What stands out worked out from the figures below

Patten has the most affordable homes ($83k median).

Mount Chase has the most expensive homes ($116k 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	Patten	Mount Chase
People
Population	607Highest	280Lowest
Median age	56.1±5.8Highest 25% above ME	49.9±10.9Lowest 11% above ME
	Patten and Mount Chase are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Kids under 18	16.5%±4.8Lowest ME: 18.1%	22.1%±10.6Highest ME: 18.1%
	Mount Chase and Patten are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Age 65+	32.9%±5.6Highest ME: 22.4%	28.9%±6.3Lowest ME: 22.4%
	Patten and Mount Chase are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Bachelor’s degree+adults 25+	30.6%Lowest ME: 36.2%	32.1%Highest ME: 36.2%
Enrolled in collegeshare of residents	1.6%±2.7Lowest ME: 5.8%	2.9%±5.7Highest ME: 5.8%
	Mount Chase and Patten are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Cost of living
Household incomemedian	$45,750±$19kHighest 39% below ME	$41,711±$7kLowest 44% below ME
	Patten and Mount Chase are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Home valuemedian, owner-occupied	$83,000±$51kLowest 72% below ME	$115,700±$15kHighest 61% below ME
	Mount Chase and Patten are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Rentmedian gross, monthly	$389±$99Lowest 66% below ME	$1,281±$1kHighest 12% above ME
	Mount Chase and Patten are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Property taxmedian, yearly	$857Lowest 72% below ME	$1,548Highest 49% below ME
Renters paying 30%+of income on rent	56%±58.6Highest ME: 48.4%	28.6%±100Lowest ME: 48.4%
	Patten and Mount Chase are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Below poverty line	28.4%Lowest ME: 10.7%	30.7%Highest ME: 10.7%
Housing
Homeownersof occupied homes	72.4%Lowest ME: 74.3%	90%Highest ME: 74.3%
Typical home builtmedian year	1955Lowest 22 yrs older than ME	1986Highest 9 yrs newer than ME
Getting to work
Average commuteone way	25 minLowest about the ME average	27 minHighest 9% above ME
Work from home	24.3%±24.5Highest ME: 15.9%	22.2%±12.8Lowest ME: 15.9%
	Patten and Mount Chase are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
On TownTapestry
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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.