Bear Lake, Michigan
2026 Edition · 10 cards · data as of Oct 30, 2026
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Population
Steady. Within 1% of 2020, every year since.
324
people, the 480th-largest of Michigan's cities and towns.
Census Population Estimates, 2025. Rank among Michigan's cities and towns computed by the Almanac. Sources: Census Population Estimates
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The workday
Nearly every job here goes to someone who lives somewhere else.
96.9%
of 64 jobs located in Bear Lake are filled by in-commuters.
Census LEHD LODES, 2021. Sources: Census LEHD LODES
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Rent
Median rent is up 7% since the 2005–2009 survey, before inflation.
$696
a month. Michigan's median is $1,129.
Census ACS 5-year, 2015-2019 (latest), with earlier 5-year windows. Survey estimates for a place this size carry wide margins of error. Sources: Census ACS 5-year
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The seam
Cross one tract line and median rent doubles.
A $478 gap between neighbors, the sharpest rent edge between adjacent tracts in Manistee County.
- $442 Tract 9
- $920 Tract 4
Census ACS 5-year, 2020-2024, adjacent tracts compared by the Almanac. Tract estimates carry wide margins of error. Sources: Census ACS 5-year
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Room to build
Local wages can carry more rent than the median charged today.
$825–$1,238
is the monthly rent range local workforce wages support.
- $696 median
Supportable rent computed by the Almanac from 2021 source wage data. Median rent: Census ACS 5-year, 2015-2019. Sources: Computed by the Almanac, Census ACS 5-year
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Building
Most of the housing here is older than 2000.
- 98% of all homes were built before 2000
Census ACS 5-year, 2020-2024. Survey estimates for a place this size carry wide margins of error. Sources: Census ACS 5-year
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Units needed
Closing the gap would add 0–0.7% to the 143 homes here.
0–1
is the estimated number of missing housing units, from the lowest to the highest of three estimates.
Range computed by the Almanac from 2021 jobs and household data, using three demand models: 1% of jobs located here, 1% of renter households, and a rate by town size applied to renters. The low end is the lowest of the three and the high end the highest. It is an estimate, not a count. Sources: Computed by the Almanac
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Home value
A median home costs 33% less than Michigan's.
$155,400
median home value in Bear Lake.
- $155,400 Bear Lake
- $231,600 Michigan
- $332,700 U.S.
Census ACS 5-year, 2020-2024. Survey estimates for a place this size carry wide margins of error. Sources: Census ACS 5-year