10/07/2026
Anomaly of the Traverse City area real estate market
“Then vs. Now: Grand Traverse County Real Estate 2019–2026”
I’d describe the Northern Michigan real estate market right now as a high-price market that has moved out of the post pandemic frenzy and into a much more selective, uneven phase.
Around Traverse City and Grand Traverse County, prices are still historically high. Zillow puts the typical Grand Traverse County home value at about $419,000, up 2.4% from a year ago, while Realtor.com shows active inventory up about 7% year over year. Homes are no longer universally flying off the market, and more sellers are having to compete on price and condition.
Compared with different periods:
* 2020–2022: Much less frantic. That period had very low mortgage rates, severe inventory shortages, bidding wars and buyers waiving contingencies. Today buyers have considerably more leverage and are more price-sensitive.
* 2015–2019: Prices are dramatically higher than that pre-pandemic period, but the feel of the market is starting to resemble it more: buyers compare properties carefully, overpriced homes sit, inspections matter again, and good marketing makes a difference.
* 2008–2012: This does not currently resemble the housing crash. Northern Michigan is seeing some softer areas and slower sales, but prices have not broadly collapsed. Supply has increased rather than exploded, and desirable properties can still move quickly.
* 2023–2025: The market has continued its transition. Higher borrowing costs are a major restraint. As of September 24, 2026, Freddie Mac’s average 30-year mortgage rate was 7.03%, versus 6.30% a year earlier.
One thing that’s especially important in Northern Michigan is that there really isn’t one market anymore. Leelanau County, Grand Traverse County, Charlevoix and Emmet can behave very differently. For example, September data show Leelanau inventory up almost 12% year over year, while Emmet County inventory is up roughly 24%. Waterfront, downtown Traverse City, newer homes and exceptional properties can still behave like a seller’s market, while ordinary homes with ambitious pricing can sit much longer.
Overall conclusion:
“We’re not in a bad market—we’re in a market that has become much less forgiving. Buyers are still buying, but they’re no longer willing to overlook price, condition or presentation.”
Looking at Grand Traverse County, the most useful way to compare eras is to hold the season constant. Here’s a June-to-June comparison using Realtor.com data for listing price, active inventory, and market time:
Median days on market What the market felt like
2019 $325,000 746 43 days Healthy pre-COVID market; buyers had choices
2021 $517,500 207 39 days Extreme seller’s market; inventory shortage
2023 $494,450 267 37 days Still very tight, but frenzy fading
2025 $514,500 467 45 days Inventory rebuilding; buyers becoming selective
2026 $553,750 451 39 days High prices, more choices, strong homes still moving
The really interesting part:
Prices are the big story. A typical Grand Traverse County asking price was around $325,000 in June 2019 versus $553,750 in June 2026.
Yet inventory tells almost the opposite story. In June 2019 there were 746 active listings. At the height of the pandemic shortage in June 2021, there were only 207. By June 2026 inventory had recovered to 451—more than double 2021’s level, but still well below 2019.
That is why I wouldn’t call today’s market simply a “buyer’s market” or “seller’s market.” It is substantially more balanced than 2021, but it hasn’t returned to the amount of choice buyers had before COVID.
Additionally data from Northern Michigan MLS comparing:
06/2024-06/2025 w/period 2025-2026
Ave DOM 78. 81
Ave Sold $515,177. $503,548
No of deals 1357. 1426
And here’s what’s happening right now
The newest September 2026 Realtor.com data puts the Grand Traverse County median sold price at $487,500, up about 12% year over year, with a median 52 days on market. Traverse City itself shows a median sold price of about $513,750.
That last statistic is important for sellers: the market can still produce strong prices, but sellers can no longer assume buyers will simply accept whatever price they put on the house. Price sensitivity is what I call it.
Local Realcomp/NGLR MLS data also illustrates how far prices have come. In 2019, Grand Traverse County non-waterfront single-family homes averaged only about $266,000, with 1,196 closed sales for the year.
By 2025, individual months were routinely producing average sale prices around $500,000+ across combined Grand Traverse County single-family property types—for example, approximately $581,000 in July 2025.
To the sellers:
I think there’s a very strong listing market here:
“Northern Michigan home values went through an extraordinary reset after 2019. Prices moved dramatically higher while the number of homes available for sale collapsed. Inventory has now recovered considerably, so buyers have choices again—but we still don’t have the supply we had before COVID. That means buyers haven’t disappeared. They’ve become selective.”
“In 2021, simply being on the market could be enough. In today’s market, the winners are the homes that are priced correctly, presented exceptionally well and marketed aggressively from day one.”
Another point I would like to emphasize: 39–52 days on market today isn’t evidence that Northern Michigan real estate is weak. June 2019 was already at 43 days. What has changed most dramatically is the price level and buyer behavior, not simply how long homes take to sell.
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