What stands out worked out from the figures below

Roxbury has the most affordable homes ($106k median).

Patten has the most people working from home (28.7%).

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	Roxbury	Patten
People
Population	352Lowest	1,154Highest
Growth since 20102010 → 2020 census	—	-13.4% ME: +2.6%
Median age	59.8±3.4Highest 33% above ME	57.8±3.5Lowest 29% above ME
	Roxbury and Patten are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Kids under 18	6%±6.7Lowest ME: 18.1%	11.3%±2.9Highest ME: 18.1%
	Patten and Roxbury are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Age 65+	25.6%±10.8Lowest ME: 22.4%	38.5%±3.3Highest ME: 22.4%
	Patten and Roxbury are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Bachelor’s degree+adults 25+	15.5%Lowest ME: 36.2%	25.1%Highest ME: 36.2%
Enrolled in collegeshare of residents	0.6%±3.2Lowest ME: 5.8%	1.1%±1.1Highest ME: 5.8%
	Patten and Roxbury are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Cost of living
Household incomemedian	$51,667±$34kHighest 31% below ME	$51,484±$6kLowest 31% below ME
	Roxbury and Patten are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Home valuemedian, owner-occupied	$105,800±$48kLowest 64% below ME	$127,600±$49kHighest 57% below ME
	Patten and Roxbury are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Rentmedian gross, monthly	—	$389±$99 66% below ME
Property taxmedian, yearly	$850Lowest 72% below ME	$1,199Highest 61% below ME
Renters paying 30%+of income on rent	—	56%±64.1 ME: 48.4%
Below poverty line	13.4%Lowest ME: 10.7%	23.2%Highest ME: 10.7%
Housing
Homeownersof occupied homes	94.5%Highest ME: 74.3%	82.5%Lowest ME: 74.3%
Typical home builtmedian year	1969Highest 8 yrs older than ME	1966Lowest 11 yrs older than ME
Getting to work
Average commuteone way	29 minHighest 16% above ME	28 minLowest 13% above ME
Work from home	5.2%±5.7Lowest ME: 15.9%	28.7%±19.4Highest ME: 15.9%
	Patten and Roxbury 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.