Groundwork

Real estate · County · Illinois

Real estate businesses in McLean County, IL

How McLean County, IL compares with other counties and the U.S. for real estate businesses: competitors, household spending, official counts and growth.

Groundwork market score · out of 100

Score 41 out of 100: Lower middle

Ranked #1,572 of 2,229 scored counties
#58 of 83 scored counties in Illinois

Listings
217
11 chain locations (5%)
Official establishments
74
+21.3% since 2019
Household spending a year
$1B
On rent and homeowner costs · $14,423 a household
Housing spending per listing (U.S. = 100)
108
8% above the U.S.
Listings per 10k households
30.9
20% below the U.S.
Population, 2025
171,419
+0.1% since 2020

See the real estate businesses around any address in McLean County

The site report maps the real estate businesses on map listings near the address, by name and distance, and sizes the households and spending around it. Or open the report at the center of McLean County. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.

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Survey estimates 2020–2024 · population estimates 2025 · official business counts 2023 · map listings September 2026 · Data credits · How we measure

What this means

Map listings as of September 2026 show 217 real estate businesses in McLean County. Of those, 11 are chain locations, or 5%, against 6% across the U.S. Per 10,000 households, that is 30.9, 20% below the U.S. rate of 38.5.

At $14,423 per household (13% below the U.S. average), households in McLean County spend about $1B a year on rent and homeowner costs. Housing spending per office is 8% above the U.S. figure. That figure is all rent and homeowner costs, used as a measure of housing demand; it is not money real estate businesses take in.

Official counts show 74 businesses with payroll classed as real estate agents, property managers, mortgage lenders and inspectors in McLean County in 2023, up 21.3% from 2019. That is one for every 949 households, against one for every 414 across the U.S. Another 502 one-person businesses have no payroll, by official counts. Since fiscal 2022, 2 SBA-backed loans worth $2.7M have gone to businesses classed as real estate agents, property managers, mortgage lenders and inspectors in McLean County.

Between 2020 and 2025, the population of McLean County grew 0.1%, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). The Groundwork market score for real estate businesses in McLean County is 41 (lower middle), #1,572 of 2,229 scored counties and #58 of 83 scored counties in Illinois.

How McLean County compares

The same measures for Illinois and the whole U.S. Housing spending per listing divides all rent and homeowner costs by the listings counted: a measure of housing demand for each business, not money any of them take in, so it is shown against the U.S. (100) only. Households per establishment divides households by the official count.

Real estate in McLean County, IL compared with Illinois and the U.S.
MeasureMcLean CountyIllinoisU.S.
Listings per 10k households30.932.738.5
Housing spending per listing (U.S. = 100)108105100
Households per official establishment949543414
Official establishment growth, 2019–2023+21.3%+4.1%+15.8%
Population growth, 2020–2025+0.1%−0.6%+3.1%
Spending per household on rent and homeowner costs$14,423$14,866$16,661
Median household income$79,905$83,390$80,734
Groundwork market score4143

Official counts and lending

Businesses

Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
61 → 74+21.3% over the period
Employees, 2023
487
Annual payroll, 2023
$25.2M
One-person businesses, 2023
502Businesses with no payroll
Map listings, September 2026
21711 chain locations
Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
234The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here

SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022

Loans
2
Amount
$2.7M

SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as real estate agents, property managers, mortgage lenders and inspectors in McLean County, through June 2026, placed by the borrower’s ZIP code. Official establishments are businesses with payroll; the official counts leave out places with fewer than 3.

Population and households in McLean County

Population, 2025 estimate
171,419+0.1% since 2020
Households
70,220
Median age
37.0
Homes lived in by their owners
65%
Vehicles per household
1.7
Land area
1,183 sq. mi.
People per square mile
145
Median household income
$79,905+18.1% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
Average household income
$105,003
Median home value
$208,400
Jobs located here
88,959
Daytime population
180,672Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here

Looking at a specific site in McLean County?

These figures cover the whole county. A site report draws rings around one address and counts what’s inside them: households, spending, jobs, and the real estate businesses on map listings by name and distance.

