Housing data for Forest Hills, MI
Forest Hills, MI has an estimated 28,695 residents and 10,465 homes (US Census Bureau, 2020–2024 American Community Survey).
It is an unincorporated community in Kent County.
6.0% of households rent.
The median gross rent is $1,958 a month.
Its population grew measurably since 2015–2019 (+3.1%).
Figures last updated on .
- Residents
- 28,695 (±532)
- Housing units
- 10,465 (±394)
- Households that rent
- 6.0%
- Median gross rent
- $1,958
- Residents since 2015–2019
- +3.1%
What stands out in Forest Hills
Median household income: $158,005 (±$13,605) in Forest Hills, higher than in Kent County ($82,631).
Median home value: $498,500 (±$33,505) in Forest Hills, higher than in Kent County ($289,900).
Households that rent: 6.0% (±1.7 points) in Forest Hills, lower than in Kent County (29.7%).
Median real estate taxes: $5,468 (±$510) in Forest Hills, higher than in Kent County ($3,217).
- Income and affordability in Forest Hills
- Home values in Forest Hills
- Renters and owners in Forest Hills
- Property taxes in Forest Hills
Housing in Forest Hills at a glance
- Median rent: $1,958 median gross rent a month
- Rent by bedrooms: $2,093 median gross rent, 2 bedrooms
- Rent burden: 38.8% of renters pay 30% or more of income
- Renters and owners: 6.0% of households rent
- Income and affordability: $158,005 median household income
- Home values: $498,500 median home value
- Homeowner costs: $2,414 median monthly cost with a mortgage
- Property taxes: $5,468 median real estate taxes a year
- Types of homes: 4.6% of homes are in buildings of 5 or more units
- Bedrooms: 87.1% of homes have 3 or more bedrooms
- Age of homes: 41.2% of homes were built before 1980
- Vacancy rate: 16.1% rental vacancy rate
- Heating fuel: 85.6% heat with utility gas
- Commute and cars: 19.7 minutes average trip to work
- Growth: +3.1% residents since 2015–2019
- How long people stay: 12.9% moved in since 2020
- Crowding and facilities: 0.2% of homes have more than 1 person per room
Forest Hills against Kent County, its state and the nation
| Forest Hills | Kent County | Michigan | United States | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Residents | 28,695 (±532) | 663,150 (exact) | 10,077,761 (exact) | 334,922,499 |
| Housing units | 10,465 (±394) | 269,136 (±174) | 4,622,236 (±795) | 143,775,355 |
| Households that rent | 6.0% (±1.7 points) | 29.7% (±0.7 points) | 26.8% (±0.2 points) | 34.8% |
| Median gross rent | $1,958 (±$307) | $1,243 (±$18) | $1,129 (±$4) | $1,413 |
| Median household income | $158,005 (±$13,605) | $82,631 (±$1,165) | $72,875 (±$293) | $80,734 |
| Median home value | $498,500 (±$33,505) | $289,900 (±$2,942) | $231,600 (±$642) | $332,700 |
| Median real estate taxes (a year) | $5,468 (±$510) | $3,217 (±$40) | $2,904 (±$9) | $3,119 |
| Built before 1980 | 41.2% (±5.5 points) | 54.0% (±1.1 points) | 62.1% (±0.2 points) | 49.7% |
| Average commute | 19.7 minutes (±1.2) | 21.0 minutes (±0.3) | 24.2 minutes (±0.1) | 26.4 minutes |
| Households with broadband | 97.1% (±1.2 points) | 92.2% (±0.5 points) | 90.5% (±0.1 points) | 91.0% |
| Median age of residents | 42.3 years (±2.1) | 35.9 years (±0.1) | 40.2 years (±0.1) | 38.9 years |
Forest Hills covers 49.3 square miles of land, about 582 residents per square mile (Census Bureau Gazetteer).
