The Math That Changes the Conversation
Retail lease rates in Troy and Birmingham can run notably higher than surrounding areas — listing data from LoopNet shows Birmingham averaging around $33 per square foot, with Troy ranging across listings from the high teens to upper twenties depending on property type and location. Comparable storefronts in Warren and Macomb Township lease for significantly less, with commercial listing data from CityFeet and LoopNet showing Warren averaging closer to $13 per square foot for commercial space and Macomb Township around $19 per square foot for retail — with better parking, easier access, and a customer base that is actively growing. That is not a minor discount. On a 1,500-square-foot space, you are looking at tens of thousands of dollars a year staying in your business instead of going to a landlord.
And yet most small business owners searching for retail space in Michigan still default to the premium suburbs, assuming that is where the customers are. The assumption is wrong, and the data is starting to prove it.
Macomb County population: 900,000+, making it Michigan's third-largest county, with continued residential growth concentrated in communities like Macomb Township and Sterling Heights.
What Is Actually Happening in Macomb County Right Now
This is not a story about a region trying to revive itself. Macomb County is not a turnaround play. It is a stable, growing market with real infrastructure, real residents, and real consumer spending happening every day along corridors like Van Dyke, Mound Road, and Hall Road.
The Arsenal Alliance is the most recent signal worth paying attention to. According to Crain's Detroit Business and a formal announcement from the City of Sterling Heights, Warren and Sterling Heights signed a $500,000 interlocal agreement in April 2025 to attract defense industry investment, coordinating economic development in a way that signals long-term institutional commitment to the region. Macomb County has received more than $65 billion in defense contracts over the past 25 years, with $3.2 billion awarded in 2024 alone. The defense corridor employs approximately 47,000 people directly and supports another 71,000 local jobs. When municipalities work together to recruit employers at this scale, it means more jobs, more residents, and more people who need places to eat, shop, and get their hair cut.
Warren, the county seat and Michigan's third-largest city by population according to the 2020 U.S. Census, already anchors a dense residential and commercial ecosystem. It borders Detroit to the north, which means it captures commuter traffic from both directions. Storefronts on major corridors here get the kind of daily drive-by exposure that retail businesses depend on, without the overhead that comes with a Detroit address.
"The customers are already here. The question is whether you want to pay Birmingham prices to reach them or Warren prices."
Warren: Underrated, Deliberately
Warren does not market itself the way Birmingham does. It does not have the same PR machine. That is exactly why lease rates have not caught up to the actual opportunity.
The city has over 134,000 residents within its borders and sits adjacent to some of the highest-traffic commercial corridors in Macomb County. Van Dyke Avenue and Mound Road are not quiet side streets. They are major arterials with consistent daily traffic counts that most suburban retail corridors would envy. A salon, a specialty food shop, a wellness studio, or a fast-casual restaurant positioned on one of these corridors gets visibility that is genuinely hard to buy in a quieter suburb at any price.
Permitting and zoning in Warren is also worth naming directly. The city has made real efforts to streamline the process for new businesses, and the local economic development office is accessible in a way that larger municipalities often are not. That matters when you are trying to open in 90 days, not 18 months.
Macomb Township: The Growth Story
If Warren is the established corridor play, Macomb Township is the growth story. The township has been one of the fastest-growing communities in Michigan for the better part of two decades, driven by residential development that keeps pulling households north along Van Dyke and Romeo Plank Road.
That growth creates a specific kind of retail opportunity: neighborhoods full of households with disposable income and nowhere nearby to spend it yet. Restaurants, specialty retail, health and wellness businesses, and service-based storefronts that position early in a growing corridor benefit from being first rather than competing in a saturated market.
Hall Road (M-59) runs through the southern edge of the township and connects directly into the Sterling Heights and Utica commercial spine, one of the busiest retail corridors in the entire region. Proximity to that traffic without paying Hall Road anchor-tenant rates is the kind of structural advantage that compounds over time.
How to Evaluate a Retail Location Here (or Anywhere)
Before you sign anything, work through these questions for any storefront you are seriously considering:
- What is the daily traffic count on the street? Ask the landlord or pull MDOT data. Anything above 20,000 vehicles per day on a major corridor is meaningful for most retail categories.
- Who lives within a 3-mile radius? Demographics, household income, and age skew all affect whether your concept fits the trade area.
- Is there anchor traffic nearby? A grocery store, a pharmacy chain, or a busy gas station nearby means your customers are already making trips to the area.
- What does parking look like at peak hours? Drive by on a Saturday at noon, not a Tuesday at 10am.
- How long has the space been vacant? Long vacancy is not always a red flag, but it is a question worth asking directly.
- What is the lease structure? Gross lease vs. NNN matters enormously for your actual monthly cost. Know what you are comparing.
The Honest Tradeoff
Macomb County is not going to give you a Birmingham zip code. If your brand positioning depends on a premium address, that matters and you should factor it in. Some concepts genuinely need the cachet of a specific location to charge the prices their model requires.
But for the majority of retail, restaurant, salon, and wellness businesses, customers care far more about convenience, parking, and visibility than they care about which suburb the storefront sits in. The customer who drives past your shop on Van Dyke every day does not care that it is not on Big Beaver Road. They care that you are open, you are good, and they can park.
That is the bet Macomb County asks you to make. And the fundamentals back it up.
MT Commercial Property Services has retail storefronts available in Warren and Macomb Township right now, ranging from 1,000 to 3,000 square feet, on corridors with real traffic. Reach out to schedule a tour and see what fits your business.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Macomb County a good place to open a retail business?
Yes. Macomb County is Michigan's third-largest county with over 900,000 residents and strong residential growth, particularly in Macomb Township. Communities like Warren offer high-traffic corridors, affordable lease rates, and accessible permitting compared to premium suburbs like Troy or Birmingham.
How do retail lease rates in Warren compare to Troy or Birmingham?
Retail lease rates in Troy and Birmingham typically run $25 to $35 per square foot. Warren and Macomb Township storefronts often lease in the $14 to $18 range for comparable square footage. On a 1,500 sq ft space, that difference can exceed $25,000 per year.
What types of retail businesses do well in Warren and Macomb Township?
Restaurants, salons, barbershops, specialty food shops, health and wellness studios, and service-based storefronts all perform well along high-traffic corridors like Van Dyke and Mound Road. The dense residential base and daily commuter traffic support consistent foot traffic for most retail categories.
How do I find available retail space in Macomb County?
MT Commercial Property Services specializes in retail and storefront leasing in Warren, Macomb Township, and Sterling Heights. They have spaces ranging from 1,000 to 3,000 square feet available now. Contact them directly to schedule a tour of current vacancies.
Is Macomb Township growing fast enough to support a new retail business?
Macomb Township has been one of Michigan's fastest-growing communities for nearly two decades, with continued residential development pushing north along Van Dyke and Romeo Plank Road. That growth creates genuine demand for restaurants, retail, and service businesses in areas that are not yet saturated.