Living in Palo, MI
Palo is a tiny town of 375 people in Ionia County, Michigan. It's about 35 miles from Lansing, MI and 35 miles from Grand Rapids, MI, the nearest major city. Summer highs average 82°F and winter highs 30°F, with about 62 inches of snow a year. The typical home is valued around $94k and rent runs about $884 a month.
375people
$94kTypical home
$884/moRent
82° / 30°Summer / winter
62"Snow
205Sunny days
143Rain/snow days
Is Palo right for you?
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Size & setting
- Tiny town of 375
- Its own small hub, not a suburb
- About 538 people per sq mi
- 35 mi to Grand Rapids, MI
- 35 mi to Lansing, MI
- 10 mi to the nearest town of 10k+
Money
- Typical home $94k (≈$595/mo)
- Median rent $884/mo
- Median household income $55k
- Property tax about 0.8% of value
- 2.0% unemployment
Weather
- Summer highs around 82°F
- Winter highs around 30°F
- Somewhat humid summers (dew point 60°F)
- 205 sunny days a year (63 totally clear)
- 160 cloudy days a year
- 58 of 90 winter days are gray
- 143 days a year with rain or snow
- 62" of snow a year
- 20 days a year with 1"+ of snow
- Rarely hits 100°F
- 28 nights a year below 10°F
- Breezy
Safety
- Low violent crime (285 per 100k), county-wide
- Very low property crime (566 per 100k), county-wide
People
- Median age 30
- 47% of households have kids
- 11% are 65 or older
- 11% have a college degree
- Not very diverse
- 6% of residents are college students
Getting around & homes
- Average commute 44 min
- 2% walk or take transit to work
- 31 mi to LAN airport
- 31 mi to GRR (major hub)
- 36 mi to the nearest Amtrak station
- 80% single-family homes
- Typical home built around 1938
- 91% of homes have broadband
Outdoors
- Flat, open land
- Elevation 804 ft
- 505 mi to the ocean
- 63 mi to a big lake
- 20 mi to the nearest trailhead
- 26 mi to the nearest ski area
- 14 mi to the nearest campground
- 20 golf courses within 25 mi
Things to do
- 88 sit-down restaurants within 25 mi
- Few or no bars within 25 mi
- 11 coffee shops within 25 mi
- No music venues & clubs within 25 mi
- 16 museums within 25 mi
- 1 brewery or distillery within 25 mi
- Farmers market in town
Everyday
- Schools in the bottom 43% of Michigan districts (reading)
- 8 mi to the nearest grocery store
- 8 mi to the nearest ER hospital
- 8 mi to a 4–5★ hospital
- 18 mi to the nearest vet
- 11 mi to the nearest dog park
- 6 congregations per 10k people
- 25 mi to the nearest college
Politics
- Ionia County: R+32 in 2024
- Michigan: Purple — split almost evenly
Natural hazards
- Very low hurricane risk
- Moderate tornado risk
- Very low wildfire risk
- Very low earthquake risk
- Very low flood risk
- Very low drought risk
- High winter storm risk
- Low heat wave risk
- Very low volcano risk
Limited data: this place is small enough that most of its Census numbers (rent, home value, income, age) are blended with county figures. Treat its match as a rough guide.