What stands out worked out from the figures below

Wade has the most people working from home (10.1%).

Topsfield has the most homeowners (95.1%).

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	Topsfield
People
Population	244Highest	214Lowest
Median age	53.6±18.5Lowest 20% above ME	63.5±4.9Highest 42% above ME
	Topsfield and Wade are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Kids under 18	16.4%±6.7Highest ME: 18.1%	13.1%±10.4Lowest ME: 18.1%
	Wade and Topsfield are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Age 65+	34.8%±10.8Lowest ME: 22.4%	44.9%±12.5Highest ME: 22.4%
	Topsfield and Wade 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%	14.4%Lowest ME: 36.2%
Enrolled in collegeshare of residents	0.4%±4.6Lowest ME: 5.8%	0.9%±5.3Highest ME: 5.8%
	Topsfield 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	$48,125±$16kHighest 36% below ME
	Topsfield 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	$141,700±$32kLowest 52% below ME
	Wade and Topsfield 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	$957Lowest 68% below ME
Renters paying 30%+of income on rent	0%±100 ME: 48.4%	—
Below poverty line	4.2%Lowest ME: 10.7%	13.1%Highest ME: 10.7%
Housing
Homeownersof occupied homes	78.3%Lowest ME: 74.3%	95.1%Highest ME: 74.3%
Typical home builtmedian year	1951Lowest 26 yrs older than ME	1969Highest 8 yrs older than ME
Getting to work
Average commuteone way	34 minLowest 37% above ME	34 minHighest 39% above ME
Work from home	10.1%±6.8Highest ME: 15.9%	5.1%±6.2Lowest ME: 15.9%
	Wade and Topsfield are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Schools
School district	—	East Range CSD
High school in town	—	None in town
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.