Hardwood AcresMI
A town of 611.
Is Hardwood Acres a good place to live?
Hardwood Acres’ density of trails is 2.0 miles per square mile, where Michigan’s towns sit at 0.3 and U.S. towns at 0.4. Hardwood Acres has fewer than 1,000 residents, too few for fair grades; the figures below are still real.
611 people, and everyone knows the way
In a town this size, neighbors are the best guide. Ask them anything.
Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore and 1 more within 40 miles
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Hardwood Acres. Close and well known come first.
8 mi National LakeshoreSleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore1.6M visitors a year16 mi MuseumMichigan Legacy Art ParkPhoto credits
Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore: en:User:Grod028, Public domain
Moving to Hardwood Acres: who provides what
Hardwood Acres is unincorporated, so Benzie County and regional agencies provide most services.
EPA SDWIS (Oct 9, 2026) · HIFLD + EIA-861 2025 · Census 2020 ZCTAs · NCES 2024–25 · registration: vote.gov, updated Sep 12, 2025.
The data
Ordered by what stands out in Hardwood Acres.
Top of a very low hazard risk in Hardwood Acres: inland flooding
Storm and flood damage is expected to run lower than in 89% of U.S. communities. Of the losses FEMA expects in Hardwood Acres, 48% come from inland flooding and 39% from cold waves.
FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Hardwood Acres has 0.1 jobs per working resident, so most workers leave town for work
Hardwood Acres’ median household income stands at $109,000, against $77,000 in Michigan’s towns and $80,000 across U.S. towns, though in Hardwood Acres, 3.4% of residents live below the poverty line. The top destinations are Traverse City (30%), Garfield Township (20%) and Green Lake Township (4%). For half of commuters, work is under 11 miles away.
| Hardwood Acres | Michigan towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median household income | $109,000 | $77,000 | $80,000 |
| Below the poverty line | 3.4% | 8.9% | 9.6% |
| Average trip to work | 24 minutes | 25 minutes | 25 minutes |
Where working residents work
Census LEHD 2021 · ACS
In Hardwood Acres, expect snowy winters and pleasant summers
July afternoons reach 80°, January nights drop to 14° and about 101 inches of snow falls in a winter.
Typical low → high °F
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
Compared with most of Michigan and the rest of the country, more of Hardwood Acres’ adults binge drink
Hardwood Acres: 32% of adults sleep under 7 hours. On the CDC’s 32 measures, Hardwood Acres is ahead of Michigan on 10 and behind on 1. Among adults locally, 28% have been diagnosed with depression and 31% have high blood pressure.
| Hardwood Acres | Michigan towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Binge drink (CDC PLACES) | 19% | 17% | 16% |
| Depression (CDC PLACES) | 28% | 27% | 23% |
| High blood pressure (CDC PLACES) | 31% | 36% | 35% |
| Diabetes (CDC PLACES) | 9.2% | 12% | 12% |
| What stands out | Hardwood Acres | MI |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer adults facing food insecurity | 10.4% | 15.4% |
| Fewer adults facing a utility shut-off | 6.4% | 8.7% |
| Fewer adults treating high blood pressure | 74% | 77.6% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
A home in Hardwood Acres sells for about $640K at the median
80% of households own their home in Hardwood Acres.
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
0% of Hardwood Acres is conserved land
1.0 miles of trail in 2 parks and preserves. Parks and preserves in Hardwood Acres: 2, covering 84 acres.
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Eastern Michigan University Parsons Center for Arts and Sciences | 0.9 mi | 73 |
| 2. Ransom Lake Natural Area | 0.1 mi | 11 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Everything we know about Hardwood Acres
Colleges nearby
1 within 15 miles of the center of Hardwood Acres
About 7 of every 100 Hardwood Acres residents are enrolled in college, about the same as Michigan.
100% of working residents leave Hardwood Acres for work
Where Hardwood Acres’s working residents go each day. Line width shows the share.
Census LEHD 2021
About Hardwood Acres
Census-designated place & unincorporated community in Michigan, United States
Hardwood Acres is an unincorporated community and census-designated place in Benzie County in the U.S. state of Michigan. The population was 393 at the 2020 census. Hardwood Acres is located within Almira Township.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
- Area
- 0.5 sq mi
- Elevation
- 902 ft
Questions about Hardwood Acres
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Is Hardwood Acres, MI a good place to live?
Hardwood Acres has fewer than 1,000 residents, too few for fair grades; the figures below are still real.