What stands out worked out from the figures below

Wade has the most expensive homes ($157k median).

Springfield has the highest household income ($61k).

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	Wade	Springfield
People
Population	244Lowest	310Highest
Median age	53.6±18.5Highest 20% above ME	52.4±7Lowest 17% above ME
	Wade and Springfield are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Kids under 18	16.4%±6.7Lowest ME: 18.1%	18.1%±5.6Highest ME: 18.1%
	Springfield and Wade are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Age 65+	34.8%±10.8Highest ME: 22.4%	21.6%±5.4Lowest ME: 22.4%
	Wade and Springfield are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Bachelor’s degree+adults 25+	33.2%Highest ME: 36.2%	17.3%Lowest ME: 36.2%
Enrolled in collegeshare of residents	0.4%±4.6Lowest ME: 5.8%	0.6%±3.7Highest ME: 5.8%
	Springfield and Wade are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Cost of living
Household incomemedian	$41,818±$25kLowest 44% below ME	$60,833±$23kHighest 19% below ME
	Springfield and Wade are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Home valuemedian, owner-occupied	$157,100±$109kHighest 47% below ME	$122,500±$28kLowest 59% below ME
	Wade and Springfield are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Property taxmedian, yearly	$1,655Highest 45% below ME	$1,067Lowest 65% below ME
Renters paying 30%+of income on rent	0%±100 ME: 48.4%	—
Below poverty line	4.2%Lowest ME: 10.7%	5.5%Highest ME: 10.7%
Housing
Homeownersof occupied homes	78.3%Lowest ME: 74.3%	96.2%Highest ME: 74.3%
Typical home builtmedian year	1951Lowest 26 yrs older than ME	1987Highest 10 yrs newer than ME
Getting to work
Average commuteone way	34 minHighest 37% above ME	30 minLowest 21% above ME
Work from home	10.1%±6.8Highest ME: 15.9%	9.6%±5.2Lowest ME: 15.9%
	Wade and Springfield 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.