The Town Files

The 25 Best Vacation-Home Small Towns in Michigan

Ranked on The Town Files lifestyle rankings among 541 towns of 2,500–10,000 people in Michigan. #1 is Elk Rapids, MI.

Map of the 25 towns12345678910111213141516171819202122232425
Numbers match the ranking.
The 25 Best Vacation-Home Small Towns in Michigan1. Elk Rapids100th pct2. Bear Creek99th pct3. Petoskey99th pct4. Saugatuck99th pct5. Resort99th pct6. Ferrysburg98th pct7. Little Traverse98th pct8. Lyndon98th pct9. Suttons Bay97th pct10. Chikaming97th pct11. Almira96th pct12. Prairieville95th pct13. Littlefield95th pct14. Benzonia94th pct15. Grattan93rd pct16. Hamlin93rd pct17. Rollin93rd pct18. Otsego Lake93rd pct19. Pickford93rd pct20. Negaunee92nd pct21. Casco92nd pct22. Hayes91st pct23. Whitewater91st pct24. Peninsula90th pct25. Yankee Springs90th pct
  1. 25Yankee Springs, Michigan

    Better for a vacation home than 90% of Michigan towns

    5,322 people · Barry County · median home $373,900 · income $84,786 · Jan low 16°F · 70 in snow

  2. 24Peninsula, Michigan

    Better for a vacation home than 90% of Michigan towns

    6,068 people · Grand Traverse County · median home $706,900 · income $137,787 · Jan low 17°F · 115 in snow

  3. 23Whitewater, Michigan

    Better for a vacation home than 91% of Michigan towns

    2,688 people · Grand Traverse County · median home $373,000 · income $93,958 · Jan low 17°F · 119 in snow

  4. 22Hayes, Michigan

    Better for a vacation home than 91% of Michigan towns

    2,725 people · Otsego County · median home $222,300 · income $77,629 · Jan low 12°F · 149 in snow

  5. 21Casco, Michigan

    Better for a vacation home than 92% of Michigan towns

    2,796 people · Allegan County · median home $310,200 · income $84,637 · Jan low 22°F · 109 in snow

  6. 20Negaunee, Michigan

    Better for a vacation home than 92% of Michigan towns

    3,232 people · Marquette County · median home $302,400 · income $97,955 · Jan low 7°F · 197 in snow

  7. 19Pickford, Michigan

    Better for a vacation home than 93% of Michigan towns

    2,791 people · Chippewa County · median home $167,400 · income $99,688 · Jan low 7°F · 101 in snow

  8. 18Otsego Lake, Michigan

    Better for a vacation home than 93% of Michigan towns

    2,857 people · Otsego County · median home $218,400 · income $73,073 · Jan low 12°F · 149 in snow

  9. 17Rollin, Michigan

    Better for a vacation home than 93% of Michigan towns

    3,035 people · Lenawee County · median home $224,500 · income $79,736 · Jan low 13°F · 33 in snow

  10. 16Hamlin, Michigan

    Better for a vacation home than 93% of Michigan towns

    3,711 people · Mason County · median home $281,400 · income $80,919 · Jan low 19°F · 79 in snow

  11. 15Grattan, Michigan

    Better for a vacation home than 93% of Michigan towns

    3,809 people · Kent County · median home $355,800 · income $111,354 · Jan low 13°F · 71 in snow

  12. 14Benzonia, Michigan

    Better for a vacation home than 94% of Michigan towns

    2,734 people · Benzie County · median home $327,000 · income $72,500 · Jan low 19°F · 93 in snow

  13. 13Littlefield, Michigan

    Better for a vacation home than 95% of Michigan towns

    3,200 people · Emmet County · median home $256,500 · income $85,262 · Jan low 9°F · 116 in snow

  14. 12Prairieville, Michigan

    Better for a vacation home than 95% of Michigan towns

    3,334 people · Barry County · median home $406,900 · income $67,332 · Jan low 19°F · 66 in snow

  15. 11Almira, Michigan

    Better for a vacation home than 96% of Michigan towns

    3,873 people · Benzie County · median home $284,600 · income $90,278 · Jan low 16°F · 143 in snow

  16. 10Chikaming, Michigan

    Better for a vacation home than 97% of Michigan towns

    2,778 people · Berrien County · median home $366,900 · income $83,908 · Jan low 17°F · 63 in snow

  17. 9Suttons Bay, Michigan

    Better for a vacation home than 97% of Michigan towns

    2,883 people · Leelanau County · median home $440,500 · income $115,769 · Jan low 17°F · 115 in snow

  18. 8Lyndon, Michigan

    Better for a vacation home than 98% of Michigan towns

    2,656 people · Washtenaw County · median home $350,200 · income $122,568 · Jan low 16°F · 33 in snow

  19. 7Little Traverse, Michigan

    Better for a vacation home than 98% of Michigan towns

    2,657 people · Emmet County · median home $345,400 · income $88,368 · Jan low 15°F · 124 in snow

  20. 6Ferrysburg, Michigan

    Better for a vacation home than 98% of Michigan towns

    2,952 people · Ottawa County · median home $239,900 · income $70,400 · Jan low 19°F · 87 in snow

  21. 5Resort, Michigan

    Better for a vacation home than 99% of Michigan towns

    2,835 people · Emmet County · median home $394,500 · income $103,929 · Jan low 15°F · 124 in snow

  22. 4Saugatuck, Michigan

    Better for a vacation home than 99% of Michigan towns

    3,443 people · Allegan County · median home $422,600 · income $93,618 · Jan low 20°F · 109 in snow

  23. 3Petoskey, Michigan

    Better for a vacation home than 99% of Michigan towns

    5,877 people · Emmet County · median home $364,100 · income $74,196 · Jan low 15°F · 124 in snow

  24. 2Bear Creek, Michigan

    Better for a vacation home than 99% of Michigan towns

    6,542 people · Emmet County · median home $364,500 · income $71,090 · Jan low 12°F · 120 in snow

  25. 1Elk Rapids, Michigan

    Better for a vacation home than 100% of Michigan towns

    2,521 people · Antrim County · median home $401,100 · income $82,933 · Jan low 17°F · 112 in snow

Price vs ranking

Median home value vs ranking, Michigan towns0255075100$52K$166K$281K$396K$511KMedian home valuePercentile
Orange squares are the 25 towns on this list; green dots are other towns on The Town Files in Michigan.

More Michigan rankings

Same ranking, other places

Methodology. We ranked 541 towns of 2,500–10,000 people in Michigan (2020 Census population; towns with 2,500+ people have pages so far). Lifestyle measures are The Town Files lifestyle rankings, built from federal demographic, school, crime and housing data (2025), shown as percentiles. Only towns better than 60% of their peers on this measure qualify, so lists can be shorter than 25. Sources: