Real estate · County · Michigan
Real estate businesses in Houghton County, MI
The real estate businesses in Houghton County, MI, the household spending behind them and how the market ranks against other counties.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 53 out of 100: Upper middle
Ranked #912 of 2,229 scored counties
#18 of 75 scored counties in Michigan
- Listings
- 22
- 2 chain locations (9%)
- Official establishments
- 13
- Businesses with payroll, 2023
- Household spending a year
- $186.1M
- On rent and homeowner costs · $13,010 a household
- Housing spending per listing (U.S. = 100)
- 195
- 95% above the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 15.4
- 60% below the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 37,842
- +1.6% since 2020
See the real estate businesses around any address in Houghton 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 Houghton County. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.
Free10 actions over 3 days, no cardSurvey estimates 2020–2024 · population estimates 2025 · official business counts 2023 · map listings September 2026 · Data credits · How we measure
What this means
As of September 2026, map listings count 22 real estate businesses in Houghton County. Chain locations make up 9% of them, against 6% across the U.S. That is 15.4 per 10,000 households, 60% below the U.S. rate of 38.5.
Household spending on rent and homeowner costs in Houghton County comes to about $186.1M a year: $13,010 per household, 22% below the U.S. average. Housing spending per office is 95% 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 13 businesses with payroll classed as real estate agents, property managers, mortgage lenders and inspectors in Houghton County in 2023. That is one for every 1,100 households, against one for every 414 across the U.S. Another 75 one-person businesses have no payroll, by official counts.
Population estimates show Houghton County grew 1.6% from 2020 to 2025, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). The Groundwork market score for real estate businesses in Houghton County is 53 (upper middle), #912 of 2,229 scored counties and #18 of 75 scored counties in Michigan.
How Houghton 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.
| Measure | Houghton County | Michigan | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 15.4 | 31.2 | 38.5 |
| Housing spending per listing (U.S. = 100) | 195 | 104 | 100 |
| Households per official establishment | 1,100 | 728 | 414 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | n/a | +11.2% | +15.8% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | +1.6% | +0.6% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on rent and homeowner costs | $13,010 | $13,996 | $16,661 |
| Median household income | $58,899 | $72,875 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 53 | 47 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 13 → 13
- Employees, 2023
- 49
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $1.9M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 75Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 222 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 43The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 0
- Amount
- $0
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as real estate agents, property managers, mortgage lenders and inspectors in Houghton 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 Houghton County
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 37,842+1.6% since 2020
- Households
- 14,305
- Median age
- 36.5
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 72%
- Vehicles per household
- 1.8
- Land area
- 1,009 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 37
- Median household income
- $58,899+36.4% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $80,899
- Median home value
- $159,900
- Jobs located here
- 11,811
- Daytime population
- 36,847Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in Houghton 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 Houghton County. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.
Free10 actions over 3 days, no cardReal estate across Michigan
Every Michigan market ranked →The highest-scoring counties in Michigan for real estate businesses, numbered among those based in Michigan, with Houghton County marked.
Top counties in Michigan
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Housing spending per listing (U.S. = 100) | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Barry County, MI | 68 | 32 | 13.1 | 249 | +2.2% | #270 of 2,229 |
| 2Arenac County, MI | 65 | 5 | 7.6 | 379 | +0.5% | #362 of 2,229 |
| 3Alcona County, MI | 65 | 6 | 11.3 | 254 | +3.7% | #370 of 2,229 |
| 4Montcalm County, MI | 64 | 35 | 14.3 | 210 | +4.1% | #411 of 2,229 |
| 5Newaygo County, MI | 63 | 25 | 12.7 | 236 | +3.1% | #443 of 2,229 |
| 6Tuscola County, MI | 58 | 27 | 12.6 | 235 | −1.2% | #649 of 2,229 |
| 7Presque Isle County, MI | 57 | 10 | 15.0 | 195 | +1.0% | #712 of 2,229 |
| 8Ionia County, MI | 57 | 38 | 16.3 | 192 | −0.5% | #714 of 2,229 |
| 9Osceola County, MI | 57 | 16 | 17.1 | 171 | +2.7% | #720 of 2,229 |
| 10Allegan County, MI | 57 | 92 | 20.2 | 165 | +2.1% | #726 of 2,229 |
| 18Houghton County, MI | 53 | 22 | 15.4 | 195 | +1.6% | #912 of 2,229 |
Other business types in Houghton County
Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.
Food and drink
Groceries and convenience
Auto
Beauty and personal care
Fitness and classes
Health care
Child care
Clothing and laundry
Home services
Real estate
Funeral services
Questions
How many real estate businesses are in Houghton County, MI?
Houghton County has 22 real estate businesses on map listings as of September 2026. 2 of them (9%) are chain locations. The listings count real estate agents and brokers, property managers, mortgage brokers and lenders, and home inspectors. Official counts show 13 businesses with payroll classed as real estate agents, property managers, mortgage lenders and inspectors in 2023. Official counts list 75 one-person businesses without payroll.
How much do households in Houghton County, MI spend on rent and homeowner costs?
About $186.1M a year, or $13,010 per household. That is 22% below the U.S. average (an index of 78, where 100 is the U.S. average). For the 22 real estate businesses on map listings, housing spending per office is 95% 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 14,305 households in Houghton County and national spending patterns by income.
How does Houghton County, MI compare with the U.S. for real estate businesses?
Houghton County has 15.4 real estate businesses per 10,000 households, 60% below the U.S. rate of 38.5. The index of housing spending per office is 195, where 100 is the U.S. At the national ratio of real estate businesses to household spending, Houghton County would have about 43, against 22 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 1,100 households, against one for every 414 across the U.S.
How fast is Houghton County, MI growing?
Population estimates put Houghton County at 37,842 people in 2025, up 1.6% since 2020, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 14,305 households. The median household income in Houghton County is $58,899 a year, 27% below the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 36.4% 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. Houghton County scores 53 for real estate businesses (upper middle), #912 of 2,229 scored counties.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in Houghton 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 Houghton County
Screening a site or an acquisition in Houghton 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 Houghton 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.