Best Places48044, MI Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood inside ZIP code 48044, scored on 40 measures of daily life and ranked to fit what matters to you. Local pay runs high here, and housing takes the biggest bite out of it. To work out which city fits you best, start with the best places to live tool.
48044 ranks 4,788th of 33,110 U.S. zip codes on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on few empty homes by a wide margin, and car insurance costs are the weak spot.
The best neighborhoods in 48044
BestNeighborhood is the only ranking that scores 40 measures of daily life neighborhood by neighborhood and lets you re-weight every one of them yourself.
48044's strengths and weaknesses
Where 48044 ranks high
- Low vacancyBetter than 98% of zip codes
- Voter turnoutBetter than 92% of zip codes
- Cost of living vs incomeBetter than 92% of zip codes
- Crime safetyBetter than 91% of zip codes
- Household income$122,202 median, better than 90% of zip codes
Where 48044 ranks low
- Cheap car insuranceBetter than only 2% of zip codes
- Local economyBetter than only 23% of zip codes
- Nice weatherabout 69 pleasant days a year, better than only 24% of zip codes
- State fiscal healthBetter than only 24% of zip codes
- Tree shadeBetter than only 27% of zip codes
What it costs to buy a home in 48044
A household needs to earn about $94,000 a year to comfortably buy the median 48044 home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That is below the area's own median income of $122,202, so a typical household can afford the median home outright.
Where the monthly payment goes
Assumes a 20% down payment, a 6.6% 30-year fixed rate, and a 28% share of income going to the payment. The rate is the 2026-07-23 30-year fixed average, series MORTGAGE30US from the St. Louis Fed, which publishes Freddie Mac's weekly survey. Against the median home value, property tax uses 48044's effective rate of 1.09%, and insurance is estimated at 0.4% of home value a year.
Renting versus buying
At today's prices, buying tends to cost more than renting for about the first 9 years, then pulls ahead as rent keeps rising and the mortgage builds equity. The chart tracks the running cost of each.
Who lives in 48044
48044's age mix sits close to the national median, and households here run larger than average.
Residents by age
Racial and ethnic makeup has its own map. See the race and diversity map for 48044.
Who works in 48044, and how
Work in 48044 centers on manufacturing and health care & social. Unemployment is close to the national rate, and employment has held roughly flat.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 82%
- Work from home 14%
- Transit, walk, or bike 4%
Life in 48044
48044 has fewer places to eat and drink per resident than most zip codes. That concentrates in some parts of 48044 and thins out in others, which the map shows.
What the weather is like in 48044, month by month
48044 sees roughly 69 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 85 degrees. January highs sit near 35, with lows near 20. The comfortable stretch runs May through September.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 35° | 27° | 20° |
| April | 59° | 47° | 35° |
| July | 85° | 74° | 62° |
| October | 65° | 54° | 44° |
Flying in and out of 48044
Detroit Metro Wayne County sits about 37 miles away. It is a large hub and boarded 16.3 million passengers in 2025, with 168 nonstop destinations.
The best schools in and around 48044
Schools across 48044 average a C+, better than 50% of zip codes.
Top elementary schools
- Messmore Elementary SchoolA− · 62% proficient
- Shawnee Elementary SchoolB+ · 53% proficient
- Floyd Ebeling Elementary SchoolB · 49% proficient
Top middle schools
- Bemis Junior High SchoolB− · 42% proficient
- Seneca Middle SchoolB− · 41% proficient
- Middle School NorthC+ · 39% proficient
Top high schools
- International Academy Of MacombA · 78% proficient
- Dakota High SchoolC+ · 39% proficient
- High School NorthC+ · 36% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every 48044 school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
48044 measure by measure
Cards are ordered by how much each measure matters to you, so the ones you weighted highest come first. Expand to see every measure. Percentages compare 48044 against the other 33,109 zip codes.
Who 48044 suits
Families
Schools land around the 50th percentile and crime safety beats 91%.
Remote workers
Cost of living against local pay beats 92% of zip codes, internet is fast and widely advertised, and 14% already work from home.
Common questions about living in 48044
Is 48044 a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, 48044 ranks 4,788th of 33,110 zip codes. It scores highest on few empty homes, civic engagement, and what local pay buys, and lowest on car insurance costs and a weak job market. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is 48044 expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $346,568. The overall cost of living runs about 3% below the national average. Set against a $122,202 median income, cost of living beats 92% of zip codes.
Is 48044 safe?
Yes, 48044 is safer than 91% of zip codes. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $200 per resident a year.
What is the weather like in 48044?
July highs average about 85 degrees, and January highs near 35 with lows near 20. That works out to about 69 pleasant days a year, more than 24% of zip codes.
Is 48044 good for families?
Schools beat 50% of zip codes, crime safety beats 91%, and childcare runs $860 a month.
Compare 48044 with other zip codes
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to 48044. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in 48044 represents the same real quantity as a 60 anywhere else, and the ranking is a weighted average of those absolutes. The map colors come from a national scale calibrated against a population weighted random sample of 5,000 neighborhoods. That absolute scoring is what no other places-to-live ranking does: it puts a single neighborhood, a town, a metro, and a state on one scale, so the same 40 measures answer both which metro to move to and which street inside it to buy on. Read the full methodology.
48044 detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for 48044: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in 48044: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of 48044: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in 48044: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
48044 detail on related sites:
- CrimeGrade: neighborhood crime rates behind the crime safety score.
- ISPreports.org: provider by provider internet availability and advertised speeds.
- CoverageWatch: the car insurance premiums behind the cheap car insurance score.
Federal and public data:
- U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey: income, home value, rent, vacancy, commute time and mode, educational attainment, home age, age structure, household type, industry, and race.
- NOAA Global Surface Summary of the Day: the daily station record behind the monthly temperatures and the pleasant-day count.
- FAA Passenger Boarding Data: airport size and annual passenger counts.
- Freddie Mac Primary Mortgage Market Survey: the 30-year fixed rate used in the cost-to-buy estimate.
- FBI Crime Data Explorer: reported offenses behind the tangible crime cost estimate.
- U.S. EPA Air Quality System: five year average air quality index.
- FEMA National Risk Index: expected annual loss from natural hazards.
- CDC PLACES: disease burden, preventable risk, and barriers to care.
- National Center for Education Statistics: school enrollment and assessment inputs behind the school grade.
- FCC National Broadband Map: internet and wireless availability.
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics: employment and job growth behind the local economy score.
- Religious activity uses a proprietary religious signal measurement.
Your priorities
Move a slider to say how much a measure matters. Zero turns it off.