How Forest Hills has changed since 2015–2019
| 2015–2019 | 2020–2024 | Amount of change | Verdict | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Residents | 27,830 (±325) | 28,695 (±532) | +3.1% | Measurable increase |
| Housing units | 10,271 (±217) | 10,465 (±394) | +1.9% | Not a measurable change |
| Median gross rent | $1,368 (±$359) | $1,958 (±$307) | +43.1% | No measurable change after inflation |
| Median home value | $347,500 (±$12,940) | $498,500 (±$33,505) | +43.5% | Up after inflation |
| Median household income | $119,404 (±$8,244) | $158,005 (±$13,605) | +32.3% | No measurable change after inflation |
| Median owner cost with a mortgage | $2,088 (±$97) | $2,414 (±$140) | +15.6% | No measurable change after inflation |
| Median real estate taxes | $4,702 (±$205) | $5,468 (±$510) | +16.3% | No measurable change after inflation |
| Households that rent | 6.6% (±1.6 points) | 6.0% (±1.7 points) | −0.6 percentage points | Not a measurable change |
| Rental vacancy rate | 7.3% (±11.0 points) | 16.1% (±14.6 points) | +8.8 percentage points | Not a measurable change |
The Census Bureau publishes 2015–2019 dollars in 2019 dollars and 2020–2024 dollars in 2024 dollars.
Prices (the CPI-U, US Bureau of Labor Statistics) rose 22.7% between 2019 and 2024, so a dollar figure’s verdict compares the two after raising the earlier one by that much, using the Census Bureau’s test for a difference.
The two periods do not overlap, as the Census Bureau recommends for 5-year estimates.
Crime reported to police in Kent County
Forest Hills has no police department of its own in the FBI’s figures, so this is the figure for Kent County as a whole.
In 2025, the police departments that report for Kent County recorded 453 violent and 1,551 property crimes per 100,000 residents.
A county-wide figure describes the whole county, not this place; crime varies from one community to the next.
ZIP codes in Forest Hills
| ZIP code | Share of the ZIP’s land in this place | Residents | Median gross rent | Median home value | Median household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 49301 | 70% | 19,846 | $2,027 | $548,800 | $183,125 |
| 49546 | 47% | 34,721 | $1,408 | $417,900 | $99,343 |
A ZIP code is a mail route rather than a boundary, so the Census Bureau publishes figures for ZIP Code Tabulation Areas built from census blocks; the share column says how much of each one’s land lies in this place.
Places near Forest Hills
| Place | Distance | Median gross rent | Median home value | Households that rent |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cascade Charter Township | 4.3 mi | $2,277 | $472,500 | 9.3% |
| Grand Rapids Charter Township | 5.0 mi | $1,839 | $426,600 | 14.9% |
| Vergennes Township | 5.9 mi | $1,824 | $392,300 | 13.0% |
| East Grand Rapids | 6.0 mi | $1,862 | $521,300 | 6.1% |
| Kentwood | 7.4 mi | $1,260 | $268,200 | 38.7% |
| Lowell Charter Township | 7.4 mi | $1,688 | $321,600 | 7.5% |
| Lowell | 7.5 mi | $1,056 | $228,400 | 30.0% |
| Cannon Township | 7.9 mi | $1,316 | $460,700 | 5.0% |
Places in Michigan most like Forest Hills
| Place | Median gross rent | Median home value | Median household income | Households that rent |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cascade Charter Township | $2,277 | $472,500 | $135,896 | 9.3% |
| Royalton Township | $1,774 | $356,700 | $128,750 | 7.0% |
| Webster Township | $1,782 | $564,000 | $155,104 | 4.8% |
| Grand Rapids Charter Township | $1,839 | $426,600 | $123,246 | 14.9% |
| Lima Township | $1,869 | $404,700 | $119,236 | 13.4% |
| Peninsula Township | $1,589 | $706,900 | $137,787 | 9.8% |
Matched on rent, home value, income, the share who rent, the age of the homes, the share in apartment buildings and the commute, each measured against the spread across Michigan.
HUD Fair Market Rent for Forest Hills, fiscal year 2027
| Studio | 1 bedroom | 2 bedrooms | 3 bedrooms | 4 bedrooms |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| $1,306 | $1,365 | $1,630 | $2,113 | $2,417 |
HUD income limits for Forest Hills, fiscal year 2026
| Household size | Extremely low (30%) | Very low (50%) | Low (80%) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 person | $22,400 | $37,350 | $59,750 |
| 2 people | $25,600 | $42,650 | $68,250 |
| 3 people | $28,800 | $48,000 | $76,800 |
| 4 people | $33,000 | $53,300 | $85,300 |
| 5 people | $38,680 | $57,600 | $92,150 |
| 6 people | $44,360 | $61,850 | $98,950 |
| 7 people | $50,040 | $66,100 | $105,800 |
| 8 people | $55,720 | $70,400 | $112,600 |
These are the limits HUD sets for its housing programs in the Grand Rapids-Wyoming, MI HUD Metro FMR Area, where HUD’s median family income for fiscal year 2026 is $106,600.
