Groundwork

Real estate · County · Michigan

Real estate businesses in Leelanau County, MI

How Leelanau 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 42 out of 100: Lower middle

Ranked #1,521 of 2,229 scored counties
#43 of 75 scored counties in Michigan

Listings
30
5 chain locations (17%)
Official establishments
23
Businesses with payroll, 2023
Household spending a year
$152.1M
On rent and homeowner costs · $15,775 a household
Housing spending per listing (U.S. = 100)
117
17% above the U.S.
Listings per 10k households
31.1
19% below the U.S.
Population, 2025
22,982
+3.0% since 2020

See the real estate businesses around any address in Leelanau 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 Leelanau 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 30 real estate businesses in Leelanau County. Of those, 5 are chain locations, or 17%, against 6% across the U.S. That comes to 31.1 for every 10,000 households, 19% below the U.S. rate of 38.5.

At $15,775 per household (5% below the U.S. average), households in Leelanau County spend about $152.1M a year on rent and homeowner costs. Housing spending per office is 17% 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.

In 2023, official counts showed 23 businesses with payroll in Leelanau County classed as real estate agents, property managers, mortgage lenders and inspectors. That is one for every 419 households, against one for every 414 across the U.S. Another 185 one-person businesses have no payroll, by official counts. Since fiscal 2022, 1 SBA-backed loan worth $167K has gone to businesses classed as real estate agents, property managers, mortgage lenders and inspectors in Leelanau County.

Population estimates show Leelanau County grew 3.0% from 2020 to 2025, in step with the U.S. (+3.1%). For real estate businesses, Leelanau County has a Groundwork market score of 42 (lower middle): #1,521 of 2,229 scored counties and #43 of 75 scored counties in Michigan.

How Leelanau 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 Leelanau County, MI compared with Michigan and the U.S.
MeasureLeelanau CountyMichiganU.S.
Listings per 10k households31.131.238.5
Housing spending per listing (U.S. = 100)117104100
Households per official establishment419728414
Official establishment growth, 2019–2023n/a+11.2%+15.8%
Population growth, 2020–2025+3.0%+0.6%+3.1%
Spending per household on rent and homeowner costs$15,775$13,996$16,661
Median household income$99,422$72,875$80,734
Groundwork market score4247

Official counts and lending

Businesses

Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
17 → 23
Employees, 2023
30
Annual payroll, 2023
$1.6M
One-person businesses, 2023
185Businesses with no payroll
Map listings, September 2026
305 chain locations
Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
35The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here

SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022

Loans
1
Amount
$167K

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

Population, 2025 estimate
22,982+3.0% since 2020
Households
9,645
Median age
54.0
Homes lived in by their owners
92%
Vehicles per household
2.1
Land area
347 sq. mi.
People per square mile
65
Median household income
$99,422+52.4% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
Average household income
$136,818
Median home value
$458,400
Jobs located here
6,706
Daytime population
21,101Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here

Looking at a specific site in Leelanau 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 Leelanau 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 Leelanau 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
43Leelanau County, MI423031.1117+3.0%#1,521 of 2,229

Other business types in Leelanau County

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

Questions

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

There are 30 real estate businesses on map listings in Leelanau County as of September 2026. 5 of them (17%) are chain locations. The listings count real estate agents and brokers, property managers, mortgage brokers and lenders, and home inspectors. Official counts show 23 businesses with payroll classed as real estate agents, property managers, mortgage lenders and inspectors in 2023. Official counts list 185 one-person businesses without payroll.

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

About $152.1M a year, or $15,775 per household. That is 5% below the U.S. average (an index of 95, where 100 is the U.S. average). For the 30 real estate businesses on map listings, housing spending per office is 17% 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 9,645 households in Leelanau County and national spending patterns by income.

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

Leelanau County has 31.1 real estate businesses per 10,000 households, 19% below the U.S. rate of 38.5. The index of housing spending per office is 117, where 100 is the U.S. At the national ratio of real estate businesses to household spending, Leelanau County would have about 35, against 30 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 419 households, against one for every 414 across the U.S.

How fast is Leelanau County, MI growing?

Population estimates put Leelanau County at 22,982 people in 2025, up 3.0% since 2020, in step with the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 9,645 households. The median household income in Leelanau County is $99,422 a year, 23% above the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 52.4% 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. Leelanau County scores 42 for real estate businesses (lower middle), #1,521 of 2,229 scored counties.

How can I see the market around a specific site?

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

Screening a site or an acquisition in Leelanau 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 Leelanau 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.