2019 Best Places to Retire in MichiganAbout this List

Bingham Farms

• Suburb of Detroit, MI
• 1

Current Resident: Bingham Farms is a nice community to raise a family. The home lots are a nice size, allowing plenty of space for children to play. Due to the area being near the rouge river and having plenty of trees, it is not uncommon to see wildlife, such as fox, coyote, dear, rabbit and hawks. Although it's a quaint community it is in close proximity to downtown Detroit.
Read 1 Review

• A

• C-

• A+

• 1,189 Population

Village of Grosse Pointe Shores

• Suburb of Detroit, MI
• 3

Current Resident: I like the people within the city. Everyone is so nice and thoughtful and typically there is nothing to worry about. It is a safe neighborhood where everyone fits in.
Read 3 Reviews

• A+

• A+

• A+

• 2,910 Population

Greilickville

• Town in Michigan
• 3

Niche User: Traverse City is a great place to live. There is a lot to do throughout the year. There is a good arts scene, great restaurants, good schools, lots of great parks and things to do. the housing is kind of expensive, though.
Read 3 Reviews

• B-

• B+

• A+

• 1,522 Population

Charlevoix Township

• Town in Michigan

• A-

• B

• A+

• 1,587 Population

Pleasant Ridge

• Suburb of Detroit, MI

• A+

• C

• A+

• 2,365 Population

Bloomfield Charter Township

• Suburb of Detroit, MI
• 69

Current Resident: More diversity training for the educators, including the principal/office staff. Because it starts and ends at the top just as in the home environment. My light skinned mixed son didn't know what racism or bullying were until moving into the school district, and the school's are why we moved.
Unfortunately, he was in a middle school with only 15-20% minority luckily there was only (1) senior high school and an about 35% minority mix, along with more attention paid to diversity in all respects.
Bloomfield Twp is primarily residential, no fast food or party store type businesses, mostly doctors, lawyers offices. Residents take pride in ownership and don't move often driving up prices and the school's are Rated A+ , private unless you live in district.
Lastly, BT is very safe with a police/EMS response time of 2-3min. I personally walk my poodle at 3a in my house coat& feel comfortable and safe.
Thanks
Read 69 Reviews

• A+

• A+

• A+

• 41,969 Population

Bad Axe

• Town in Michigan
• 20

Current Resident: I moved to Bad Axe when I was 7 years old, and I have loved it since then. Although it is quite small and there are not many things to do, I still enjoy and cherish Bad Axe. I've made friends, played sports, and overall had a lot of fun growing up here.
Read 20 Reviews

• B

• B

• A+

• 3,000 Population

Baldwin Township

• Town in Michigan
• 3

• B+

• B+

• A+

• 1,624 Population

Oscoda Charter Township

• Town in Michigan
• 10

Niche User: I love the great outdoors feeling I get every time I step outside. The fresh air, crisp trees, and heavenly scent never seem to fail me. I have everything that I need, the woods, multiple water ways, and my family.
Read 10 Reviews

• B

• C

• A

• 6,847 Population

Bloomfield Hills

• Suburb of Detroit, MI
• 23

Current Resident: I have been a resident of BH for going on 10 years now. I have gone through the elementary and middle school systems through BHSD and am about to graduate high school. Overall, BH is a nice district with a variety of people of different creeds, ages, and identities. One issue is the weather-infrastructure blend. Roads are often filled with potholes which is only made worse during winter.
Read 23 Reviews

• A+

• A+

• A

• 3,981 Population

Petoskey

• Town in Michigan
• 47

Current Resident: Petoskey is an amazing, family friendly place to live. If you want a very calming life style this it the place for you! It is a small but very happy place with many things to do is the summer and winter, too. Petoskey is also a very safe place to live, you will always find a friend. The schools have amazing teachers who help their students out and try to paraphrase the lesson to the student's understanding. Like I have said you could find something to do every season! From pumpkin patches and apple picking in the fall, to skiing snowboarding, also snowshoeing in the local hills in the winter. Hiking and relaxing in the spring to camping and late night bon fires in the summer. There is always something to fit your desire and need in the wonderful Petoskey. Adventure awaits you, go and be one with nature.
Read 47 Reviews

• A

• B+

• A

• 5,696 Population

Grosse Ile Township

• Suburb of Detroit, MI
• 27

Current Resident: I can’t imagine a better place to live. Safest city in the state. Excellent schools. Small friendly community. Gorgeous water views all around you. Lots of outdoor activities. Three golf courses and country clubs. Two yacht clubs and one marina. Soccer fields. An out door ice rink. A public pool. Even has an airport. Down sides are, lack of stores, restaurants, bars, fast food options, and other retail outlets. Have to go off Island for almost everything. But it is totally worth it for the incredible safe and friendly life style. We do have a Grocery store, two gas stations, a bakery, a hardware store, and a few bars and restaurants. You will love it here.
Read 27 Reviews

• A

• A

• A

• 10,173 Population

Tawas City

• Town in Michigan
• 11

Current Resident: It's a very nice, small community. It's a good place to settle down and raise a family. Couldn't ask for a better community.
Read 11 Reviews

