Wayne, Michigan
2026 Edition · 10 cards · data as of Oct 30, 2026
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Population
Down 3.3% since 2020.
17,065
people, the 59th-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.
96.0%
of 9,910 jobs located in Wayne are filled by in-commuters.
Census LEHD LODES, 2021. Sources: Census LEHD LODES
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Rent
Median rent is up 64% since the 2005–2009 survey, before inflation.
$974
a month. Michigan's median is $1,129.
Census ACS 5-year, 2020-2024 (latest), with earlier 5-year windows. Sources: Census ACS 5-year
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The seam
Cross one tract line and median rent doubles.
A $1,923 gap between neighbors, the sharpest rent edge between adjacent tracts in Wayne County.
- $1,578 Tract 5518
- $3,501 Tract 5511
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.
$1,279–$1,919
is the monthly rent range local workforce wages support.
- $974 median
Supportable rent computed by the Almanac from 2021 source wage data. Median rent: Census ACS 5-year, 2020-2024. Sources: Computed by the Almanac, Census ACS 5-year
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Building
Most of the housing here is older than 2000.
- 28 homes permitted in ten years, 2016–2025
- 0% of those were in multifamily buildings
- 96% of all homes were built before 2000
Census Building Permits Survey, 2016–2025; Census ACS 5-year, 2020-2024. Sources: Census Building Permits Survey, Census ACS 5-year
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Units needed
Closing the gap would add 0.4–1.3% to the 7,881 homes here.
28–99
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 32% less than Michigan's.
$157,800
median home value in Wayne.
- $157,800 Wayne
- $231,600 Michigan
- $332,700 U.S.
Census ACS 5-year, 2020-2024. Sources: Census ACS 5-year