A program can use its own limits; tax-credit and local programs often do.
Forest Hills is a census-designated place: an unincorporated community the Census Bureau draws for statistics, with no municipal government of its own.
It lies inside Ada Township, whose figures include it.
Survey years: 2020–2024 (American Community Survey 5-year estimates), compared with 2015–2019.
Margins of error are at the 90% confidence level.
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Questions about Forest Hills
What is the average rent in Forest Hills, MI?
The Census Bureau publishes the median rather than the average: the median gross rent in Forest Hills is $1,958 (±$307) a month (2020–2024 American Community Survey), so half of renting households pay less and half pay more.
How much is a two-bedroom apartment in Forest Hills?
The median gross rent for a two-bedroom home in Forest Hills, MI is $2,093 (±$739) a month (2020–2024 American Community Survey).
Are renters in Forest Hills rent-burdened?
38.8% of renting households in Forest Hills pay 30% or more of their income in gross rent, the share housing researchers usually call rent-burdened (2020–2024 American Community Survey).
How many renters are there in Forest Hills?
Forest Hills has an estimated 608 (±179) renting households, 6.0% of its occupied homes (2020–2024 American Community Survey).
What is the median household income in Forest Hills?
The median household income in Forest Hills is $158,005 (±$13,605) a year (2020–2024 American Community Survey).
What is the average home value in Forest Hills, MI?
The Census Bureau publishes the median: $498,500 (±$33,505) for owner-occupied homes in Forest Hills (2020–2024 American Community Survey).
Is Forest Hills growing?
In Forest Hills, the number of residents went from 27,830 in 2015–2019 to 28,695 in 2020–2024 (+3.1%), a measurable increase.
What ZIP codes are in Forest Hills?
The ZIP codes that cover Forest Hills are 49301, 49546.
What is the median rent in ZIP code 49301?
The median gross rent in ZIP Code Tabulation Area 49301 is $2,027 (±$323) a month (2020–2024 American Community Survey).
Sources
- Demographic and Housing Estimates (DP05), 2020–2024 ACS 5-year estimates — Forest Hills CDP, Michigan
- Selected Housing Characteristics (DP04), 2020–2024 ACS 5-year estimates — Forest Hills CDP, Michigan
- Selected Economic Characteristics (DP03), 2020–2024 ACS 5-year estimates — Forest Hills CDP, Michigan
- Median Real Estate Taxes Paid by Mortgage Status (B25103), 2020–2024 ACS 5-year estimates — Forest Hills CDP, Michigan
- Selected Social Characteristics (DP02), 2020–2024 ACS 5-year estimates — Forest Hills CDP, Michigan
- Total Population (B01003), 2015–2019 ACS 5-year estimates — Forest Hills CDP, Michigan
- Median Gross Rent (B25064), 2015–2019 ACS 5-year estimates — Forest Hills CDP, Michigan
- HUD Fair Market Rents, fiscal year 2027: Grand Rapids-Wyoming, MI HUD Metro FMR Area
- HUD Income Limits, fiscal year 2026: Grand Rapids-Wyoming, MI HUD Metro FMR Area
- US Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020–2024 5-year estimates for ZIP Code Tabulation Areas
- Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U), US city average, all items, US Bureau of Labor Statistics: annual averages 2019 and 2024
- US Census Bureau, 2024 Gazetteer Files
To check these figures in the Census Bureau’s own API, request the variables below from the 2024 ACS 5-year data profile (acs/acs5/profile) for Forest Hills CDP, Michigan (place:29580, in state:26).
Each estimate (E or PE) has a margin of error beside it (M or PM).
The 2015–2019 figures are B01003_001E, B01003_001M, B25064_001E, B25064_001M from the 2019 release.
The API needs a free key.
DP05_0001E, DP05_0001M, DP04_0001E, DP04_0001M, DP04_0047PE, DP04_0047PM, DP04_0134E, DP04_0134M, DP03_0062E, DP03_0062M, DP04_0089E, DP04_0089M
This product uses the Census Bureau Data API but is not endorsed or certified by the Census Bureau.
Figures are published by the US Census Bureau, HUD, the Bureau of Labor Statistics and the FBI; Seayora reproduces them and does not adjust them, except where a sentence says it compares dollar figures after inflation. They describe the whole place, not any one building or street, and are not an appraisal, a rent determination, a tax bill, a safety rating or legal advice.
Figures last updated on .