Here are the 10 Most Expensive Homes Sold in the City of Grand Rapids in 2024!
You may have come for our bottom ten, but stay for the top! On the flip side of Grand Rapids’ real estate spectrum, let’s take a stroll through the land of luxury and excess—the top 10 most expensive homes sold last year. These jaw-dropping properties come with everything you’d expect: sprawling square footage, opulent finishes, and enough bedrooms to house dozens of exotic fur babies. But don’t let the glamour fool you—owning one of these mansions requires sacrifice, like trading lawn care for landscaping crews and utility bills that could fund a vacation. If you’ve ever wondered what life looks like at the top, here’s your backstage pass to extravagance.
Also included: Most Expensive Condo, Most Expensive Lake House, Most Expensive Home Sold in Kent County Michigan
https://grandriverrealty.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/232-Morris-Avenue-SE-Grand-Rapids-MI-49503.jpg16002400Pete Bruinsmahttps://grandriverrealty.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/03/GrandRiverLogo-med.pngPete Bruinsma2025-01-15 12:53:542025-01-17 13:04:13Ten Most Expensive Homes Sold in Grand Rapids 2024
Here are the Top 10 Cheapest Homes Sold in Kent County Michigan in 2024!
Curious about what rock-bottom pricing gets you in Kent County, Michigan? We’ve unearthed the Ten least expensive homes sold last year. These properties come with plenty of character and potential, including a looming tetanus shot. From quaint fixer-uppers with plenty of peeling paint, to pint-sized abodes that redefine cozy, this list shines a light on the budget-friendly side of the regional real estate market. Who needs a mortgage when you’ve got a toolbox, a dream, and hold-harmless waiver signed by all parties? Let’s dive into these delightfully scrappy finds.
https://grandriverrealty.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/141-S-Elm-Street-Sparta-MI-49345.jpg16002133Pete Bruinsmahttps://grandriverrealty.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/03/GrandRiverLogo-med.pngPete Bruinsma2025-01-15 12:52:012025-01-15 15:27:51Ten Least Expensive Homes Sold In Grand Rapids 2024
National Association of Realtors® Unveils 10 Top Housing Hot Spots for 2025 – Most of these markets outperform the national average in at least six of NAR’s 10 criteria
https://grandriverrealty.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/02/grand-rapids-845x321-revised.jpg321845Pete Bruinsmahttps://grandriverrealty.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/03/GrandRiverLogo-med.pngPete Bruinsma2024-12-16 10:00:302025-01-09 15:45:06Grand Rapids on All the Lists
It was hot news in 1976, but today who knows about Michigan’s Mathieu-Gast Act?
If you’ve ever put a considerable amount of capital into rental maintenance in a single year, this is worth checking out. As long as a simple form is filed by the end of the year in which the work was completed, the typical increase on property taxes through an increase in Assessed Value can be halted until the next time the home is sold.
The Mathieu-Gast Home Improvement Act of 1976 was co-sponsored by state Sen. Harry Gast, R-St. Joseph, and state Rep. Thomas Mathieu around the concept that homeowners and landlords should not be penalized with higher taxes for making home improvements that benefit the community around them.
Certain stipulations do exist; for example, work conducted without necessary permits does not qualify. The Mathieu-Gast Act only applies to “normal maintenance.” According to Michigan.gov Bulletin 7 of 2014, the following repairs are considered “normal maintenance” if they are not part of a structural addition or completion:
(a) Outside painting.
(b) Repairing or replacing siding, roof, porches, steps, sidewalks, or drives.
(c) Repainting, repairing, or replacing existing masonry.
(d) Replacing awnings.
(e) Adding or replacing gutters and downspouts.
(f) Replacing storm windows or doors.
(g) Insulating or weather stripping.
(h) Complete rewiring.
(i) Replacing plumbing and light fixtures.
(j) Replacing a furnace with a new furnace of the same type or replacing an oil or gas burner.
(k) Repairing plaster, inside painting, or other redecorating.
(l) New ceiling, wall, or floor surfacing.
(m) Removing partitions to enlarge rooms.
(n) Replacing an automatic hot water heater.
(o) Replacing dated interior woodwork.
