Photo: Unknown photographer · Public domainMeasured against area pay, Millinocket costs less to live in than 93% of U.S. towns
It ranks #1 of 143 in Maine for affordability. Down 0.9% in a year, 61% below the Maine typical home.
Census 2020–24 home values, rents, tax bills and cost burden, measured against the median household income of the Bangor, ME metro area ($66K). How TownRatings grades cost of living
The grade compares costs with what households across the Bangor metro earn ($66K, Census 2020–24). The typical home costs 1.6 years of metro income, and 21% of renters pay 30% or more of income for housing.
In dollars
- $162Ktypical home, 61% below the Maine typical homeZillow, September 2026
- $1,040a month for a two-bedroom, utilities includedHUD Fair Market Rent, 2026
- 97prices across the Bangor metro, where the U.S. is 100 (housing 78)BEA Regional Price Parities, 2024
In paychecks the grade
- 1.6 yrsof area income buys the typical home; the typical U.S. town: 3.3$66K, Bangor-area income
- 8%of area income goes to the median rent; the typical U.S. town: 18%Census 2020–24
- 21%of renters pay 30%+ of income for housing; across Maine: 48%Census 2020–24
- 25%of owners do; the typical U.S. town: 20%Census 2020–24
The short version on homes in Millinocket
New renters pay more than renters already here
HUD puts a standard two-bedroom at about $1,040 a month with utilities, the going rate for someone moving in. Renters already in Millinocket pay a median of $451. Renting ↓
Buyers have time and room to negotiate
At the pace homes sold in September, it would take about 8.2 months to sell everything listed (Maine: 4.5). The typical home took 68 days to sell and sold at 93% of asking. None sold above the asking price. How fast homes sell ↓
Low tax bills, but a high tax rate
The median tax bill is $1,580, under the Maine median of $3,036, because homes cost less. As a share of value, though, it’s 1.52% a year, against 1.02% statewide. On the typical home, that’s about $200 a month. Property taxes ↓
An older housing stock
Half of Millinocket’s homes were built before 1956, against 1977 for Maine as a whole. Older homes can mean character, and also bigger heating and repair bills, so an inspection matters. Property taxes ↓
Written from the data on this page. Home values are the Zillow Home Value Index, through September 2026; sales and supply are Redfin’s for September 2026; permits are Census figures through 2025 (2025 partly estimated); incomes, rents paid, taxes and ownership come from the Census American Community Survey.
What’s behind Millinocket’s grade
Measured against what households in the area earn, Millinocket is more affordable than 93% of U.S. towns, #1 of 143 in Maine. The share of households paying 30%+ for housing pulls the grade down most; rent holds it up.
Prices here have kept pace with Maine: up 30.5% in five years, against 26.8% statewide (Zillow).
Up 30.5% in five years
Faster than Maine (26.8%).
Show as a table
| January | Millinocket | Maine |
|---|---|---|
| 2017 | $81,000 | $205,000 |
| 2018 | $80,000 | $219,000 |
| 2019 | $97,000 | $232,000 |
| 2020 | $93,000 | $244,000 |
| 2021 | $120,000 | $285,000 |
| 2022 | $129,000 | $333,000 |
| 2023 | $151,000 | $364,000 |
| 2024 | $159,000 | $395,000 |
| 2025 | $166,000 | $408,000 |
| 2026 | $159,000 | $409,000 |
| September 2026 | $162,000 | $412,000 |
A typical Millinocket home worth $81K in October 2016 is worth about $162K today.
Zillow Home Value Index: the typical value of all homes (middle third), smoothed and seasonally adjusted, through September 2026.
Too few sales to read the market
Only 5 homes sold in September 2026, the latest month in Redfin’s figures: too few to describe the market or quote a median sale price.
A typical home costs 1.6 years of area income
The calculator starts from the area income the grade uses. Switch to Millinocket’s own median, or type yours.
That covers a typical Millinocket home, with $75K to spare.
A two-bedroom rents for about $1,040 a month here, $10 less than owning.
An estimate, not a loan offer: payments of up to 28% of income, a 30-year fixed loan, Millinocket’s typical property tax (1.52% of value a year, from the Census) and insurance of about 0.35%. Mortgage insurance, HOA fees and other debts aren’t included.
A two-bedroom rents for about $1,040
Renters already here pay a median of $451, so moving in tends to cost more than staying put.
Fair Market Rent a month, utilities included
U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, Fair Market Rents by ZIP code (Penobscot County, ME (part) HUD Metro FMR Area): the 40th-percentile rent plus utilities for a standard unit. Median rent and renters: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey.
