What stands out worked out from the figures below

Palmer Town has the most affordable homes ($271k median).

Spencer has the most people working from home (15%).

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	Palmer Town	Spencer
People
Population	12,381Highest	12,008Lowest
Growth since 20102010 → 2020 census	+2.5%Lowest MA: +7.4%	+2.6%Highest MA: +7.4%
Median age	47.8±5.6Lowest 20% above MA	48.9±6.8Highest 22% above MA
	Spencer and Palmer Town are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Kids under 18	15.1%±3.1Lowest MA: 19.4%	16.4%±3.9Highest MA: 19.4%
	Spencer and Palmer Town are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Age 65+	20.9%±4.2Lowest MA: 17.9%	26%±4.4Highest MA: 17.9%
	Spencer and Palmer Town are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Bachelor’s degree+adults 25+	23.5%Lowest MA: 47.3%	29.1%Highest MA: 47.3%
Enrolled in collegeshare of residents	3.4%±1.5Lowest MA: 7.9%	5.2%±2.4Highest MA: 7.9%
	Spencer and Palmer Town are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Cost of living
Household incomemedian	$78,480±$8kLowest 25% below MA	$80,533±$11kHighest 23% below MA
	Spencer and Palmer Town are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Home valuemedian, owner-occupied	$271,400±$21kLowest 52% below MA	$382,000±$22kHighest 32% below MA
Rentmedian gross, monthly	$1,075±$103Lowest 39% below MA	$1,078±$161Highest 39% below MA
	Spencer and Palmer Town are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Property taxmedian, yearly	$4,540Highest 24% below MA	$4,387Lowest 27% below MA
Renters paying 30%+of income on rent	52.9%±10.6Highest MA: 51.8%	50.6%±10.3Lowest MA: 51.8%
	Palmer Town and Spencer are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Below poverty line	8.3%Lowest MA: 10%	11%Highest MA: 10%
Housing
Homeownersof occupied homes	71.5%Highest MA: 62.5%	63%Lowest MA: 62.5%
Typical home builtmedian year	1962Lowest 2 yrs older than MA	1968Highest 4 yrs newer than MA
Getting to work
Average commuteone way	31 minLowest 8% above MA	34 minHighest 18% above MA
Work from home	7.3%±2.7Lowest MA: 18.6%	15%±7.3Highest MA: 18.6%
	Spencer and Palmer Town are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Schools
Public school scoresrank in state, math + reading	#252 of 282 in MA	#261 of 282 in MA
School district	Palmer · Pathfinder Regional Vocational Technical	Spencer-E Brookfield
High school in town	Pathfinder Vocational Technical	David Prouty High
Students per teacherat that high school	9.9	9.9
On TownTapestry
Old photos in Our Story	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.