Penobscot, ME

The affordability dashboard for Penobscot, ME aggregates Census ACS 5-Year Estimates across 1 ZIP code covering 1,259 residents, then layers in county-level federal data to produce an overall grade of D (46/100). The headline inputs are median household income of $63,194, median home value of $296,400, median rent of $1,141 per month, and 32.4% of adults holding a bachelor's degree or higher. These four metrics alone explain most of the variance between city dashboards.

Cross-agency feeds widen the picture beyond Census demographics. HUD publishes a Fair Market Rent for a 2-bedroom in this county at $1,501 per month (studio $1,227, 1BR $1,234, 3BR $2,047, 4BR $2,055). Department of Labor data lists infant center-based childcare at $11,908 per year, consuming 19% of the local median household income.

Reading the overall grade requires reading all seven dimensions together. The score weights Income 20%, Safety 20%, Housing 15%, Rent 15%, Education 10%, Commute 10%, and Childcare 10%, with each sub-score benchmarked against national percentiles rather than state averages — so the grade is genuinely comparable across any city in the country. Pressure points are housing, childcare. Unemployment currently reads 4.2% and poverty 16.0% — numbers worth keeping alongside the headline grade.