1 new home permitted in 2025
Builders were permitted 1 new home in Millinocket in 2025. That's 0.2 per 1,000 residents, slower than across Maine (5.5). Over the past 10 years, Millinocket has permitted 4 homes in all.
Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses, Millinocket's population fell by 392 and no new homes were permitted. Across Maine: 0.9 new residents per new home.
Every year as a table
| Year | New homes | Single-family | 2+ per building | Value |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 (Jan–Aug) | 1 | 1 | 0 | $200,000 |
| 2025 | 1 | 1 | 0 | $200,000 |
| 2024 | 1 | 1 | 0 | $200,000 |
| 2023 | 2 | 2 | 0 | $400,000 |
| 2022 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — |
| 2021 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — |
| 2020 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — |
| 2019 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — |
| 2018 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — |
| 2017 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — |
| 2016 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — |
| 2015 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — |
| 2014 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — |
| 2013 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — |
| 2012 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — |
| 2011 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — |
| 2010 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — |
| 2009 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — |
| 2008 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — |
| 2007 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — |
| 2006 | 1 | 1 | 0 | $49,000 |
| 2005 | 1 | 1 | 0 | $49,000 |
| 2004 | 1 | 1 | 0 | $49,000 |
| 2003 | 2 | 2 | 0 | $97,000 |
| 2002 | 3 | 3 | 0 | $146,000 |
| 2001 | 2 | 2 | 0 | $97,000 |
| 2000 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — |
Millinocket's permit office didn't report to the Census in 2025, so the 2025 figures are Census estimates.
Homes authorized by building permits, counted in the year the permit was issued. U.S. Census Bureau, Building Permits Survey.
Low tax bills, but a high tax rate
The median bill is $1,580, under the Maine median of $3,036, because homes cost less. As a share of value it’s 1.52% a year, against 1.02% statewide.
Census American Community Survey 2020–24: the median real-estate tax bill homeowners report, and that bill ÷ the median home value. Bills include town, school and county taxes. The Census reports bills over $10,000 only as “$10,000+”.
The rest of a budget near Millinocket
Only figures published free for the whole country, each labeled with the area it covers: the Bangor, ME metro area, or Maine. Groceries follow the goods price level; nobody publishes them town by town.
| Cost | Here | Compared with | Area | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Prices overall U.S. = 100 | 97 | ME 97 | metro | BEA, 2024 |
| Goods (groceries, clothing, cars…) U.S. = 100 | 97 | ME 97 | metro | BEA, 2024 |
| Utilities U.S. = 100 | 135 | ME 135 | metro | BEA, 2024 |
| Other services U.S. = 100 | 103 | ME 103 | metro | BEA, 2024 |
Price levels: U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Price Parities 2024 (metro area and state). Electricity: U.S. Energy Information Administration, Electric Power Monthly, table 5.6.A.
Millinocket and its neighbors
One source per column.
Cost next door · one source per column
| Town | Cost | Typical home Zillow, September 2026 | Median value Census 2020–24 | Tax rate bill ÷ value | 2-bed rent HUD 2026 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Millinocket | A | $162K | $104K | 1.52% | $1,040 |
Questions about the cost of living in Millinocket
Is Millinocket expensive to live in?
Measured against what households in the area earn, Millinocket costs less than 93% of U.S. towns: an A for cost of living, #1 of 143 in Maine. The typical home costs 1.6 years of the median household income of the Bangor, ME metro area ($66K).
How much does a house cost in Millinocket?
About $162K, Zillow’s typical value for September 2026, down 0.9% in a year. The Maine typical home is $412K.
What salary do you need to live in Millinocket?
To buy the typical home with 20% down at 6.3%, about $45,000 a year, keeping the payment (about $1,050 a month with tax and insurance) at 28% of income. To rent a two-bedroom at 30% of income, about $42,000.
How much is rent in Millinocket?
HUD puts a two-bedroom at about $1,040 a month with utilities, the going rate for someone moving in. Renters already here pay a median of $451 (Census 2020–24).
What are property taxes in Millinocket?
The median bill is $1,580 a year, 1.52% of the median home value (Maine: $3,036, 1.02%), from the Census 2020–24.
Are home prices in Millinocket going up?
No: down 0.9% in the past year and 30.5% in five years, against 26.8% across Maine (Zillow).
Neighbors talk housing
What Millinocket buyers, sellers and renters are saying.
Home values: Zillow Home Value Index (ZHVI), Zillow Research, September 2026. Sales, days on market and supply: Redfin Data Center, September 2026. Income, ownership, taxes and rent: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey. New homes: U.S. Census Bureau, Building Permits Survey. Fair Market Rents: U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. The calculator is an estimate, not a loan offer. Regional price levels: BEA; electricity: EIA. How TownRatings grades cost of living.