Households in Forest Township earn less than those in 84% of U.S. towns
2% of workers work from home, where Michigan as a whole has 14%. Below the poverty line: 20.9% of residents; Michigan has 13.2%. The two grades for Forest Township are D− for jobs and income and C− for walkability.
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2021, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
What stands out about work in Forest Township
Fewer jobs are based in Forest Township than ten years ago
Jobs counted in Forest Township fell from 726 in 2011 to 273 in 2021, −62%. That can be real closings or a large employer now reporting its workers at another address; the data can’t tell the two apart. The jobs ↓
Few Forest Township workers work from home
Only 2% of workers work from home, against 14% across Michigan. Almost everyone here travels to a job. Time on the road ↓
Forest Township workers spend longer getting to work
The average trip takes 30 minutes each way, against 24 across Michigan. Over a year that’s about 230 hours of commuting, 46 more than the state’s typical worker. Time on the road ↓
Written from the Census figures on this page. Commute flows, distances and jobs are Census LEHD 2021, primary jobs only (the self-employed aren’t counted); commute time and working from home are from the Census American Community Survey; 2021 is the newest year Michigan has published; with 373 working residents, small shifts move the shares.
Inside Forest Township’s Jobs & income grade
On income, poverty and job access, Forest Township is better than 3% of U.S. towns. All three inputs sit close together, so no single one decides Forest Township’s grade.
Unemployment (7.3%) is left out: Forest Township’s labor force is under 1,000, too few workers for a steady figure.
The commuting and job counts on this page are Census LEHD 2021: Michigan reports later than other states, so its newest year is two years behind.
A fairly firm grade. Within the Census margins of error for income and poverty, Forest Township could be anywhere from D− to D.
Goods, not services: 81% of the jobs in Forest Township
273 jobs are based in Forest Township.
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Forest Township, 2011 → 2021: 726 → 273. Big swings can come from how a large employer reports its locations, not only from real openings or closings.
Primary jobs covered by unemployment insurance (not the self-employed). Pay is monthly earnings. LEHD 2021.
Here is what they are, next to the jobs Forest Township’s own residents hold wherever they work.
The trip to work from Forest Township: about 30 minutes
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 9.5 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Forest Township workers work from home, vs 14% across Michigan. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 579 commuters (the 2% who work from home are left out). Across Michigan: 86% drive alone, 1% take transit; U.S.: 81% and 4%. Census ACS 2020–24.
From the Census survey of workers who don’t work from home.
A workday in Forest Township: who goes, who stays, who comes
On a workday 341 residents head out to work, 32 work right here, and 241 people come in from elsewhere.
About as many people by day as by night: the people who leave are replaced by the people who come in.
0.73 jobs for every working resident, so most people commute out.
Workday population = residents − those who work elsewhere + those who come in (the Census “commuter-adjusted” method). Residents: Census survey; commuters: LEHD 2021, primary jobs.
15% of working residents work in Cadillac
Where Forest Township clocks in
6% of workersLines run between town centers. The top 10 towns each way; “Everywhere else” is the rest, including other states.
A thicker line means more commuters. Switch between where residents work and where the people who work here live.
Short hops and long hauls from Forest Township
About 20% show a job over 50 miles away. Some of that is real, and some is employers that report every worker at a head office, so a few long commutes are on paper only.
Straight-line distance from each worker’s home block to their main job’s block. LEHD 2021.
Every working resident’s trip, home to work, as the crow flies. Roads add to it, so real drives run longer.
Driving is how Forest Township gets around
On EPA’s walkability index and the share of commuters who walk, bike or take transit, Forest Township is more walkable than 16% of U.S. towns. Both inputs place Forest Township near the same point nationally.
A firm grade. EPA’s index has no published margin of error; the commuting share comes from a Census survey of 592 workers.
How TownRatings grades walkability →
Transit service: no data. EPA’s transit file has no stops for most of this county (its agencies had not published schedules in the format EPA used in 2020). That is missing data, not a finding that there is no bus or train.
Households without a car (shown, not graded). 4.0% of Forest Township households have no vehicle (Michigan 7.0%, U.S. 8.4%). 0% of Forest Township’s commuters take a bus or train.
