What stands out worked out from the figures below

Manchester has the shortest commute (20 min average).

Raymond has the most people working from home (32.3%).

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	Manchester	Raymond
People
Population	2,424Lowest	4,610Highest
Growth since 20102010 → 2020 census	-4.8%Lowest ME: +2.6%	+2.3%Highest ME: +2.6%
Median age	46.9±4.6Lowest 5% above ME	47.3±4.1Highest 6% above ME
	Raymond and Manchester are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Kids under 18	19%±4.7Lowest ME: 18.1%	19.1%±4.9Highest ME: 18.1%
	Raymond and Manchester are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Age 65+	22.6%±4.1Highest ME: 22.4%	22.2%±5.5Lowest ME: 22.4%
	Manchester and Raymond are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Bachelor’s degree+adults 25+	47.5%Lowest ME: 36.2%	49.3%Highest ME: 36.2%
Enrolled in collegeshare of residents	2.7%±1.6Lowest ME: 5.8%	3.5%±2.1Highest ME: 5.8%
	Raymond and Manchester are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Cost of living
Household incomemedian	$92,031±$16kHighest 23% above ME	$88,194±$20kLowest 18% above ME
	Manchester and Raymond are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Home valuemedian, owner-occupied	$299,600±$40kLowest about the ME average	$395,800±$42kHighest 33% above ME
Rentmedian gross, monthly	$993±$116Highest 13% below ME	$965±$397Lowest 15% below ME
	Manchester and Raymond are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Property taxmedian, yearly	$3,486Highest 15% above ME	$3,139Lowest 3% above ME
Renters paying 30%+of income on rent	30.9%±18.6Lowest ME: 48.4%	38.3%±62.5Highest ME: 48.4%
	Raymond and Manchester are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Below poverty line	4.5%Lowest ME: 10.7%	5.3%Highest ME: 10.7%
Housing
Homeownersof occupied homes	85%Lowest ME: 74.3%	89.7%Highest ME: 74.3%
Typical home builtmedian year	1977Highest same as ME	1976Lowest 1 yr older than ME
Getting to work
Average commuteone way	20 minLowest 19% below ME	37 minHighest 50% above ME
Work from home	11.9%±5.7Lowest ME: 15.9%	32.3%±11.3Highest ME: 15.9%
Schools
Public school scoresrank in state, math + reading	—	#112 of 133 in ME
School district	RSU 38	RSU 14
High school in town	None in town	None in town
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.