What stands out worked out from the figures below

Whiting has the most expensive homes ($214k median).

Springfield has the most people working from home (9.6%).

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	Whiting	Springfield
People
Population	506Highest	310Lowest
Median age	50±5Lowest 12% above ME	52.4±7Highest 17% above ME
	Springfield and Whiting are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Kids under 18	17.8%±4.8Lowest ME: 18.1%	18.1%±5.6Highest ME: 18.1%
	Springfield and Whiting are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Age 65+	27.5%±6.1Highest ME: 22.4%	21.6%±5.4Lowest ME: 22.4%
	Whiting and Springfield are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Bachelor’s degree+adults 25+	34.9%Highest ME: 36.2%	17.3%Lowest ME: 36.2%
Enrolled in collegeshare of residents	2.8%±1.8Highest ME: 5.8%	0.6%±3.7Lowest ME: 5.8%
	Whiting and Springfield are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Cost of living
Household incomemedian	$55,263±$2kLowest 26% below ME	$60,833±$23kHighest 19% below ME
	Springfield and Whiting are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Home valuemedian, owner-occupied	$214,200±$52kHighest 28% below ME	$122,500±$28kLowest 59% below ME
Rentmedian gross, monthly	$600±$333 47% below ME	—
Property taxmedian, yearly	$1,728Highest 43% below ME	$1,067Lowest 65% below ME
Renters paying 30%+of income on rent	33.3%±100 ME: 48.4%	—
Below poverty line	5.3%Lowest ME: 10.7%	5.5%Highest ME: 10.7%
Housing
Homeownersof occupied homes	93.6%Lowest ME: 74.3%	96.2%Highest ME: 74.3%
Typical home builtmedian year	1981Lowest 4 yrs newer than ME	1987Highest 10 yrs newer than ME
Getting to work
Average commuteone way	22 minLowest 10% below ME	30 minHighest 21% above ME
Work from home	5.1%±2.8Lowest ME: 15.9%	9.6%±5.2Highest ME: 15.9%
	Springfield and Whiting are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Schools
School district	Whiting Public Schools	—
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.