
	New Braintree and Erving are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Below poverty line	5.2%Lowest MA: 10%	7.2%Highest MA: 10%
Housing
Homeownersof occupied homes	81.5%Lowest MA: 62.5%	89.8%Highest MA: 62.5%
Typical home builtmedian year	1957Lowest 7 yrs older than MA	1987Highest 23 yrs newer than MA
Getting to work
Average commuteone way	28 minLowest 4% below MA	37 minHighest 26% above MA
Work from home	3.6%±2Lowest MA: 18.6%	7.4%±3.4Highest MA: 18.6%
	New Braintree and Erving are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Schools
School district	Erving	Quabbin
High school in town	None in town	None in town
On TownTapestry
Old photos in History	None yet	None yet

MA 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.