The Michigan.gov form complete with instructions & guidelines for filing are hosted HERE.
– Pete Bruinsma, Broker, Grand River Realty & Life Cycle Property Management
sources: Harold-Palladium, John Dobberstein, Jun 26, 1999, RPOAonline.org, GRcity.us
The first time buyers market seems pretty impossible sometimes, and now the Spring Market is almost here again. We expect the competition will heat up with the weather, and prices will rise.
If it feels like you are getting outbid over and over again, the very best thing to do is talk to a trained, experienced professional at Grand River Realty. Our agents will bolster up your offer and actively advocate on your behalf with other agents and sellers. That said, here are a few additional incentives available only for first time buyers.
Advantage, you say? First time buyers?? Yep. We’ve collected as many as we can find for you, and we’ll keep adding to this list.
Hot Tip
Tired of offer deadlines and multiple offers? View some homes that have been on the market for a week or more. Here’s an active list of homes in Kent County that have been listed for 8-366 days. This avoids the hottest listings that will sell in the first few days on the market. This list does include new construction, condos, and multifamily investment properties: http://link.flexmls.com/1qzpfv82peas,18 Note, with some browsers the user will need to hit “refresh” 1-2 times before the “Days on Market” filter will kick in. We have a ticket into technical support about it. If you hit “refresh” 1-2 times and the number of matches drops, you’ve experienced this issue.
Disclaimer Please keep in mind that promotions do expire, details change, and additional stipulations exist. The following links are posted as a starting point and omit many of the specifics of each program in the interest of keeping the post concise, and in a “list” format.
Flagstar Gift Program • Borrower must qualify for the Fannie Mae Homeready product or Freddie Mac Homepossible program
• Borrower is able to receive a gift up to $7500 towards down payment or 3% of purchase price (whichever is less). There is no repayment on this gift from Flagstar Bank.
• Income limit varies based off location of home https://sf.freddiemac.com/working-with-us/affordable-lending/home-possible-eligibility-map
• Minimum loan to value 95% ( borrowers can’t put more than 5% down payment )
• 620 credit score
• Conventional with PMI
Flagstar Destination Home Product
• 100% financing, no down payment, however borrower is responsible for 1% of the purchase price to be applied towards closing costs
• Income limit varies based off the location of the home
Rent to Own Grand River Realty has partnered with an REIT to purchase homes with cash that are listed on the MLS. You become a tenant. When you are ready, refinance into homeownership with a mortgage. Qualify or get started here: https://grandriverrealty.com/rent-to-own/
Appraisal Rebates Coast One Mortgage, Gold Star Mortgage, others
Some banks have these and there are various qualifiers and stipulations. Its worth asking your loan officer.
HOW TO APPLY FOR ANY OF THESE
Questions on any of these offerings? Want local contact numbers for one of these programs? Please ask Grand River Realty by filling out the contact form or by contacting your favorite Grand River Realty agent. You will receive an immediate response.
West Michigan’s annual GRAR installation and awards ceremony was held December 9, 2022. Pinnacle Award winners are announced at this event in front of top industry leaders and peers.
The Pride of Ownership/Rehab award was given to Tedros Fremichael of Grand River Realty! The Pride of Ownership/Rehab Award is designed to recognize those individuals within the REALTOR® Family (REALTORS®, affiliate members, etc.) that have purchased a “fixer upper” home during the current calendar year and made significant upgrades to the home to assist in raising property values.
Congrats to all of the 2022 Pinnacle Award recipients!
At the ceremony, Tedros received further recognition as a 2022 graduate from the prestigious GRAR Leadership Academy, GRARLA.
https://grandriverrealty.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/awards-cover-1-scaled.jpg8311500Pete Bruinsmahttps://grandriverrealty.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/03/GrandRiverLogo-med.pngPete Bruinsma2023-01-06 13:35:532023-01-07 12:48:332022 Pinnacle Award goes to Tedros Fremichael of Grand River Realty
West Michigan’s annual GRAR installation and awards ceremony was held December 9, 2022. Pinnacle Award winners are announced at this event in front of top industry leaders and peers. Pete Bruinsma was thrilled to be recognized with a Committee Service Award.
