Living in Hartland, 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 3 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 Hartland 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 town1 public school. No public high school in town: the nearest is Nokomis Regional High School, about 11 miles away.
A hospital close byNorthern Light Sebasticook Valley Hospital in Pittsfield, about 10 miles away, has the nearest emergency room.
Within reach of a big cityBoston is about 191 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 Hartland 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 4 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.

Boom town. The population is up 11% since 2020. Growing fast, with rising home values. Watch for chain stores and big apartment complexes: the small-town feel may not last.

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: $139,200U.S.: $332,700
Home prices since then: Up 32%Somerset County, 2022 to 2025
Typical rent, with utilities: $911 a monthU.S.: $1,413
Typical household income: $46,141U.S.: $80,734
Homes owned by the people living in them: 83%U.S.: 65%
Typical property tax bill: $1,658 a yearMaine: $3,036
Homes built before 1940: 19%U.S.: 12%
Homes built since 2010: 8%U.S.: 11%
Vacation and seasonal homes: 25%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 32% since 2022. Everyday prices are the government's average for the parts of Maine outside metro areas, not Hartland 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: 1,8902020: 1,699
Median age: 53.2 yearsU.S.: 38.9
Age 65 and older: 22%U.S.: 17%
Under 18: 20%U.S.: 22%
Moved here from another county or state in the past year: 15%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: Arts, recreation, lodging and restaurants (12%); schools, health care and social services (12%)
Unemployment rate: 4%U.S.: 5%
Average commute: 30 minutesU.S.: 26 minutes
Work from home: 3%U.S.: 15%
Below the poverty line: 16%U.S.: 12%

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

Health care

Nearest emergency room: Northern Light Sebasticook Valley Hospital, Pittsfield, ME, about 10 miles away. It's a critical access hospital (a small rural hospital with 25 or fewer beds). Medicare gives it 2 of 5 stars.

Nearest general hospital: St. Joseph Hospital, Bangor, ME, about 37 miles away. Medicare gives it 3 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

1 public school in Hartland, run by Rsu 19. The nearest public high school is Nokomis Regional High School, about 11 miles away.

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 any internet subscription: 85%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: 3°F
July average high: 81°F
Days 90°F or hotter: 8 a year
Nights at or below freezing: 178 a year
Rain and melted snow: 44.6 inches a year
Snow: 79 inches a year
Elevation: 327 feet

Weather station: Harmony (5 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

Northern Light Sebasticook Valley HospitalEmergency room10

Portland, MECity of 70,00092

Boston, MAMetro of 5 million191

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: Northern Light Sebasticook Valley Hospital, Portland, Boston.

Somerset 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

National Park Service sites within about an hour:

Appalachian National Scenic Trail27 miles

Read about Hartland's history on Wikipedia.

Know Hartland?

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

Canaan, ME2,200 people, 7 miles
St. Albans, ME2,200 people, 7 miles
Cornville, ME1,400 people, 8 miles
Palmyra, ME2,100 people, 8 miles
Pittsfield, ME3,900 people, 9 miles
Skowhegan, ME8,700 people, 11 miles

Smaller places

Harmony, ME829 people, 7 miles
Athens, ME955 people, 9 miles
Ripley, ME487 people, 10 miles
Cambridge, ME460 people, 12 miles
Detroit, ME929 people, 13 miles
Wellington, ME232 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.