Best Places49685, MI Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood inside ZIP code 49685, scored on 40 measures of daily life and ranked to fit what matters to you. Costs and crime both read low, and the nearest big city is a drive away. To work out which city fits you best, start with the best places to live tool.
49685 ranks 7,830th of 33,110 U.S. zip codes on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on civic engagement by a wide margin, and car insurance costs are the weak spot.
The best neighborhoods in 49685
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.
49685's strengths and weaknesses
Where 49685 ranks high
- Voter turnoutBetter than 96% of zip codes
- Disaster safetyBetter than 96% of zip codes
- Short commute19.7 minutes each way, better than 86% of zip codes
- Healthcare accessBetter than 85% of zip codes
- Crime safetyBetter than 81% of zip codes
Where 49685 ranks low
- Cheap car insuranceBetter than only 6% of zip codes
- Big-city accessBetter than only 17% of zip codes
- Housing crash safetyBetter than only 20% of zip codes
- State fiscal healthBetter than only 24% of zip codes
- Internet speedBetter than only 29% of zip codes
What it costs to buy a home in 49685
A household needs to earn about $89,000 a year to comfortably buy the median 49685 home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That is below the area's own median income of $89,837, 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 49685's effective rate of 0.85%, 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 8 years, then pulls ahead as rent keeps rising and the mortgage builds equity. The chart tracks the running cost of each.
Who lives in 49685
49685's age mix sits close to the national median.
Residents by age
Racial and ethnic makeup has its own map. See the race and diversity map for 49685.
Who works in 49685, and how
Work in 49685 centers on health care & social and retail trade. Unemployment is low, and the job base is shrinking.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 84%
- Work from home 13%
- Transit, walk, or bike 4%
Life in 49685
49685 has fewer places to eat and drink per resident than most zip codes. That concentrates in some parts of 49685 and thins out in others, which the map shows.
What the weather is like in 49685, month by month
49685 sees roughly 101 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 85 degrees. January highs sit near 33, with lows near 20. The comfortable stretch runs May through September.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 33° | 26° | 20° |
| April | 56° | 43° | 33° |
| July | 85° | 72° | 60° |
| October | 63° | 52° | 43° |
Flying in and out of 49685
The nearest airport, Cherry Capital, is about 6 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is General Mitchell International, about 164 miles away.
The best schools in and around 49685
Schools across 49685 average a B−, better than 58% of zip codes.
Top elementary schools
- Central Grade SchoolA− · 57% proficient
- Willow Hill Elementary SchoolB+ · 55% proficient
- Tcaps Montessori SchoolB · 48% proficient
Top middle schools
- Cherryland Middle SchoolB · 47% proficient
- East Middle SchoolB · 45% proficient
- West Middle SchoolB− · 42% proficient
Top high schools
- Central High SchoolB · 48% proficient
- Elk Rapids High SchoolB · 47% proficient
- West Senior HighB · 46% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every 49685 school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
49685 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 49685 against the other 33,109 zip codes.
Common questions about living in 49685
Is 49685 a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, 49685 ranks 7,830th of 33,110 zip codes. It scores highest on civic engagement, low disaster risk, and short commutes, and lowest on car insurance costs and distance from a big city. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is 49685 expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $337,767. The overall cost of living runs about 12% below the national average. Set against a $89,837 median income, cost of living beats 77% of zip codes.
Is 49685 safe?
Yes, 49685 is safer than 81% of zip codes. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $259 per resident a year.
Compare 49685 with other zip codes
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to 49685. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in 49685 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.
49685 detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for 49685: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in 49685: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of 49685: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in 49685: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
49685 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.