What it's like to live in Wixom
Wixom is a small city in Michigan with rent below the national average, 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. Wixom deals with household incomes below the national average, air quality that falls short of national benchmarks, larger class sizes than the national average, and cold, harsh winters.
The good
- Rent below the national average
- Low crime rates
- Highly educated workforce
The not so good
- Below-average household incomes
- Air quality concerns
- High student-teacher ratio
- Cold, harsh winters
- Snowy winters — 36" per year
- Car-dependent — few commuters use transit
How Wixom compares
Median household income
Median rent (per month)
Median home value
What it takes to move to Wixom
Based on Wixom's median rent, home value and household income
To rent
$2,070
up front: first month plus a typical one-month deposit
- Income to keep rent under 30%: $41,400 a year
- 43% of Wixom renters spend 30% or more of their income on rent
To buy
$73,040
a 20% down payment on the median home
- With 10% down: $36,520
- Homes cost 5.6× the typical local household income (US: 4.1×)
Moving costs, closing costs and taxes not included.
The details
Cost of living▼ 27% below US
$1,035/mo median rent
Rent here is genuinely low, with median rent around $1,035 a month. Factoring in local incomes, the value gets even better. Money stretches further here than in most of the country. Home prices run above average, with a median around $365,200. Buyers should expect to stretch their budget here.
Median home value $365,200 · 43% of renters cost-burdened
Job market
3.9% county unemployment
Unemployment in Oakland County is 3.9%, close to the national average of 4.3%. That's the county-wide rate; BLS doesn't measure a place this size on its own.
Oakland County (county-wide)
Safety▼ 65% below US
114 violent crimes per 100k
Safety is genuinely one of the selling points here. Both violent and property crime run well below the national average, the kind of numbers that fade into the background after a week of living somewhere.
Property crime 882/100k · Wixom Police Department · 2025 data
Getting aroundNear US average
25 min average commute
Commutes run about average, at 25.4 minutes. Fine day to day, but it adds up over a year, and where someone lives relative to where they work starts to matter. 8 in 10 workers drive to work; 14% work from home.
How workers get to work
Climate
Summers are warm, with highs around 80°F, and winters are cold and harsh, with lows dropping to 17°F.
Average month
30-year averages, 1991–2020
Education & workforce▲ 30% above US
47% bachelor's degree or higher
The population is well-educated, with 47% holding college degrees. That points to a strong professional base and generally a healthy local economy.
Schools
3 public schools inside the boundary
There are 3 public schools inside the boundary and 1 private school. The student-to-teacher ratio is 19:1, slightly above the national average of 16:1.
Parks & recreation
The nearest national park or historic site is River Raisin National Battlefield Park (43 miles away). There are 2 national parks and sites within a day's drive.
Bottom line
Wixom's strongest points are rent below the national average and crime rates well below the national average; the main tradeoffs are household incomes below the national average and air quality that falls short of national benchmarks. A year of median rent ($1,035/mo) equals 19% of the median household income here, about the same as the 21% typical nationwide. It tends to suit people watching their budget, anyone prioritizing low crime, and college-educated professionals. It may be a harder fit for anyone who dislikes long, cold winters.
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