Ashland is a medium-sized town located in the state of Massachusetts. With a population of 18,466 people and five associated neighborhoods, Ashland is the 104th largest community in Massachusetts. Housing costs in Ashland are among some of the highest in the nation, although real estate prices here don't compare to real estate prices in the most expensive communities in Massachusetts.Ashland is a decidedly white-collar town, with fully 86.52% of the workforce employed in white-collar jobs, well above the national average. Overall, Ashland is a town of professionals, managers, and sales and office workers. There are especially a lot of people living in Ashland who work in management occupations (16.60%), computer science and math (11.45%), and office and administrative support (9.21%). Also of interest is that Ashland has more people living here who work in computers and math than 95% of the places in the US. A relatively large number of people in Ashland telecommute to their jobs. Overall, about 17.71% 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. In addition, Ashland is home to many people who could be described as "urban sophisticates". Urban sophisticates are educated, wealthy, executives and professionals, who have urbane tastes in books, food, and travel, whether they actually live in a big city, or choose to reside in a small town. In big or medium-sized cities, urban sophisticates tend to frequent art institutions such as opera, symphonies, ballet, live theatre, and museums. Ashland 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, Ashland’s overall crime rate ranks among the lowest in the country, making it one of the safest places to raise a family. One downside of living in Ashland is that it can take a long time to commute to work. In Ashland, the average commute to work is 33.80 minutes, which is quite a bit higher than the national average. On the other hand, local public transit is widely used in the town, so leaving the car at home and taking transit is often a viable alternative. In Ashland, a lot of people use the train to get to work every day though Ashland is a relatively small town. Those that ride the train are primarily traveling out of town to good jobs in other cities.Do you like to read, write and learn? If you move to Ashland, you'll likely find that many of your neighbors like to as well. Ashland is one of the more educated communities in America, with a full 61.24% of its adults having a college degree or even advanced degree, compared to a national average across all communities of 21.84%. The per capita income in Ashland in 2022 was $67,369, which is upper middle income relative to Massachusetts, and wealthy relative to the rest of the US. This equates to an annual income of $269,476 for a family of four. Ashland is a very ethnically-diverse town. The people who call Ashland home describe themselves as belonging to a variety of racial and ethnic groups. The greatest number of Ashland residents report their race to be White, followed by Asian. Important ancestries of people in Ashland include Irish, Italian, German, English, and Polish. Foreign born people are also an important part of Ashland's cultural character, accounting for 21.90% of the town’s population. The most common language spoken in Ashland is English. Other important languages spoken here include Spanish and Langs. of India.
