Groundwork

Real estate · County · Michigan

Real estate businesses in Benzie County, MI

How Benzie County, MI 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 31 out of 100: Lower middle

Ranked #2,041 of 2,229 scored counties
#65 of 75 scored counties in Michigan

Listings
26
5 chain locations (19%)
Official establishments
20
Businesses with payroll, 2023
Household spending a year
$106.8M
On rent and homeowner costs · $13,854 a household
Housing spending per listing (U.S. = 100)
95
5% below the U.S.
Listings per 10k households
33.7
12% below the U.S.
Population, 2025
18,568
+3.1% since 2020

See the real estate businesses around any address in Benzie 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 Benzie 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

The Groundwork market score for real estate businesses in Benzie County is 31 (lower middle), #2,041 of 2,229 scored counties and #65 of 75 scored counties in Michigan. That puts it in the bottom quarter of counties.

Households in Benzie County spend about $106.8M a year on rent and homeowner costs, or $13,854 per household, 17% below the U.S. average. Housing spending per office is 5% below 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.

Benzie County has 26 real estate businesses on map listings as of September 2026. Of those, 5 are chain locations, or 19%, against 6% across the U.S. That is 33.7 per 10,000 households, 12% below the U.S. rate of 38.5.

The official count of businesses with payroll classed as real estate agents, property managers, mortgage lenders and inspectors in Benzie County was 20 in 2023. That is one for every 385 households, against one for every 414 across the U.S. Since fiscal 2022, 1 SBA-backed loan worth $11K has gone to businesses classed as real estate agents, property managers, mortgage lenders and inspectors in Benzie County. Population estimates show Benzie County grew 3.1% from 2020 to 2025, in step with the U.S. (+3.1%).

How Benzie County compares

The same measures for Michigan 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 Benzie County, MI compared with Michigan and the U.S.
MeasureBenzie CountyMichiganU.S.
Listings per 10k households33.731.238.5
Housing spending per listing (U.S. = 100)95104100
Households per official establishment385728414
Official establishment growth, 2019–2023n/a+11.2%+15.8%
Population growth, 2020–2025+3.1%+0.6%+3.1%
Spending per household on rent and homeowner costs$13,854$13,996$16,661
Median household income$74,834$72,875$80,734
Groundwork market score3147

Official counts and lending

Businesses

Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
13 → 20
Employees, 2023
30
Annual payroll, 2023
$1.3M
One-person businesses, 2023
106Businesses with no payroll
Map listings, September 2026
265 chain locations
Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
25The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here

SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022

Loans
1
Amount
$11K

SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as real estate agents, property managers, mortgage lenders and inspectors in Benzie 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 Benzie County

Population, 2025 estimate
18,568+3.1% since 2020
Households
7,708
Median age
50.0
Homes lived in by their owners
88%
Vehicles per household
2.0
Land area
320 sq. mi.
People per square mile
57
Median household income
$74,834+29.1% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
Average household income
$98,649
Median home value
$285,700
Jobs located here
3,869
Daytime population
15,392Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here

Looking at a specific site in Benzie 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 Benzie County. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.

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Real estate across Michigan

Every Michigan market ranked →

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

Top counties in Michigan

Counties in Michigan ranked for real estate businesses by Groundwork market score
MarketScoreListingsPer 10k householdsHousing spending per listing (U.S. = 100)Population growthU.S. rank
1Barry County, MI683213.1249+2.2%#270 of 2,229
2Arenac County, MI6557.6379+0.5%#362 of 2,229
3Alcona County, MI65611.3254+3.7%#370 of 2,229
4Montcalm County, MI643514.3210+4.1%#411 of 2,229
5Newaygo County, MI632512.7236+3.1%#443 of 2,229
6Tuscola County, MI582712.6235−1.2%#649 of 2,229
7Presque Isle County, MI571015.0195+1.0%#712 of 2,229
8Ionia County, MI573816.3192−0.5%#714 of 2,229
9Osceola County, MI571617.1171+2.7%#720 of 2,229
10Allegan County, MI579220.2165+2.1%#726 of 2,229
65Benzie County, MI312633.795+3.1%#2,041 of 2,229

Other business types in Benzie County

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

Questions

How many real estate businesses are in Benzie County, MI?

Map listings as of September 2026 show 26 real estate businesses in Benzie County. 5 of them (19%) are chain locations. The listings count real estate agents and brokers, property managers, mortgage brokers and lenders, and home inspectors. Official counts show 20 businesses with payroll classed as real estate agents, property managers, mortgage lenders and inspectors in 2023. Official counts also show 106 one-person businesses without payroll.

How much do households in Benzie County, MI spend on rent and homeowner costs?

About $106.8M a year, or $13,854 per household. That is 17% below the U.S. average (an index of 83, where 100 is the U.S. average). For the 26 real estate businesses on map listings, housing spending per office is 5% below 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. It is estimated from the incomes of the 7,708 households in Benzie County and national spending patterns by income.

How does Benzie County, MI compare with the U.S. for real estate businesses?

Benzie County has 33.7 real estate businesses per 10,000 households, 12% below the U.S. rate of 38.5. The index of housing spending per office is 95, where 100 is the U.S. At the U.S. ratio of real estate businesses to household spending, Benzie County would have about 25, against 26 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 385 households, against one for every 414 across the U.S.

How fast is Benzie County, MI growing?

Population estimates put Benzie County at 18,568 people in 2025, up 3.1% since 2020, in step with the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 7,708 households. Median household income in Benzie County is $74,834, 7% below the U.S. median of $80,734. Against the 2015–2019 survey, the median rose 29.1%, 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. Benzie County scores 31 for real estate businesses (lower middle), #2,041 of 2,229 scored counties.

How can I see the market around a specific site?

Run a Groundwork site report on an address in Benzie 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 Benzie County

Screening a site or an acquisition in Benzie 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 Benzie 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.