Groundwork

Real estate · County · Michigan

Real estate businesses in Ionia County, MI

How Ionia 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 57 out of 100: Upper middle

Ranked #714 of 2,229 scored counties
#8 of 75 scored counties in Michigan

Listings
38
5 chain locations (13%)
Official establishments
12
Businesses with payroll, 2023
Household spending a year
$315.6M
On rent and homeowner costs · $13,515 a household
Housing spending per listing (U.S. = 100)
192
92% above the U.S.
Listings per 10k households
16.3
58% below the U.S.
Population, 2025
66,557
−0.5% since 2020

See the real estate businesses around any address in Ionia 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 Ionia County. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.

Free10 actions over 3 days, no card

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 38 real estate businesses in Ionia County. 5 of them (13%) are chain locations, against 6% across the U.S. Per 10,000 households, that is 16.3, 58% below the U.S. rate of 38.5.

At $13,515 per household (19% below the U.S. average), households in Ionia County spend about $315.6M a year on rent and homeowner costs. Housing spending per office is 92% 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 12 businesses with payroll classed as real estate agents, property managers, mortgage lenders and inspectors in Ionia County in 2023. That is one for every 1,946 households, against one for every 414 across the U.S. Official counts list 138 one-person businesses without payroll.

Population estimates put the population change in Ionia County from 2020 to 2025 at −0.5%, against +3.1% for the U.S. For real estate businesses, Ionia County has a Groundwork market score of 57 (upper middle): #714 of 2,229 scored counties and #8 of 75 scored counties in Michigan.

How Ionia 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 Ionia County, MI compared with Michigan and the U.S.
MeasureIonia CountyMichiganU.S.
Listings per 10k households16.331.238.5
Housing spending per listing (U.S. = 100)192104100
Households per official establishment1,946728414
Official establishment growth, 2019–2023n/a+11.2%+15.8%
Population growth, 2020–2025−0.5%+0.6%+3.1%
Spending per household on rent and homeowner costs$13,515$13,996$16,661
Median household income$75,611$72,875$80,734
Groundwork market score5747

Official counts and lending

Businesses

Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
15 → 12
Employees, 2023
18
Annual payroll, 2023
$569K
One-person businesses, 2023
138Businesses with no payroll
Map listings, September 2026
385 chain locations
Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
73The 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 Ionia 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 Ionia County

Population, 2025 estimate
66,557−0.5% since 2020
Households
23,355
Median age
39.4
Homes lived in by their owners
77%
Vehicles per household
2.0
Land area
571 sq. mi.
People per square mile
117
Median household income
$75,611+32.6% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
Average household income
$88,563
Median home value
$198,500
Jobs located here
18,430
Daytime population
58,714Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here

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

Free10 actions over 3 days, no card

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 Ionia 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

Other business types in Ionia County

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

Questions

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

There are 38 real estate businesses on map listings in Ionia County as of September 2026. 5 of them (13%) are chain locations. The listings count real estate agents and brokers, property managers, mortgage brokers and lenders, and home inspectors. Official counts show 12 businesses with payroll classed as real estate agents, property managers, mortgage lenders and inspectors in 2023. Official counts also show 138 one-person businesses without payroll.

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

About $315.6M a year, or $13,515 per household. That is 19% below the U.S. average (an index of 81, where 100 is the U.S. average). For the 38 real estate businesses on map listings, housing spending per office is 92% 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 23,355 households in Ionia County and national spending patterns by income.

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

Ionia County has 16.3 real estate businesses per 10,000 households, 58% below the U.S. rate of 38.5. The index of housing spending per office is 192, where 100 is the U.S. At the national ratio of real estate businesses to household spending, Ionia County would have about 73, against 38 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 1,946 households, against one for every 414 across the U.S.

How fast is Ionia County, MI growing?

Population estimates put Ionia County at 66,557 people in 2025, down 0.5% since 2020, against +3.1% for the U.S. It has 23,355 households. The median household income in Ionia County is $75,611 a year, 6% below the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 32.6% 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. Ionia County scores 57 for real estate businesses (upper middle), #714 of 2,229 scored counties.

How can I see the market around a specific site?

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

Screening a site or an acquisition in Ionia 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 Ionia 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.