A Detailed Look Using Vacancy Data for the State of Michigan
Out of Michigan’s 3.8 million residential homes, more than 80,400 of them (or 2.11%) were vacant properties or abandoned as of Q4 2019. That’s down slightly from Q3 2019’s average, when 2.19% of the state’s residential properties were vacant but higher than national numbers. Nationally, 1.55% of the country’s 98 million homes have been marked vacant or abandoned.
Within Michigan, vacancy rates are the highest on residential properties owned by investors. Of Michigan’s more than 1.2 million investor-owned homes, 5.06% are vacant as of 2019’s fourth quarter. That comes out to nearly 62,000 abandoned properties statewide. The rate of vacancy of investor-owned properties in Michigan is much higher than the national average, which comes in at 3.85% for the quarter.
On properties in some stage of the foreclosure process — sometimes called “zombie properties” or “zombie homes” — the vacancy rate is 3.30%. The state of Michigan is home to more than 1,600 properties currently in foreclosure, 54 of which are vacant. This vacancy rate is higher than the national average (2.96%), but down from Michigan’s vacancy rate in Q3 2019, when the state was home to 79 abandoned properties in foreclosure (4.22%).
Here’s what Michigan looks like in terms of vacant, zombie, and abandoned properties as of Q4 2019.
| Property Status | Vacancy Rate | Total Number of Properties |
|---|---|---|
| Vacant Properties | 2.11% | 80,407 |
| Vacant, pre-foreclosure zombie properties | 3.30% | 54 |
| Vacant, investor-owned properties | 5.06% | 61,789 |
For the latest data on Michigan’s vacancy breakdown, check this page quarterly.