Portland is a larger medium-sized coastal city (i.e. on the ocean, a bay, or inlet) located in the state of Maine. With a population of 68,424 people and 20 associated neighborhoods, Portland is the largest community in Maine. Much of the housing stock in Portland was built prior to World War II, making it one of the older and more historic cities in the country. Portland home prices are not only among the most expensive in Maine, but Portland real estate also consistently ranks among the most expensive in America.Portland is a decidedly white-collar city, with fully 87.50% of the workforce employed in white-collar jobs, well above the national average. Overall, Portland is a city of professionals, managers, and sales and office workers. There are especially a lot of people living in Portland who work in management occupations (13.02%), sales jobs (9.75%), and office and administrative support (8.62%). 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. Of important note, Portland is also a city of artists. Portland has more artists, designers and people working in media than 90% of the communities in America. This concentration of artists helps shape Portland’s character. A relatively large number of people in Portland telecommute to their jobs. Overall, about 18.46% of the workforce works from home. While this may seem like a small number, as a fraction of the total workforce it ranks among the highest in the country. 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 also nautical, which means that parts of it are somewhat historic and touch the ocean or tidal bodies of water, such as inlets and bays. Such areas are often places that visitors and locals go for waterfront activities or taking in the scenery. If knowledge is power, Portland is a pretty powerful place. 57.68% of the adults in Portland have earned a 4-year college degree, masters degree, MD, law degree, or even PhD. Compare that to the national average of 21.84% for all cities and towns. The per capita income in Portland in 2022 was $48,806, which is wealthy relative to Maine and the nation. This equates to an annual income of $195,224 for a family of four. However, Portland contains both very wealthy and poor people as well. Portland is a somewhat ethnically-diverse city. 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 Black or African-American. Important ancestries of people in Portland include Irish, English, Italian, German, and French. The most common language spoken in Portland is English. Other important languages spoken here include French and African languages.
