Sell Your Commercial Property In Macomb County, MI

Who rents in Macomb County

Renters head 89,612 of the 358,668 occupied households in Macomb County, a 25.0% share in the 2020-2024 ACS. Owners hold the larger piece, at 269,056 households. Michigan as a whole runs a slightly higher renter share, 26.8%, so Macomb County leans a touch more toward ownership than the state.

That renter share varies widely inside the county. Roseville posts the highest renter share among covered cities at 34.4%, followed by Eastpointe at 29.7% and Warren at 28.9%. St. Clair Shores sits far lower, at 16.9%, reflecting its single-family housing stock. Macomb County's median household income reached $77,837, up 23.8% from the 2015-2019 survey.

Rents, growth and affordability

Macomb County's median gross rent climbed 25.9%, from $962 to $1,211, between the 2015-2019 and 2020-2024 surveys. Population grew far more slowly over the same span, up just 1.1% to 879,853 residents, an increase of 9,528 people.

Renter households actually fell during that stretch, down 3.0% to 89,612 from 92,394. Units in buildings of five or more sit higher, up 2.6% to 53,661. That combination, more apartment units chasing fewer renter households, lines up with Macomb County's tight 2.9% rental vacancy rate, well below Michigan's 5.1% rate.

Rent burden runs heavy regardless. In the 2020-2024 ACS, 50.8% of Macomb County renters paid 30% or more of income on gross rent, close to the 50.4% Michigan figure. HUD's FY2027 two-bedroom Fair Market Rent for the Detroit-Warren-Livonia area is $1,459, effective October 1, 2026, a full $248 above the county's median gross rent.

City-by-city comparison

Sterling Heights carries the largest apartment share among Macomb County's covered cities, with 17.1% of its housing units in buildings of five or more. Roseville follows at 14.3%. St. Clair Shores and Eastpointe run leaner, at 9.9% and 6.3%.

Rent ranges from $1,183 in St. Clair Shores to $1,325 in Eastpointe, a gap of $142. Vacancy swings further: Eastpointe sits at 0.9%, near full occupancy, while Sterling Heights reaches 5.0%, the loosest market among the five Macomb County cities tracked here.

Property taxes and assessment in Macomb County

Michigan assesses property at 50% of true cash value to set the state equalized value, per MCL 211.27a. Taxable value then rises only by the lesser of 5% or inflation each year, until a sale resets, or uncaps, taxable value to the state equalized value the following calendar year. A sale in Macomb County can raise the taxable base the new owner pays on, even with no change in the building itself.

Michigan also charges a transfer tax on the sale: $3.75 per $500 of value to the state, plus $0.55 per $500 to the county in counties under 2,000,000 residents, a bracket that includes Macomb County. On a $1,000,000 sale, that comes to $7,500 state and $1,100 county, for $8,600 total, which the seller pays to the county treasurer within 15 days of the transfer.

What this means if you sell in Macomb County

When you sell commercial property in Macomb County, MI, you sell into a market where apartment supply has outpaced renter demand. Units in 5+ buildings rose 2.6% while renter households fell 3.0%, yet rent still climbed 25.9% on the back of a tight 2.9% vacancy rate. Buyers will test your rent roll against that vacancy figure city by city, from Eastpointe's 0.9% to Sterling Heights' 5.0%.

Rent control is not a factor in the underwriting. Michigan's MCL 123.411 bars local governments from setting rent levels on private residential property, so pricing stays a function of lease terms and local demand. The taxable-value uncap after a sale is the bigger line item buyers model, since it resets the new owner's basis to the state equalized value.

As a multifamily buyer in Macomb County, we look at 5+ unit buildings from Warren to St. Clair Shores as they stand today. Send a current rent roll, a T-12 and your latest tax bill, and we will price the building on those numbers.