Poland, ME

The affordability dashboard for Poland, ME aggregates Census ACS 5-Year Estimates across 1 ZIP code covering 5,343 residents, then layers in county-level federal data to produce an overall grade of C+ (60/100). The headline inputs are median household income of $85,557, median home value of $283,600, median rent of $1,198 per month, and 23.8% 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 $1,586 per month (studio $1,140, 1BR $1,218, 3BR $2,050, 4BR $2,305). Department of Labor data lists infant center-based childcare at $11,664 per year, consuming 14% 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 education. Unemployment currently reads 2.3% and poverty 16.6% — numbers worth keeping alongside the headline grade.