The Government Affairs Committee meets as needed, stays in contact with regional politicians and interviews political candidates. 2022 was a big year for that, and the committee put in quite a bit of work. Congrats to all members of the committee who worked so hard in 2022!
https://grandriverrealty.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/committee-service-cover-scaled.jpg6641500Pete Bruinsmahttps://grandriverrealty.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/03/GrandRiverLogo-med.pngPete Bruinsma2023-01-06 13:29:562023-01-14 14:54:30Grand River Realty’s Pete Bruinsma takes home second Pinnacle Award in two Years
https://grandriverrealty.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/06/dr.jpg7171277Pete Bruinsmahttps://grandriverrealty.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/03/GrandRiverLogo-med.pngPete Bruinsma2022-06-22 08:58:202022-06-22 09:02:14You can’t usually say this
This is a comparison of Zillow charts that show average home prices in Grand Rapids Michigan and some comparable markets. Average Sale prices as of March 2022: Grand Rapids $252k, Ann Arbor $470k, Detroit $65k, Battle Creek 161K, Madison WI $265K, Indianapolis $217K, Cape Coral FL $393k.
https://grandriverrealty.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/05/gr-copy.png428494Pete Bruinsmahttps://grandriverrealty.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/03/GrandRiverLogo-med.pngPete Bruinsma2022-05-11 08:35:312022-05-11 08:58:43Home Prices in Comparable Markets to Grand Rapids MI
Information is swirling about the housing market as buyers make plans for 2022. Interest rates are still attractive, payments are pretty affordable compared to rents. The question is, can a regular person just buy a home in this market?
This “active residential listings” chart has been receiving attention, and rightly so. Current Active listings are at a modern-day low. Currently, the number of homes with “sale pending” signs is 140% of the number of homes with active “for sale” (active) signs.
How about total number of new listings submitted to the MLS annually? Comparing 2015 to 2021, it looks like the annual number of homes listed is down by a total of 15%. That’s 2268 fewer annual listings per year, or 189 fewer listings per month. 2015 was a year when Realtors were fighting to prove a 2-5% increase to appraisers, often falling short, as many appraisal reports still somehow showed the Greater Grand Rapids market as “stable” as opposed to “appreciating.”
The red box illustrates an era when local inventory was flooded, with homes eventually ending up selling for pennies on the dollar. That took a few years to get past, and took homes away from a lot of people. People were trending out of homes fast, loans were harder to get, and rental investors made up a large portion of buyers. That’s one reason we saw the epic first time buyer tax credit in 2008-09.
Here’s an interesting chart. Number of homes sold does not seem to change much from year to year. This chart compares number of homes sold in January each year since 2012. The population of West Michigan is pretty stable. Confidence in 2022s housing market is high as people watch property values quickly increase. The group of active first time buyers, which drive the housing market, is increasing. Loans are easy to obtain and cheap, rents are going up, and the generation of Millennials in the age range of 26-41 are rapidly entering the market.
Solutions to low inventory are not super encouraging in the short term:
*Redistribute some rental homes from investors back to owners, left over from the foreclosure era. Offer investors incentives to sell rentals, possibly a reduction in capital gains tax or a creative local state or federal tax incentive
*More new construction, address labor shortages, address supply chain issues, incentivize builders?
*Interest rates raising, making homes less affordable
*Reduction in conglomerate purchases or REITs
*Reduced foreign investment
*Restrictions on short term rentals
*Buyer Fatigue
*Shift in demand
*Shift in population
Is it still possible for a regular person to buy a home in 2022?
Yes. A successful buyer will align with an experienced agent who understands the current market, property values, and has a strategy for this market. Agents at Grand River Realty have the knowledge, training, experience, and strategy that is necessary to be successful as a buyer in this competitive market. Here are some great Realtor® options.
https://grandriverrealty.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/02/banks-tanked.jpg880903Pete Bruinsmahttps://grandriverrealty.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/03/GrandRiverLogo-med.pngPete Bruinsma2022-02-15 10:46:292022-05-11 08:45:31Is it still possible for a regular person to buy a home in Grand Rapids Michigan in 2022?
