Best Places49402, MI Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood inside ZIP code 49402, scored on 40 measures of daily life and ranked to fit what matters to you. Several measures below read low, and the ranked lists name which ones. To work out which city fits you best, start with the best places to live tool.
49402 ranks 27,158th of 33,110 U.S. zip codes on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on tree cover by a wide margin, and car insurance costs are the weak spot.
The best neighborhoods in 49402
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.
49402's strengths and weaknesses
Where 49402 ranks high
- Tree shadeBetter than 95% of zip codes
- Disaster safetyBetter than 95% of zip codes
- Heat safetyBetter than 85% of zip codes
- QuietBetter than 83% of zip codes
- Cheap childcare$720 a month, better than 70% of zip codes
Where 49402 ranks low
- Cheap car insuranceBetter than only 5% of zip codes
- Local economyBetter than only 6% of zip codes
- Cell coverageBetter than only 8% of zip codes
- Low vacancyBetter than only 8% of zip codes
- BikingBetter than only 12% of zip codes
What it costs to buy a home in 49402
A household needs to earn about $44,000 a year to comfortably buy the median 49402 home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That is below the area's own median income of $59,064, 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 49402's effective rate of 0.99%, 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 7 years, then pulls ahead as rent keeps rising and the mortgage builds equity. The chart tracks the running cost of each.
Who lives in 49402
49402 runs older than the country, and households here run smaller than average.
Residents by age
Racial and ethnic makeup has its own map. See the race and diversity map for 49402.
Who works in 49402, and how
Work in 49402 centers on manufacturing and retail trade. Unemployment runs well above the national rate, and the job base is shrinking.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 86%
- Work from home 9%
- Transit, walk, or bike 5%
Life in 49402
The map and measures below break down dining, culture, and green space by neighborhood across 49402.
What the weather is like in 49402, month by month
49402 sees roughly 91 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 79 degrees. January highs sit near 32, with lows near 22. The comfortable stretch runs May through September.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 32° | 26° | 22° |
| April | 53° | 43° | 35° |
| July | 79° | 69° | 60° |
| October | 60° | 51° | 43° |
Flying in and out of 49402
The nearest airport, Manistee County/Blacker, is about 25 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is General Mitchell International, about 115 miles away.
The best schools in and around 49402
Schools across 49402 average a D+, better than 16% of zip codes.
Top elementary schools
- Mason County Eastern Elem SchC− · 28% proficient
- Mason County Central Upper ElementaryC− · 27% proficient
- Baldwin Elementary SchoolF · 10% proficient
Top middle schools
- Mason County Central MsD+ · 25% proficient
- Baldwin Junior High SchoolF · 11% proficient
Top high schools
- Mason County Eastern Junior Highhigh SchoolC− · 29% proficient
- Baldwin Senior High SchoolD+ · 25% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every 49402 school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
49402 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 49402 against the other 33,109 zip codes.
Common questions about living in 49402
Is 49402 a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, 49402 ranks 27,158th of 33,110 zip codes. It scores highest on tree cover, low disaster risk, and heat safety, 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 49402 expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $162,271. The overall cost of living runs about 13% below the national average. Set against a $59,064 median income, cost of living beats 25% of zip codes.
Is 49402 safe?
Yes, 49402 is safer than 68% of zip codes. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $280 per resident a year.
Compare 49402 with other zip codes
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to 49402. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in 49402 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.
49402 detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for 49402: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in 49402: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of 49402: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in 49402: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
49402 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.