Housing & affordability
18% of the score · 26/100
F
Median home value$125,800
Detroit $249,700
Median rent$1,110/mo
Detroit $1,207/mo
Cost-burdened households43%
Detroit 29%
Melvindale
Wayne County12,554 residentsMelvindale-Northern Allen Park Schools
46
D
Suburbgrade score
48th of 54 Detroit suburbs. Strongest on amenities, held back by employment & income.
46
Detroit median 58
0 · F
A+ · 100
Launch-day rule. Residents is not counted for Melvindale yet: no poll responses so far. The overall score of 46 is computed on the other six categories, re-normalised to 100%. Answer the poll →
What living here is actually like
Written summary in preparation This page is waiting for its written summary, and for a person to check it. Until then it is excluded from search engines.
What Melvindale is like to live in, by category
Bars show Melvindale against Detroit. Weights are published in full.Schools
18% of the score · 33/100
F
Within-state proficiency12th pct
Detroit median 46th pct
Student–teacher ratio20.7
Detroit median 16.8
Graduation rate89%
Detroit median 87%
Cost of living
14% of the score · 67/100
C+
Housing cost index77
Detroit 100
Eff. tax rate1.89%
Detroit 1.27%
Local sales tax6.00%
Detroit median 6.00%
Commute & transport
14% of the score · 58/100
C
Mean commute25.1 min
Detroit 26.0 min
Under 30 minutes64%
Detroit 61%
Transit stops / sq mi9.7
Detroit median 7.8 · within 2 miles
Amenities
12% of the score · 79/100
B+
Restaurants & cafés95
Detroit median 59 · within 2 miles
Groceries6
Detroit median 6 · within 2 miles
Parks75
Detroit median 61 · within 2 miles
Employment & income
12% of the score · 21/100
F
Median household income$42,185
Detroit $76,664
Unemployment6.1%
Detroit 6.4%
Professional occupations21%
Detroit 43%
Residents
12% of the score · inactive
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No responses yet. Residents is excluded from the score until eight people answer.
Ask the people who live here
Twelve yes/no questions, one tap each. No dataset knows whether the yards are kept or whether anyone talks to their neighbours. Answers feed the Residents grade, which needs eight responses before it counts.
Nobody has answered for Melvindale yet. If you live here, you can be the first.
Is it quiet at night?
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Do you feel safe walking after dark?
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Can you walk to a grocery store?
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Is it good for young children?
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Are yards and streets well kept?
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Tap either button to answer — no account neededAll twelve questions →
Better than Melvindale on employment & income
Melvindale's weakest grade is F. Six suburbs are within 25 miles and score higher on the same four inputs.
SuburbEmploymentOverall
Beverly Hills17 mi from MelvindaleA 80 B+ Berkley15 mi from MelvindaleA− 78 B+ Grosse Pointe Park15 mi from MelvindaleB+ 69 B− Birmingham18 mi from MelvindaleB 77 B Royal Oak16 mi from MelvindaleB 76 B Ferndale13 mi from MelvindaleB 66 C+ Median household income: ACS 2020–24 · Unemployment: ACS 2020–24
Common questions about living in Melvindale
Is Melvindale, MI a good place to live?
Melvindale scores 46 out of 100, 48th of 54 Detroit suburbs. It is strongest on amenities and weakest on employment & income. Every weight behind that score is published on the methodology page.
Is Melvindale expensive to live in?
Cost of living grades C+. The median home is $125,800, 50% below the Detroit median, and the effective property tax rate is 1.89%. $1,110/mo is the median gross rent.
How good are the schools in Melvindale?
Schools grade F. The districts serving Melvindale sit at the 12th pct within-state proficiency percentile, with a 89% graduation rate and a 20.7 student–teacher ratio. Melvindale is served by Melvindale-Northern Allen Park Schools. Proficiency is only ever compared inside the same state.
How long is the commute from Melvindale?
The mean commute is 25.1 min, with 64% of workers travelling under 30 minutes and 7.5% working from home. Transit density is 9.7 stops per square mile.
Can you walk anywhere in Melvindale?
Within two miles there are 6 groceries, 95 restaurants and cafés and 75 parks, which grades B+ on amenities.
Are the homes in Melvindale old or new?
The median home in Melvindale was built in 1950 — older than the Detroit median of 1968. That is a median, so a town can be half post-war and half new-build and still land there. 75% of homes are houses rather than flats.
Every answer is built from the figures on this page, with their sources and as-of dates on the methodology page.