States · Michigan · Kent County

Forest Hills, Michigan.

A community in Kent County, with no city government of its own. Zillow publishes no home prices for it: see Kent County’s.

Living in Forest Hills, Kent County, Michigan

Forest Hills, in Kent County, had 28,573 people in the 2020 census. Half its households earn more than $158,005 a year and half less, against $82,631 across Kent County; 3% of its people live below the poverty line. 94% of its homes are lived in by their owners and 6% are rented. Unemployment in Kent County was 4.3% in August 2026, and the county had 0.4% more jobs in 2025 than the year before. The most residents work in schools and health care, then professional services.

People 28,573 in the 2020 census; median age 42.3
Household income $158,005 the median, give or take $13,605 · Kent County: $82,631
Unemployment 4.3% Kent County, August 2026; 4.5% a year before
Homes 94% lived in by their owners; 6% rented
  • 10,098households
  • 71%of adults have a degree
  • 3%below the poverty line
  • 20 mintypical commute
  • 22%work from home

What residents work in

  • Schools, hospitals and social care25%
  • Professional and business services19%
  • Manufacturing14%
  • Banks, insurance and property10%
  • Shops (retail)10%
  • Restaurants, hotels and entertainment6%

Employed residents by industry, from the Census survey. Kent County had 417,408 jobs in 2025, 0.4% more than the year before (Bureau of Labor Statistics).

Weather through the year

Average daily high and low for each month: coldest in January, 31° and 19°; warmest in July, 83° and 62° 20° 40° 60° 80° J 31° 19° F M A M J J 83° 62° A S O N D
Average daily high and low for each month: coldest in January, 31° and 19°; warmest in July, 83° and 62° 20° 40° 60° 80° J 31° 19° F M A M J J 83° 62° A S O N D

Coldest in January, with highs near 31° and lows near 19°; warmest in July, with highs near 83° and lows near 62°. About 78 inches of snow and 39 inches of rain and melted snow a year.

Average daily high and low, 1991–2020, at the Grand Rapids weather station, 5 miles away (NOAA).

Largest workplaces in Forest Hills

  1. Access Business GroupDetergents manufacturing2,775
  2. Forest Hills Public SchoolsSchool district988FTE
  3. MeijerRetail467
  4. Access Business GroupVitamin preparations manufacturing367
  5. WalmartWarehouse clubs and supercenters272
  6. Mi Premier LogisticsExpress delivery services244
  7. Dan Vos Construction Company95
  8. Erhardt Construction83

Staff on average in 2025, as each workplace reported it to OSHA with its injury records: 20 workplaces with 20 or more staff, 5,099 people in all. School districts come from the Common Core of Data (NCES, 2023–24); FTE marks full-time equivalent staff. Not listed: many offices and banks, which need not report to OSHA; military bases, whose staff OPM withholds; and, in about half the states, city and county governments.

Natural hazards

  1. Strong windRelatively high
  2. TornadoesRelatively high
  3. Winter weatherrelatively high in parts of Forest HillsRelatively moderate
  4. Inland floodingrelatively high in parts of Forest HillsRelatively moderate
  5. Heat wavesRelatively moderate
  6. Cold wavesRelatively moderate

FEMA’s National Risk Index (December 2025) rates the risk each natural hazard poses to the people, buildings and farms in Forest Hills’ census tracts, against the rest of the country; all of them together, relatively low. It is meant for planning, not a substitute for a local risk assessment or a flood map: FEMA’s index.

From the U.S. Census Bureau’s 2020 census and its American Community Survey (2020–2024 five-year estimates), and the Bureau of Labor Statistics. A survey, so each figure has a margin of error, and figures it is not sure of are left out. More on Kent County.