Portland is a somewhat small town located in the state of Connecticut. With a population of 9,429 people and two associated neighborhoods, Portland is the 101st largest community in Connecticut.Unlike some towns where white-collar or blue-collar occupations dominate the local economy, Portland is neither predominantly one nor the other. Instead, it has a mixed workforce of both white- and blue-collar jobs. Overall, Portland is a town of sales and office workers, professionals, and managers. There are especially a lot of people living in Portland who work in office and administrative support (15.86%), management occupations (13.12%), and sales jobs (9.36%). Also of interest is that Portland has more people living here who work in computers and math than 95% of the places in the US. One interesting thing about the economy is that relatively large numbers of people worked from their home: 15.20% of the workforce. While this number may seem small overall, as a fraction of the total workforce this is high compared to the rest of the county. These workers are often telecommuters who work in knowledge-based, white-collar professions. For example, Silicon Valley has large numbers of people who telecommute. Other at-home workers may be self-employed people who operate small businesses out of their homes. Portland is a good choice for families with children because of several factors. Many other families with children live here, making it a place where both parents and children are more likely to develop social ties with other families. The town’s good public school district and large population of college-educated adults provide an environment conducive to academic success. Many people own their own single-family homes, providing areas for children to play and stability in the community. Finally, Portland’s overall crime rate is lower than average for the country. One downside of living in Portland is that it can take a long time to commute to work. In Portland, the average commute to work is 31.53 minutes, which is quite a bit higher than the national average. The education level of Portland ranks among the highest in the nation. Of the 25-and-older adult population in Portland, 48.89% have at least a bachelor's degree. The typical US community has just 21.84% of its adults holding a bachelor's degree or graduate degree. The per capita income in Portland in 2022 was $49,835, which is lower middle income relative to Connecticut, and wealthy relative to the rest of the US. This equates to an annual income of $199,340 for a family of four. The people who call Portland home describe themselves as belonging to a variety of racial and ethnic groups. The greatest number of Portland residents report their race to be White, followed by Asian. Important ancestries of people in Portland include Irish, Italian, English, Polish, and German. The most common language spoken in Portland is English. Other important languages spoken here include Polish and Spanish.
