The Town Files

The 25 Best Small Towns for First-Time Home Buyers in Connecticut

Ranked on The Town Files lifestyle rankings among 132 towns of 2,500–10,000 people in Connecticut. #1 is Stepney, CT.

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Numbers match the ranking.
The 25 Best Small Towns for First-Time Home Buyers in Connecticut1. Stepney100th pct2. Lordship100th pct3. Long Hill99th pct4. Northwest Harwinton98th pct5. Oronoque97th pct6. North Canaan95th pct7. Thomaston94th pct8. Winsted92nd pct9. Sandy Hook91st pct10. Oxoboxo River91st pct11. Thompson90th pct12. Jewett City90th pct13. Southwood Acres89th pct14. Danielson88th pct15. Watertown88th pct16. Long Hill87th pct17. Colchester86th pct18. Ashford86th pct19. Harwinton85th pct20. Woodstock83rd pct21. Branford Center82nd pct22. Terryville82nd pct23. Groton81st pct24. New Milford81st pct25. Sprague80th pct
  1. 25Sprague, Connecticut

    Better for first-time buyers than 80% of Connecticut towns

    2,967 people · median home $273,500 · income $92,850 · Jan low 21°F · 28 in snow

  2. 24New Milford, Connecticut

    Better for first-time buyers than 81% of Connecticut towns

    7,160 people · median home $331,900 · income $83,235 · Jan low 21°F · 47 in snow

  3. 23Groton, Connecticut

    Better for first-time buyers than 81% of Connecticut towns

    9,387 people · median home $306,600 · income $79,577 · Jan low 23°F · 25 in snow

  4. 22Terryville, Connecticut

    Better for first-time buyers than 82% of Connecticut towns

    5,202 people · median home $243,800 · income $72,813 · Jan low 17°F · 39 in snow

  5. 21Branford Center, Connecticut

    Better for first-time buyers than 82% of Connecticut towns

    6,026 people · median home $330,600 · income $74,150 · Jan low 23°F · 34 in snow

  6. 20Woodstock, Connecticut

    Better for first-time buyers than 83% of Connecticut towns

    8,221 people · median home $417,200 · income $112,011 · Jan low 15°F · 39 in snow

  7. 19Harwinton, Connecticut

    Better for first-time buyers than 85% of Connecticut towns

    5,484 people · median home $352,100 · income $129,643 · Jan low 15°F · 59 in snow

  8. 18Ashford, Connecticut

    Better for first-time buyers than 86% of Connecticut towns

    4,191 people · median home $334,800 · income $121,926 · Jan low 19°F · 39 in snow

  9. 17Colchester, Connecticut

    Better for first-time buyers than 86% of Connecticut towns

    4,700 people · median home $294,600 · income $86,760 · Jan low 18°F · 32 in snow

  10. 16Long Hill, Connecticut

    Better for first-time buyers than 87% of Connecticut towns

    3,948 people · median home $175,600 · income $84,201 · Jan low 24°F · 25 in snow

  11. 15Watertown, Connecticut

    Better for first-time buyers than 88% of Connecticut towns

    3,938 people · median home $293,300 · income $103,200 · Jan low 19°F · 47 in snow

  12. 14Danielson, Connecticut

    Better for first-time buyers than 88% of Connecticut towns

    4,155 people · median home $224,600 · income $64,050 · Jan low 19°F · 62 in snow

  13. 13Southwood Acres, Connecticut

    Better for first-time buyers than 89% of Connecticut towns

    7,879 people · median home $267,900 · income $110,286 · Jan low 19°F · 52 in snow

  14. 12Jewett City, Connecticut

    Better for first-time buyers than 90% of Connecticut towns

    3,328 people · median home $196,900 · income $55,530 · Jan low 21°F · 38 in snow

  15. 11Thompson, Connecticut

    Better for first-time buyers than 90% of Connecticut towns

    9,189 people · median home $291,900 · income $93,629 · Jan low 15°F · 39 in snow

  16. 10Oxoboxo River, Connecticut

    Better for first-time buyers than 91% of Connecticut towns

    2,955 people · median home $246,200 · income $69,167 · Jan low 21°F · 28 in snow

  17. 9Sandy Hook, Connecticut

    Better for first-time buyers than 91% of Connecticut towns

    9,114 people · median home $501,200 · income $160,814 · Jan low 18°F · 49 in snow

  18. 8Winsted, Connecticut

    Better for first-time buyers than 92% of Connecticut towns

    7,192 people · median home $218,900 · income $64,871 · Jan low 14°F · 51 in snow

  19. 7Thomaston, Connecticut

    Better for first-time buyers than 94% of Connecticut towns

    7,442 people · median home $282,600 · income $103,218 · Jan low 17°F · 48 in snow

  20. 6North Canaan, Connecticut

    Better for first-time buyers than 95% of Connecticut towns

    3,211 people · median home $267,300 · income $71,976 · Jan low 14°F · 75 in snow

  21. 5Oronoque, Connecticut

    Better for first-time buyers than 97% of Connecticut towns

    3,790 people · median home $355,600 · income $72,417 · Jan low 18°F · 34 in snow

  22. 4Northwest Harwinton, Connecticut

    Better for first-time buyers than 98% of Connecticut towns

    3,158 people · median home $330,500 · income $109,458 · Jan low 15°F · 59 in snow

  23. 3Long Hill, Connecticut

    Better for first-time buyers than 99% of Connecticut towns

    8,039 people · median home $487,800 · income $178,456 · Jan low 24°F · 34 in snow

  24. 2Lordship, Connecticut

    Better for first-time buyers than 100% of Connecticut towns

    2,954 people · median home $465,200 · income $84,606 · Jan low 24°F · 34 in snow

  25. 1Stepney, Connecticut

    Better for first-time buyers than 100% of Connecticut towns

    4,280 people · median home $475,800 · income $153,966 · Jan low 18°F · 44 in snow

Price vs ranking

Median home value vs ranking, Connecticut towns0255075100$176K$571K$966K$1361K$1756KMedian home valuePercentile
Orange squares are the 25 towns on this list; green dots are other towns on The Town Files in Connecticut.

More Connecticut rankings

Same ranking, other places

Methodology. We ranked 132 towns of 2,500–10,000 people in Connecticut (2020 Census population; towns with 2,500+ people have pages so far). Lifestyle measures are The Town Files lifestyle rankings, built from federal demographic, school, crime and housing data (2025), shown as percentiles. Only towns better than 60% of their peers on this measure qualify, so lists can be shorter than 25. Sources: