Living in Bethel, Maine: homes, schools and costs

The book's checklist

Lower cost of livingEveryday prices run 8.4% below the U.S. average in the parts of Maine outside metro areas.
More house for the moneyA typical home costs 5.9 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 Bethel 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 town3 public schools: 1 elementary, 1 middle and 1 high school.
A hospital close byRumford Hospital in Rumford, about 12 miles away, has the nearest emergency room.
Within reach of a big cityBoston is about 146 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 Bethel 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.

What kind of town

Tourist town. About 1 in 3 homes is a vacation or seasonal home, a sign of a visitor economy. More restaurants, shops and weekend events than locals alone could support, with the small-town basics intact.

The book sorts small towns into six types. These labels come only from the numbers; take the quiz to see which type fits your family.

For a lifetime

Homes and money

Typical home value, as owners valued them in 2020-2024: $344,900U.S.: $332,700
Home prices since then: Up 25%Oxford County, 2022 to 2025
Typical rent, with utilities: $864 a monthU.S.: $1,413
Typical household income: $58,929U.S.: $80,734
Homes owned by the people living in them: 83%U.S.: 65%
Typical property tax bill: $2,835 a yearMaine: $3,036
Homes built before 1940: 20%U.S.: 12%
Homes built since 2010: 10%U.S.: 11%
Vacation and seasonal homes: 34%U.S.: 3%
Everyday prices: 91.6U.S. average = 100 (the parts of Maine 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 25% since 2022. Everyday prices are the government's average for the parts of Maine outside metro areas, not Bethel 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: 2,7512020: 2,512
Median age: 50.2 yearsU.S.: 38.9
Age 65 and older: 29%U.S.: 17%
Under 18: 16%U.S.: 22%
Adults with a bachelor's degree or more: 41%U.S.: 36%
Moved here from another county or state in the past year: 3%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: Schools, health care and social services (26%); arts, recreation, lodging and restaurants (24%); construction (10%)
Unemployment rate: 5%U.S.: 5%
Average commute: 26 minutesU.S.: 26 minutes
Work from home: 28%U.S.: 15%
Below the poverty line: 14%U.S.: 12%

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

Health care

Nearest emergency room: Rumford Hospital, Rumford, ME, about 12 miles away. It's a critical access hospital (a small rural hospital with 25 or fewer beds). Medicare hasn't given it a star rating.

Nearest general hospital: Central Maine Medical Center, Lewiston, ME, about 36 miles away. 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

3 public schools in Bethel, run by Rsu 44/msad 44.

See each school on the federal school search, then check test scores and graduation rates on Maine'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: 72%U.S.: 76%
Homes with any internet subscription: 95%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: 6°F
July average high: 79°F
Days 90°F or hotter: 4 a year
Nights at or below freezing: 178 a year
Rain and melted snow: 48.9 inches a year
Snow: 88 inches a year
Elevation: 915 feet

Weather stations: Rumford 6SW (6 miles away) and Rumford 1 SSE (12 miles away, rain and snow). 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

Rumford HospitalEmergency room12

Portland, MECity of 70,00063

Boston, MAMetro of 5 million146

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: Rumford Hospital, Portland, Boston.

Oxford 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

10 places on the National Register of Historic Places, including the Broad Street Historic District, Broad Street Historic District (Boundary Increase) and Middle Intervale Meeting House and Common.

National Park Service sites within about an hour:

Appalachian National Scenic Trail12 miles

Read about Bethel's history on Wikipedia.

Know Bethel?

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

Woodstock, ME1,400 people, 10 miles
Rumford, ME6,000 people, 10 miles
West Paris, ME1,800 people, 14 miles
Mexico, ME2,800 people, 15 miles
Peru, ME1,500 people, 15 miles
Sumner, ME1,000 people, 16 miles

Smaller places

Hanover, ME304 people, 4 miles
Newry, ME429 people, 7 miles
Greenwood, ME764 people, 8 miles
Gilead, ME198 people, 10 miles
Andover, ME887 people, 10 miles
Stoneham, ME276 people, 14 miles

Sources

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.