Grand Rapids.
Why people choose it
Grand Rapids
Heritage Hill to the Medical Mile — the city that anchors it all.
- 01
Heritage Hill is one of the largest urban historic districts in the country.
- 02
Downtown condominium and penthouse inventory keeps growing.
- 03
Historic-district guidelines govern exterior work — read them first.
- 04
The Grand River corridor is under long-term redevelopment.
Things to do
In the city.
Named places, not a mood board. Follow any of them through to the people who run it.
Historic district
01
Heritage Hill Historic District
Listed on the National Register in March 1971, reference number 71000399.
Gardens
02
Frederik Meijer Gardens
A 158-acre botanical garden and sculpture park on the East Beltline.
Historic house
03
Meyer May House
A 1908 Frank Lloyd Wright Prairie house in Heritage Hill, restored by Steelcase.
Museum
04
Grand Rapids Art Museum
Founded 1910; its 2008 building was the first LEED Gold art museum.
Museum
05
Gerald R. Ford Presidential Museum
Downtown on the Grand River; the Fords are buried on the grounds.
Museum
06
Grand Rapids Public Museum
Founded 1854; about 250,000 artifacts, a 1928 carousel and a planetarium.
Market
07
Downtown Market
LEED Gold market hall opened in 2013, with more than twenty indoor vendors.
Arena
08
Van Andel Arena
Downtown arena at 130 West Fulton, home to the Griffins, Gold and Rise.
Hours, seasons and access change. Everything above links to the organization that runs it — check there before you drive out to Grand Rapids.
By the numbers
Grand Rapids, measured.
Two luxury markets in one city: irreplaceable prewar housing under design review, and downtown condominiums with their own arithmetic. Thirty-seven per cent of the housing stock predates 1940.
- Population
200,131
City of Grand Rapids
ACS 2024 1-year · Census Reporter
- Heritage Hill
~1,300 properties
In more than 60 architectural styles
American Planning Association, 2012 · American Planning Association
- Median home value
$286,500
Owner-occupied, City of Grand Rapids
ACS 2024 1-year · Census Reporter
- Median household income
$70,515
City of Grand Rapids
ACS 2024 1-year · Census Reporter
- Built 1939 or earlier
31,837 homes
Of 84,894 units — about 37 per cent of the stock
ACS 2020–2024 5-year · Census Reporter
- City incorporated
1850
With 2,686 residents; a village since 1838
City history · City of Grand Rapids
- Land area
44.8 sq mi
City of Grand Rapids
ACS 2024 1-year · Census Reporter
- District enrollment
13,692
Grand Rapids Public Schools, 46 schools — boundaries do not match the city
NCES 2024–25 · NCES
Housing units by decade built
The tall bar on the left is the whole reason the historic districts exist — and the reason a renovation here is a permitting exercise.
- 31,837
- 7,400
- 11,247
- 7,424
- 6,329
- 5,933
- 5,352
- 4,398
- 4,487
- 487
- ≤1939
- 40s
- 50s
- 60s
- 70s
- 80s
- 90s
- 00s
- 10s
- 20s
ACS 2020–2024 5-year · Census Reporter
Occupied homes by tenure
A city that rents almost as much as it owns, which is not true of anywhere else on this site.
- Owner occupied43,351
- Renter occupied36,871
ACS 2020–2024 5-year · Census Reporter
On the map
The city itself.
The city itself holds two very different luxury markets: the historic districts, where the housing stock is irreplaceable and governed accordingly, and downtown, where penthouses and condominiums put the Medical Mile and the river within a walk.
- County
- Kent
- Water
- Grand River
- Historic districts
- Six, plus individual landmarks
- Land area
- 44.8 square miles
Map unavailable
Interactive mapping is not configured on this build.
Open Grand Rapids, Michigan in Google MapsPins mark the center of Grand Rapids and any sample properties nearby. Approximate positions, not surveyed locations.
On the market
Grand Rapids property.
SampleThe MLS feed is not connected yet. Everything below is demonstration data used to build the search, and none of it is a real property.
Before you buy
What to lookinto first.
Local conditions that change what a parcel is worth or what may be built on it. None of this is legal advice and none of it answers for a specific address — it is what to raise with the municipality, your attorney and your inspector before the offer, not after.
- 01Certificate of Appropriateness
The city has six local historic districts, Heritage Hill among them, plus individually designated landmarks. Additions, alterations, improvements and repairs to the exterior of a property in a district need a Certificate of Appropriateness, approved either by planning staff or by the Historic Preservation Commission at a public hearing. Commission cases must be filed weeks ahead and carry a non-refundable fee, so build the review into the timeline before closing.
City of Grand Rapids- 02Lead paint in prewar stock
About 31,800 of the city's 84,900 housing units were built in 1939 or earlier, so most of the historic-district inventory predates lead paint restrictions. Anyone paid to disturb painted surfaces in a home built before 1978 must be certified in lead-safe work practices under the EPA's Renovation, Repair and Painting rule. Ask for the seller's lead disclosure and price lead-safe work into any window, siding or trim project.
US EPA- 03Condominium reserves and assessments
Michigan's Condominium Act requires an association of co-owners to maintain a reserve fund for major repairs and replacement of common elements. For a downtown building, ask for the current reserve study, the last three years of budgets and the history of special assessments. Elevators, parking decks, roofs and facade work are what drive assessments in converted and mid-rise buildings.
Michigan Legislature- 04Downtown parking is a permit
Off-street parking downtown is largely monthly permits in city ramps and lots administered by Mobile GR, with a waiting list. The on-street residential permit program covers only three small zones, so most neighborhoods, Heritage Hill included, have no permit-protected street parking. Confirm in writing whether a deeded or assigned space comes with the unit, or whether you are inheriting a place in a queue.
City of Grand Rapids- 05Grand River restoration works
The city is rebuilding a stretch of the Grand, replacing four low-head dams between Bridge Street and Fulton Street with two rock grade-control structures. In-river construction began in 2026 and is expected to run two seasons into autumn 2027, with staging in the riverside parks. FEMA issued a Conditional Letter of Map Revision finding the work would not increase flooding or require changes to the flood insurance rate maps.
Grand Rapids WhiteWater
Check it at the source
Zoning, permitted uses, shoreline rules and school boundaries are set by the governing bodies below and can change. These are the offices that answer for Grand Rapids.