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If you're thinking of moving to Michigan and you haven't experienced the magic of the Michigan mitten yet, you should definitely start your search in Detroit. The Motor City has some very cool, diverse neighborhoods that deserve your attention, and HomeSnacks is here to tell you the top ten best neighborhoods in Detroit for 2020.
To be eligible for our list, a Motown neighborhood had to be strong in areas like jobs, affordability, safety, and fun stuff to do. To get this data, we ran each neighborhood through our Snackability formula that looked for excellence in the same criteria. We also consulted the latest census data for median income levels and median home values.
The following is what we learned:
Many of Detroit's best neighborhoods are located on the city's northeast side along the Detroit River; and if you're lucky enough to call one of these gems home, you will have scenic views, accessible marinas, and pedestrian and bicycle friendly streets. Neighborhoods like Jeffries will put you in the middle of Detroit Lions' territory at the base of Ford Field; and of course, Downtown, will put you in the middle of everything Detroit.
And for all of you people who base every major life's decisions around good food, we can personally verify that Detroit's best neighborhoods are definitely not lacking in tasty treats. There are little corner spots like Mudgie's Deli in the West Side Industrial neighborhood that serve up some of the finest smoked meat sandwiches and Legends on Livernois St. in the Sherwood Forest neighborhood makes a pizza that rivals Chicago's deep dish.
Great food, great views, low crime, and affordability are qualities that can be found in Detroit's top ten best neighborhoods; but if you want to know what neighborhood has it all, keep reading.
Here are the best neighborhoods in Detroit for 2020:
Detroit's 88 neighborhoods are starting to see an influx of residents as many of these places are undergoing a sort of revitalization. Surprisingly, you can scoop up great homes in The Big D's best neighborhoods for $58,124.579545454544. And in Detroit's number one neighborhood, you can be close to the riverfront.
So, what is Detroit's number one neighborhood? According to the latest data, that would be Indian Village.
To see how your favorite Detroit neighborhoods compared, take a look below.
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The 10 Best Neighborhoods To Live In Detroit
Population: 1,672
Rank Last Year: 2 (Up 1)
Median Home Value: $220,450 (Second best)
Median Income: $64,062 (Sixth best)
More on Indian Village: Homes For Sale | Data
Population: 1,003
Rank Last Year: 4 (Up 2)
Median Home Value: $355,000 (First best)
Median Income: $148,977 (First best)
More on Palmer Woods: Homes For Sale | Data
Population: 4,839
Rank Last Year: 5 (Up 2)
Median Home Value: $88,575 (15th best)
Median Income: $71,137 (Fourth best)
More on North Rosedale Park: Homes For Sale | Data
Rosedale Park is a historic district located in Detroit, Michigan. It is roughly bounded by Fenkell, Outer Drive, Grand River Avenue, Southfield Freeway, Glastonbury Avenue, Lyndon Street and Westwood Drive. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2006. The Rosedale Park district has the largest number of individual properties of any district nominated to the National Register of Historic Places in Michigan, with 1533.
Population: 904
Rank Last Year: 1 (Down 3)
Median Home Value: $166,100 (Fifth best)
Median Income: $101,429 (Second best)
More on Sherwood Forest: Homes For Sale | Data
Population: 2,702
Rank Last Year: 6 (Up 1)
Median Home Value: $145,725 (Eighth best)
Median Income: $77,849 (Third best)
More on University District: Homes For Sale | Data
University District is a neighborhood in Detroit, Michigan, United States. Located one mile west of Woodward Avenue, the University District is named for its neighbor to the south, the University of Detroit Mercy. The neighborhood is bounded on the north by residential Seven Mile Road, on the south by McNichols Road and the UDM campus, and on the east by the Detroit Golf Club and Golf Club Estates. The western boundary is Livernois Avenue: once known to Detroiters as "the Avenue of Fashion", this commercial boulevard of small shops is becoming Gallery Row, home to a growing collection of art galleries and art-related businesses.
Population: 4,983
Rank Last Year: 31 (Up 25)
Median Home Value: $86,940 (16th best)
Median Income: $39,360 (20th best)
More on Downtown: Homes For Sale | Data
Population: 1,616
Rank Last Year: 13 (Up 6)
Median Home Value: $177,640 (Third best)
Median Income: $66,708 (Fifth best)
More on Detroit Golf: Homes For Sale | Data
The Detroit Golf Club is a private golf club located in Detroit, Wayne County, Michigan in the middle of a neighborhood area on north side of the city near the University of Detroit Mercy and Palmer Woods Historic District. Bert Way designed the original 6-hole course, then it gradually improved to 9 holes, and finally Donald Ross built the current 36-hole course. The club grounds crew maintains two courses. The North and the South Course. The head pro is Jon Gates. On October 10, 2010 the club and sponsors have expressed interest in a PGA Tour event to be held possibly in the future.
Population: 1,361
Rank Last Year: 21 (Up 13)
Median Home Value: $153,100 (Sixth best)
Median Income: $9,809 (88th best)
More on Jefferies: Homes For Sale | Data
Population: 3,323
Rank Last Year: 3 (Down 6)
Median Home Value: $77,150 (19th best)
Median Income: $54,763 (Eighth best)
More on Rosedale Park: Homes For Sale | Data
Population: 399
Rank Last Year: 11 (Up 1)
Median Home Value: $84,300 (17th best)
Median Income: $42,084 (17th best)
More on West Side Industrial: Homes For Sale | Data
How We Determined The Best Detroit, MI Neighborhoods In 2020
In order to rank the best neighborhoods in Detroit, we had to determine what criteria defines a "best".
Using crime, census, and extrapolated BLS data, we arrived at the following set of criteria:
- High incomes
- Low unemployment rates
- Low crime
- High home prices
- High population densities (A proxy for things to do)
We then ranked each neighborhood with scores from 1 to 88 in each category, where 1 was the best.
Next, we averaged the rankings for each neighborhood to create a best neighborhood index.
And finally, we crowned the neighborhood with the lowest best neighborhood index the "Best City Neighborhood In Detroit." We're lookin' at you, Indian Village.
Read on below to learn more about what it's like to live in the best places Detroit, Michigan has to offer. Or skip to the end to see the list of all the neighborhoods in the city from best to worst.
Putting A Bow On Our Analysis Of The Best Neighborhoods In Detroit
If you're measuring the neighborhoods in Detroit where crime is low and everyone wants to live, this is an accurate list.
As we mentioned earlier, the neighborhoods in Detroit aren't all good. Forest Park takes the title of the worst neighborhood to live in Detroit.
We ranked the neighborhoods from best to worst in the chart below.
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