U.S. towns of 800 to 1,600, and where Forest Township sits
| # | Town | People | Household income | Poverty | Unemployment | Work in town | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Somerset MD | 1,151 | $250K | 1.9% | 2.3% | <1% | A+ |
| 2 | Bellerose NY | 1,169 | $232K | 1.6% | 6.1% | 1% | A+ |
| 3 | Baxter Estates NY | 1,014 | $154K | 1.0% | 3.1% | 1% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 110 | Dimondale MI | 1,183 | $111K | 3.2% | 4.6% | 2% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 271 | Petersburg MI | 1,152 | $83K | 1.8% | 1.7% | 2% | A |
| … | |||||||
| 319 | Milan Township MI | 1,540 | $96K | 6.0% | 4.1% | 1% | A− |
| … | |||||||
| 4,027 | Ronceverte WV | 1,492 | $42K | 25.9% | 7.8% | 4% | D− |
| 4,028 | Grantsburg WI | 1,374 | $35K | 20.0% | 1.8% | 30% | D− |
| 4,029 | Forest Township MI | 1,208 | $53K | 20.9% | 7.3% | 9% | D− |
| 4,030 | Fairlea WV | 1,312 | $24K | 27.6% | 2.4% | 9% | D− |
| 4,031 | Tombstone AZ | 1,376 | $35K | 15.5% | 0.8% | 36% | D− |
| … | |||||||
| 4,312 | Oglala SD | 1,071 | $21K | 68.8% | 26.5% | 0% | D− |
Census ACS 2020–24 (income, poverty, unemployment), Census LEHD (work in town), TownRatings Jobs & income grades. Each town links to its Work & commute page.
Ranked on the Jobs & income grade: the towns either side of Forest Township, the top three, the last and three more from Michigan.
Bordering towns draw 13% of Forest Township’s workers
The biggest share goes to Lake City (7%).
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Forest Township workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Forest Township | – | D− | C− | 30 min | $52,581 |
| West Branch Township | under 2% | — | — | 28 min | — |
| Lake City | 7% | — | — | 16 min | — |
| Caldwell Township | 6% | C− | D | 28 min | $54,250 |
| Pioneer Township | under 2% | — | — | 36 min | — |
| Reeder Township | under 2% | C− | B+ | 21 min | $69,000 |
Same-state neighbors only. West Branch Township, Lake City and Pioneer Township: fewer than 1,000 residents, not graded. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
Darker towns draw more of Forest Township’s workers. Tap a town to see its commute.
What this data can and can’t tell you
- Two sources, two years. Trips, distances and jobs based here: Census LEHD 2021, primary jobs, where the employer reports them. Income, poverty, unemployment, commute time and how people travel: Census ACS 2020–24 averages.
- Straight lines, older transit. Miles are as the crow flies. EPA’s walkability and transit files use 2017–20 inputs.
Jobs and commuting in Forest Township: questions
What is the median household income in Forest Township?
$52,581 (±$2,401) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $72,875 across Michigan and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Forest Township?
20.9%, against 13.2% across Michigan and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Forest Township?
30 minutes each way on average, against 24 across Michigan and 26 nationally. 2% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Forest Township work?
9% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Cadillac (15%, 16 mi), Lake City (7%, 4 mi), Traverse City (6%, 34 mi) (Census LEHD 2021).
Is Forest Township walkable?
Forest Township is more walkable than 16% of U.S. towns (Walkability C−): an EPA walkability index of 5.2 out of 20, and 1% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around Forest Township without a car?
0% of commuters take transit and 4% of households have no car. EPA has no transit data for this county.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Forest Township, from the people who make the trip.
More of Forest Township
Flows, distances and jobs: U.S. Census Bureau, LEHD Origin-Destination Employment Statistics (LODES 8), 2021, primary jobs. Commute time, working from home and working out of state: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-year estimates. Distances are straight lines between home and work; real drives run longer. Walkability index, job access and transit service: U.S. EPA Smart Location Database. The two grades are our own summaries of these figures, not official ratings.