Rochester Hills

Oakland County77,089 residents2 school districts
70
B−
Suburbgrade score

9th of 54 Detroit suburbs. Strong on housing & affordability and schools, held back by cost of living.

Launch-day rule. Residents is not counted for Rochester Hills yet: no poll responses so far. The overall score of 70 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 Rochester Hills is like to live in, by category

Bars show Rochester Hills against Detroit. Weights are published in full.

Housing & affordability

18% of the score · 76/100
B
Median home value$409,800
Detroit $249,700
Median rent$1,644/mo
Detroit $1,207/mo
Cost-burdened households21%
Detroit 29%

Schools

18% of the score · 75/100
B
Within-state proficiency91st pct
Detroit median 46th pct
Student–teacher ratio18.8
Detroit median 16.8
Graduation rate92%
Detroit median 87%
EDFacts SY2021–22 · NCES CCD 2024–25 · EDFacts ACGR SY2018–19Full page →

Cost of living

14% of the score · 62/100
C
Housing cost index130
Detroit 100
Eff. tax rate1.12%
Detroit 1.27%
Local sales tax6.00%
Detroit median 6.00%
Composed in-house · ACS 2020–24 · ACS 2020–24 · Tax Foundation state average, January 1, 2026Full page →

Commute & transport

14% of the score · 66/100
C+
Mean commute24.3 min
Detroit 26.0 min
Under 30 minutes67%
Detroit 61%
Transit stops / sq mi0.0
Detroit median 7.8 · within 2 miles

Amenities

12% of the score · 67/100
C+
Restaurants & cafés47
Detroit median 59 · within 2 miles
Groceries4
Detroit median 6 · within 2 miles
Parks50
Detroit median 61 · within 2 miles

Employment & income

12% of the score · 69/100
B−
Median household income$120,694
Detroit $76,664
Unemployment4.1%
Detroit 6.4%
Professional occupations61%
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.

0 responses·Residents category: waiting for first responses·Live

Nobody has answered for Rochester Hills 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 Rochester Hills on cost of living

Rochester Hills's weakest grade is C. Six suburbs are within 25 miles and score higher on the same four inputs.

Cost-of-living index composed in-house from housing cost, utilities, effective property tax and local sales tax · Median home value: ACS 2020–24 · Effective property tax: ACS 2020–24

Common questions about living in Rochester Hills

Is Rochester Hills, MI a good place to live?

Rochester Hills scores 70 out of 100, 9th of 54 Detroit suburbs. It is strongest on housing & affordability and weakest on cost of living. Every weight behind that score is published on the methodology page.

Is Rochester Hills expensive to live in?

Cost of living grades C. The median home is $409,800, 64% above the Detroit median, and the effective property tax rate is 1.12%. $1,644/mo is the median gross rent.

How good are the schools in Rochester Hills?

Schools grade B. The districts serving Rochester Hills sit at the 91st pct within-state proficiency percentile, with a 92% graduation rate and a 18.8 student–teacher ratio. Rochester Hills is served by Rochester Community School District and Avondale School District. Proficiency is only ever compared inside the same state.

How long is the commute from Rochester Hills?

The mean commute is 24.3 min, with 67% of workers travelling under 30 minutes and 24% working from home. Transit density is 0.0 stops per square mile.

Can you walk anywhere in Rochester Hills?

Within two miles there are 4 groceries, 47 restaurants and cafés and 50 parks, which grades C+ on amenities.

Are the homes in Rochester Hills old or new?

The median home in Rochester Hills was built in 1984 — newer 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. 76% 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.