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Montpelier, Indiana

Montpelier is a small town of about 1,500 people in Blackford County, Indiana. It has lost about 3% of its people since 2020. A typical home costs about 1.9 years of the typical household's income, compared with 4.1 across the U.S. The nearest metro area of about a million people or more, Indianapolis, is about 70 miles away as the crow flies.

Population
1,489
down 3.1% since 2020
Typical home, 2020-24
$86,300
Blackford County prices up 15% since 2022
Household income
$45,250
U.S.: $80,734
Prices, rural Indiana
88.7
U.S. average = 100
Emergency room
14 miles
Bluffton, IN
To Indianapolis
70 mi
straight line

The book's checklist

  • Lower cost of livingEveryday prices run 11.3% below the U.S. average in the parts of Indiana outside metro areas.
  • More house for the moneyA typical home costs 1.9 years of the typical household's income here. Across the U.S. it's 4.1.
  • A safer neighborhoodThe FBI has no 2025 figures for Montpelier itself. Many small towns are patrolled by the county sheriff, so call the sheriff's office and ask what calls they get most.
  • Schools in townNo public schools inside the town. The nearest high school is Southern Wells Jr-Sr High School, about 4 miles away.
  • A hospital close byBluffton Regional Medical Center in Bluffton, about 14 miles away, has the nearest emergency room.
  • Within reach of a big cityIndianapolis is about 70 miles away as the crow flies. The book suggests staying within about 60 miles if you'll miss big-city sports, concerts and theater.

A check means Montpelier meets the rule of thumb from Frank and Dave's book. An empty box isn't a deal breaker: it's something to weigh for your family. A question mark means there isn't enough data.

For a lifetime

Homes and money

Typical home value, as owners valued them in 2020-2024
$86,300U.S.: $332,700
Home prices since then
Up 15%Blackford County, 2022 to 2025
Typical rent, with utilities
$641 a monthU.S.: $1,413
Typical household income
$45,250U.S.: $80,734
Homes owned by the people living in them
67%U.S.: 65%
Typical property tax bill
$665 a yearIndiana: $1,614
Homes built before 1940
32%U.S.: 12%
Homes built since 2010
3%U.S.: 11%
Vacation and seasonal homes
1%U.S.: 3%
Everyday prices
88.7U.S. average = 100 (the parts of Indiana outside metro areas)

Home values and rents are what households told the Census Bureau across 2020 to 2024, so they trail today's market: county prices have moved up 15% since 2022. Everyday prices are the government's average for the parts of Indiana outside metro areas, not Montpelier alone. Check current listings before you budget.

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates; Federal Housing Finance Agency, House Price Index for counties (all transactions); U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Price Parities, 2024.

The people

Population, 2025 estimate
1,4892020: 1,536
Median age
51.1 yearsU.S.: 38.9
Age 65 and older
25%U.S.: 17%
Under 18
14%U.S.: 22%
Adults with a bachelor's degree or more
10%U.S.: 36%
Moved here from another county or state in the past year
7%U.S.: 6%

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, Population Estimates (Vintage 2025); U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates.

Work

Biggest lines of work
Manufacturing (29%); transportation, warehousing and utilities (14%); schools, health care and social services (11%)
Unemployment rate
3%U.S.: 5%
Average commute
34 minutesU.S.: 26 minutes
Work from home
5%U.S.: 15%
Below the poverty line
21%U.S.: 12%

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates.

Health care

Nearest emergency room: Bluffton Regional Medical Center, Bluffton, IN, about 14 miles away. It's a general hospital. Medicare gives it 4 of 5 stars.

Look up doctors, clinics and the hospitals themselves on Medicare's Care Compare. Ask where the most serious cases are sent.

Sources: Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, Hospital General Information.

Schools

There are no public schools inside Montpelier itself. The nearest public high school is Southern Wells Jr-Sr High School, about 4 miles away.

See each school on the federal school search, then check test scores and graduation rates on Indiana's school report card.

Sources: National Center for Education Statistics, Common Core of Data, 2023-24 (via the Urban Institute Education Data Portal); National Center for Education Statistics, IPEDS institution directory, 2024.

Internet

Homes with cable, fiber or DSL internet
55%U.S.: 76%
Homes with any internet subscription
82%U.S.: 91%

Before you buy, look up the address on the FCC's National Broadband Map to see which providers serve it.

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates.

Weather

January average low
19°F
July average high
83°F
Days 90°F or hotter
13 a year
Nights at or below freezing
116 a year
Rain and melted snow
41.7 inches a year
Snow
32 inches a year
Elevation
880 feet

Weather station: Hartford City 4 ESE (8 miles away). Averages for 1991 to 2020.

Sources: NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, U.S. Climate Normals 1991-2020; U.S. Geological Survey, 3D Elevation Program.

Getting around

Straight-line miles. The road is always longer, and as the book says, an interstate at 70 is a different trip from a farm road at 45. Check the real drive: Bluffton Regional Medical Center, Muncie, Indianapolis.

Blackford County is outside any metro area, with 5,000 to 20,000 people in its towns, next to a metro area (USDA rural-urban code 6, on a scale where 1 is the biggest metro areas and 9 the most rural counties).

For a day

1 place on the National Register of Historic Places.

Read about Montpelier's history on Wikipedia.

Know Montpelier?

Tell us what a visitor shouldn't miss, and what living there is really like. Write to Main Street at mainstreet@smalltownguide.com. The best notes from people who know the town will be added here.

Nearby

Straight-line miles.

Small towns

Smaller places

  • Roll, IN (unincorporated)169 people, 6 miles
  • Poneto, IN178 people, 8 miles
  • Pennville, IN614 people, 8 miles
  • Liberty Center, IN (unincorporated)389 people, 11 miles
  • Shamrock Lakes, IN215 people, 12 miles
  • Van Buren, IN775 people, 12 miles
  • Linn Grove, IN (unincorporated)396 people, 15 miles

Sources

  1. U.S. Census Bureau, Population Estimates (Vintage 2025)
  2. U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates
  3. Federal Housing Finance Agency, House Price Index for counties (all transactions)
  4. U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Price Parities, 2024
  5. FBI, Crime in the United States, Table 8 (offenses known to law enforcement by city)
  6. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, Hospital General Information
  7. National Center for Education Statistics, Common Core of Data, 2023-24 (via the Urban Institute Education Data Portal)
  8. National Center for Education Statistics, IPEDS institution directory, 2024
  9. NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, U.S. Climate Normals 1991-2020
  10. U.S. Geological Survey, 3D Elevation Program
  11. National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places listings
  12. National Park Service, park unit boundaries
  13. USDA Economic Research Service, Rural-Urban Continuum Codes, 2023
  14. U.S. Census Bureau, 2025 Gazetteer files and 2020 urban areas

Census survey figures are estimates with a margin of error; we leave out any figure whose margin is too wide to be useful. Data last gathered October 5, 2026. See something wrong? Write to mainstreet@smalltownguide.com.