What stands out worked out from the figures below

Perham has the most people working from home (8.4%).

Crystal has the oldest population (median age 63.2).

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	Perham	Crystal
People
Population	326Highest	247Lowest
Median age	53±12.9Lowest 18% above ME	63.2±8.4Highest 41% above ME
	Crystal and Perham are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Kids under 18	19.6%±8.5Highest ME: 18.1%	16.2%±11.8Lowest ME: 18.1%
	Perham and Crystal are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Age 65+	24.5%±2.3Lowest ME: 22.4%	49%±5.3Highest ME: 22.4%
Bachelor’s degree+adults 25+	18.7%Lowest ME: 36.2%	22.9%Highest ME: 36.2%
Enrolled in collegeshare of residents	2.5%±1.9Highest ME: 5.8%	0%±6.3Lowest ME: 5.8%
	Perham and Crystal are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Cost of living
Household incomemedian	$62,500±$22kHighest 16% below ME	$48,125±$13kLowest 36% below ME
	Perham and Crystal are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Home valuemedian, owner-occupied	$117,600±$9kLowest 60% below ME	$129,200±$60kHighest 56% below ME
	Crystal and Perham are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Rentmedian gross, monthly	—	$1,563±$922 37% above ME
Property taxmedian, yearly	$1,641Highest 46% below ME	$943Lowest 69% below ME
Renters paying 30%+of income on rent	33.3%±100Highest ME: 48.4%	14.3%±100Lowest ME: 48.4%
	Perham and Crystal are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Below poverty line	2.5%Lowest ME: 10.7%	14.7%Highest ME: 10.7%
Housing
Homeownersof occupied homes	92.5%Lowest ME: 74.3%	92.8%Highest ME: 74.3%
Typical home builtmedian year	1976Highest 1 yr older than ME	1974Lowest 3 yrs older than ME
Getting to work
Average commuteone way	25 minLowest about the ME average	27 minHighest 10% above ME
Work from home	8.4%±7.2Highest ME: 15.9%	0%±15.1Lowest ME: 15.9%
	Perham and Crystal 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.