Michigan Has the No. 1 Most Expensive City in America to Own a Car

Owning a car isn't cheap, especially in Michigan. You have to pay for the car itself, and then there's gas (unless it's electric), upkeep, washing the car and, of course, vehicle insurance.

Don't get me wrong: I love having a car, so I'm not complaining. My grandfather worked for GM his entire life, and I still have only bought GM cars. Bring back the Pontiac, please?

Now, as it turns out, Michigan has the No. 1 most expensive city in America to own a car. The study is from MarketWatch.com. "If you’re thinking about moving to a new city, transportation is one of the costs you’ll likely need to weigh," the outlet states. "Though many larger cities — and a number of smaller and medium ones — have great public transportation systems, you may not want to give your car up."

As for methodology, "The metric we weighed most heavily in selecting these cities was the cost of car insurance," they state. "According to Quadrant Information Services, the national average for a full-coverage policy is $1,730 per year." They add that, "state-minimum liability insurance costs an average of $635 per year. If you drive in any of the cities below, you can expect to pay well above average for coverage."

So, which city in Michigan is the No. 1 most expensive to drive a car in America? Detroit, baby. "Based on our research, the Motor City’s average rates for full coverage put it at No. 10 for the most expensive car insurance rates in the country," they state "This is due in part to Michigan being the costliest state for both minimum- and full-coverage auto insurance." They add that another factor is that "Detroit faces extreme weather and high levels of property crime. The city has harsh winters, which can lead to collisions when roads are slick and leave roads in disrepair. And according to police statistics reported by a local TV station, car thefts rose by 45% from 2021 to 2022." Find the full list here.

If you're curious which cities in Michigan have residents with the highest median household income, we have the list for you. It's surprising how much median household income differs from one city to the next. For example, the highest median household income in Michigan is $108,432.33, and the lowest is $11,667. I guess that just goes to show how diverse Michigan is demographically and how some areas of the state have a higher cost of living.

The crew at Zip Atlas has published an updated list of those median household incomes using a variety of data. The site offers a "structured collection of zip code, area code, city and state demographic, social and economic profiles," according to their official website. They add, "Here you will find employment and unemployment rates, industry statistics, household and personal income reports, property value assessment, housing unit occupancy and vacancy breakdown, mortgage and rent analysis, age, gender, ancestry and racial profiles, education attainment levels and school enrolment among many others." In other words, they've complied a range of data in different areas in one locale, including what Michiganders across the state are bringing home in their paychecks.

According to the Zip Atlas study, none of the top 10 cities in the U.S. with the highest median household income are located in Michigan. No. 1 is Short hills, New Jersey, at $185,466, followed by Purchase, New York and Villa Maria, Pennsylvania. In fact, Michigan doesn't even have one city in the top 100 cities in the U.S. That said, Michigan does have some cities that fall inside the top 200 and 300 cities with the highest tally.

So, which Michigan cities have the highest median household incomes? View the list of cities below all the way up to No. 1, and see if your city made the cut. For more information, visit the Zip Atlas website here.

$65,308.00

$65,667.00

$65,688.00

$66,224.00

$66,500.00

$66,667.00

$66,802.00

$66,875.00

$66,940.00

$66,979.33

$67,360.00

$67,463.00

$67,593.00

$67,670.50

$67,875.00

$68,465.50

$68,783.00

$69,180.00

$70,133.00

$70,282.00

$70,527.33

$71,964.00

$72,828.50

$72,983.00

$73,051.00

$73,230.50

$74,069.50

$74,280.50

$74,377.00

$74,932.00

$75,452.00

$75,671.50

$75,680.33

$76,491.00

$77,274.00

$78,982.00

$79,262.00

$79,579.00

$80,555.00

$81,108.00

$81,864.00

$82,886.00

$83,585.33

$83,902.00

$87,062.00

$87,507.00

$89,508.00

$93,950.67

$97,437.00

$108,432.33