What it's like to live in Fenton
Fenton is a small city in Michigan with rent below the national average, home prices that remain within reach, crime rates well below the national average, and a highly educated workforce. Those factors carry real weight for anyone weighing where to move next.
The tradeoffs are worth naming plainly. Fenton deals with county unemployment above the national average, commute times longer than most cities, cold, harsh winters, and snowy winters.
The good
- Rent below the national average
- Affordable home prices
- Low crime rates
- Highly educated workforce
- Average class sizes
The not so good
- Above-average unemployment in the county
- Above-average commute times
- Cold, harsh winters
- Snowy winters — 52" per year
- Smaller place — fewer dining and entertainment options
- Car-dependent — few commuters use transit
How Fenton compares
Median household income
Median rent (per month)
Median home value
What it takes to move to Fenton
Based on Fenton's median rent, home value and household income
To rent
$2,550
up front: first month plus a typical one-month deposit
- Income to keep rent under 30%: $51,000 a year
- 49% of Fenton renters spend 30% or more of their income on rent
To buy
$47,180
a 20% down payment on the median home
- With 10% down: $23,590
- Homes cost 2.9× the typical local household income (US: 4.1×)
Moving costs, closing costs and taxes not included.
The details
Cost of livingNear US average
$1,275/mo median rent
Cost of living works in this city's favor. Median rent sits around $1,275 a month, nothing that raises eyebrows. Solid value overall. Home prices are reasonable, with a median around $235,900. Not a steal, but not intimidating either.
Median home value $235,900 · 49% of renters cost-burdened
Job market
6.4% county unemployment
Unemployment in Genesee County is 6.4%, well above the national average of 4.3%. Moving with a job already lined up matters more here. That's the county-wide rate; BLS doesn't measure a place this size on its own.
Genesee County (county-wide)
Safety▼ 41% below US
194 violent crimes per 100k
Pretty safe, all things considered. Violent crime sits below the national average, nothing alarming, just ordinary city-life awareness.
Property crime 1216/100k · Fenton Police Department · 2025 data
Getting around▲ 20% above US
31 min average commute
Traffic is a real factor here. The 31.3 minute average means plenty of commuters are pushing 45 to 60 minutes on a bad day. Proximity to work matters more here than it might elsewhere. 8 in 10 workers drive to work; 16% work from home.
How workers get to work
Climate
Summers are comfortable, with highs around 79°F, and winters are cold and harsh, with lows dropping to 17°F.
Average month
30-year averages, 1991–2020
Education & workforceNear US average
39% bachelor's degree or higher
Education levels run about average, with 39% college-educated. It's a mix of white-collar and blue-collar work, which can be an asset or a limitation depending on the field.
Schools
6 public schools inside the boundary
There are 6 public schools inside the boundary. The student-to-teacher ratio is 17:1, close to the national average of 16:1.
Parks & recreation
The nearest national park or historic site is River Raisin National Battlefield Park (64 miles away). There are 2 national parks and sites within a day's drive.
Bottom line
Fenton's strongest points are rent below the national average and home prices that remain within reach; the main tradeoffs are county unemployment above the national average and commute times longer than most cities. A year of median rent ($1,275/mo) equals 19% of the median household income here, about the same as the 21% typical nationwide. It tends to suit anyone prioritizing low crime and remote workers (16% of workers here already work from home). It may be a harder fit for anyone moving without a job lined up, anyone who doesn't drive, and anyone who dislikes long, cold winters.
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