Or open the report at the center of McLean County. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.

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Real estate across Illinois

Every Illinois market ranked →

The highest-scoring counties in Illinois for real estate businesses, numbered among those based in Illinois, with McLean County marked.

Top counties in Illinois

Counties in Illinois ranked for real estate businesses by Groundwork market score
MarketScoreListingsPer 10k householdsHousing spending per listing (U.S. = 100)Population growthU.S. rank
1Woodford County, IL70106.8514−0.8%#199 of 2,229
2Boone County, IL67199.8348+0.4%#286 of 2,229
3Douglas County, IL671114.2226+0.5%#304 of 2,229
4Henry County, IL66167.9405−2.2%#326 of 2,229
5Bureau County, IL66117.8394−2.1%#327 of 2,229
6Randolph County, IL641310.9279−0.6%#395 of 2,229
7Piatt County, IL641217.3201+0.6%#414 of 2,229
8Clinton County, IL632215.1223+0.6%#448 of 2,229
9Fulton County, IL62139.4314−2.0%#481 of 2,229
10Shelby County, IL61910.1304−1.6%#527 of 2,229
58McLean County, IL4121730.9108+0.1%#1,572 of 2,229

Other business types in McLean County

Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.

Questions

How many real estate businesses are in McLean County, IL?

There are 217 real estate businesses on map listings in McLean County as of September 2026. 11 of them (5%) are chain locations. The listings count real estate agents and brokers, property managers, mortgage brokers and lenders, and home inspectors. Official counts show 74 businesses with payroll classed as real estate agents, property managers, mortgage lenders and inspectors in 2023, up 21.3% from 2019. Official counts list 502 one-person businesses without payroll.

How much do households in McLean County, IL spend on rent and homeowner costs?

About $1B a year, or $14,423 per household. That is 13% below the U.S. average (an index of 87, where 100 is the U.S. average). For the 217 real estate businesses on map listings, housing spending per office is 8% above the U.S. figure. The spending figure is all rent and homeowner costs, a measure of housing demand, not money real estate businesses take in. It is estimated from the incomes of the 70,220 households in McLean County and national spending patterns by income.

How does McLean County, IL compare with the U.S. for real estate businesses?

McLean County has 30.9 real estate businesses per 10,000 households, 20% below the U.S. rate of 38.5. The index of housing spending per office is 108, where 100 is the U.S. At the national ratio of real estate businesses to household spending, McLean County would have about 234, against 217 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 949 households, against one for every 414 across the U.S. The official count rose 21.3% from 2019 to 2023, against +15.8% for the U.S.

How fast is McLean County, IL growing?

Population estimates put McLean County at 171,419 people in 2025, up 0.1% since 2020, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 70,220 households. The median household income in McLean County is $79,905 a year, in line with the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 18.1% from the 2015–2019 survey, before inflation.

What is the Groundwork market score?

The Groundwork market score runs from 0 to 100 and compares a market with others of its kind for one business type: states with states, metro areas with metro areas, small-town markets and counties with their own. It weighs household spending per competitor (35%), households per business with payroll (25%), population growth (20%) and spending power (20%), each ranked against those peers. A higher score means that, taken together, the market has more household spending and more households for each business already there, faster population growth and more spending per household than similar markets. It describes a market, not any one site or deal. McLean County scores 41 for real estate businesses (lower middle), #1,572 of 2,229 scored counties.

How can I see the market around a specific site?

Run a Groundwork site report on an address in McLean County. It maps the real estate businesses on map listings near the site and sizes the households and spending within the distance you choose. New accounts get 10 actions over 3 days, no card.

How the score works · Top markets for real estate businesses · All 56 business types in McLean County

Screening a site or an acquisition in McLean County?

A site report maps the competitors on map listings near an address and sizes the households and spending around it.

The button opens the report at the center of McLean County. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.

This product uses the Census Bureau Data API but is not endorsed or certified by the Census Bureau.

Figures are estimates for research only. Not investment or real estate advice.