• B+

• B+

• A

• 1,780 Population

Grosse Pointe Woods

• Suburb of Detroit, MI
• 34

Current Resident: I have lived in the Pointes for 22 years. Split between the Park and the Woods. I have lived in the Woods for 11 years. I am not originally from the Pointes, but I wouldn't call anywhere else home! The schools are great, crime is low, private parks are awesome and you can ride your bike anywhere you need to go. Restaurants, doctor, dentist, market, we have it all!
Read 34 Reviews

• A+

• A+

• A

• 15,678 Population

Birmingham

• Suburb of Detroit, MI
• 59

Current Resident: I love Birmingham! Downtown Birmingham is great; the city is not too big or too small, and it is very close to many places such as Detroit. I have lived here my whole life and I have never wished to live in another city and I would love to live here again after college and raise my family here.
Read 59 Reviews

• A+

• A+

• A

• 20,836 Population

Troy

• Town in Michigan
• 200

Current Resident: The city of Troy is not the city you go to to look for great stuff to do. But Troy is the city you live in if you want access to everything southeast Michigan has to offer. It is less then half an hour from downtown Detroit, with all the things that it offers, including the border to Canada and all the tourism that it offers. Troy is withing two hours of the state capital, offering many chances for learning. It is also with in reasonable driving distance of Michigan State and the University of Michigan, with other smaller colleges even closer. The most important part of the city, though, is its schools. The Troy school district is one of, if not the, best school district in the state. It is a safe city with great diversity and great schools. If you are looking to move to Michigan, I would recommend Troy.
Read 200 Reviews

• A+

• A+

• A

• 83,336 Population

East Tawas

• Town in Michigan
• 15

Current Resident: East Tawas is really nice. There are beaches. It is nice to visit here during the summer. The people here are also smarter and nicer than I had met in Tennessee. The school that I go to is also very brilliant. It is my favorite school, although so far I have been to only 2 schools. Everything here is sort of advanced. We have chromebooks in school. Tawas is a very wide place. Sometimes, I go to the beaches or downtown. The weather is usually snowy here, but I kind of liked it. We could play in the feet deep snow and play around!
Read 15 Reviews

• B+

• B+

• A

• 2,749 Population

Grosse Pointe Farms

• Suburb of Detroit, MI
• 34

Current Resident: As a teenager, I think Grosse Pointe Farms is great! The only downside in my opinion is other people's political beliefs. I've grown up in a split household, so I've grown to make my own political choices. For others, that's not the case. The only thing I wish for is that everyone makes their own choices and doesn't just follow their parents beliefs because they think their parents are always right.
Read 34 Reviews

• A+

• A+

• A

• 9,238 Population

Grosse Pointe

• Suburb of Detroit, MI
• 10

Former Resident: I grew up in Grosse Pointe, Michigan. From a child standpoint, it was a wonderful place to grow up. The public school system was impeccable, and it was an incredibly safe neighborhood. It is a suburb for families, mostly middle class families. As I got older, however, I started to notice its' flaws. I lived with my single mother and 3 older sisters. We were not a wealthy family, to say the least, and therefore did not "fit in". I had found out my mother was completely segregated from social life with other members of the community because of her financial situation. Grosse Pointe is also not diverse at all, made up almost completely of white individuals like myself. There is no nightlife in Grosse Pointe, as many people my age joked that the city "shuts down" at 9 p.m. Overall, I think this city is a safe environment to grow up and attend school at, but it is not a place for the unwealthy or individuals without children.
Read 10 Reviews

• A+

• A+

• A

• 5,241 Population

Chelsea

• Town in Michigan
• 8

Current Resident: Chelsea is a small, tight knit community. It is a family oriented environment and everyone is kind and supportive of one another.
Read 8 Reviews

• A

• A

• A

• 5,169 Population

Rogers Township

• Town in Michigan
• 2

Niche User: It is great living here, but honestly we just moved here so I don;t know the area too well.
Read 2 Reviews

• B-

• C+

• A

• 1,069 Population

Peninsula Township

• Town in Michigan
• 6

Niche User: Traverse City is an extremely friendly community with amazing scenery, activities, and people. The only aspect of Traverse City that prevents me from giving it a perfect score is its lack of diversity. I've found that many people fail to understand the huge problems facing many minority groups simply because there are few minorities in the area we live in. I've found that this has created an ignorance to problems that are not experienced within our own community.
Read 6 Reviews

• A

• A-

• A

• 5,702 Population

Farmington

• Suburb of Detroit, MI
• 12

Current Resident: Love the downtown shopping and activities during to whole year. I love the Farmer's market all summer long. There are a lot of resources for me to choose, from Doctors to clothing to eating in different venues to toy stores and hardware stores. I love being able to support the small business entrepreneur.
Read 12 Reviews

• A+

• A-

• A

• 10,560 Population

Worth Township

• Town in Michigan
• 2

• B-

• B

• A

• 3,700 Population

Markey Township

• Town in Michigan

• C+

• C

• A

• 2,268 Population