01
Closed pricing remained above the prior full-year median.
The regional median reached $715,000 and the average reached $918,864. A limited number of estate sales continued to pull the average above the typical transaction.
One lake. Distinct markets.
Where the shoreline defines the market.
Reporting window January 1–July 31, 2026
Inclusion Waterfront residential property at $450K+
Geography Lake St. Clair and Anchor Bay communities
Property types Canal, river, bay and direct lakefront
2026 at a glance
The waterfront market, measured.
Closed results tell one part of the story. Active and pending inventory reveal the competition sellers face entering the second half of the year.
55
Closed sales Qualified waterfront transactions
63
Active listings Available at the reporting date
11
Pending sales Under contract at the reporting date
$715K
Median sale price Closed waterfront transactions
$313
Average sold $/SF Across all included closed sales
41
Median days on market A more useful signal than the 75-day average
The market’s defining sale
Highest waterfront sale.
$4,250,000
15410 Windmill Pointe Drive / Grosse Pointe Park
The upper end remained highly property-specific. This direct-lakefront transaction helped lift the regional average well above the $715,000 median.
What defined the market
Four signals shaping waterfront.
Healthy closing volume continued, but a larger and older pool of active inventory increased the importance of pricing, presentation and community-specific positioning.
02
Inventory exceeded year-to-date closing volume.
Sixty-three active listings competed with 55 closed sales. The $690,000 median active asking price remained close to the regional median sale price.
03
Negotiation remained part of the market.
Closed waterfront properties averaged 93.7% of original list price. Performance varied meaningfully by community, price tier and water-access profile.
04
Median market time told the clearer story.
The regional average was 75 days while the median was 41. Long-running luxury and specialty listings continued to pull the average higher.
Current inventory context
What sellers are competing against now.
Active and pending properties are kept separate from closed-sale averages, but they provide essential context for pricing, timing and buyer depth.
Median active price $690,000
Median active DOM 59 days
Median pending price $739,900
Median pending DOM 92 days
The second half of 2026 is not simply a low-inventory market. It is a selective market in which buyers can compare more than 60 active waterfront options across the communities represented.
Waterfront community comparison
One lake. Different market conditions.
Sold metrics are calculated only from closed transactions. Active and pending counts remain separate to preserve an accurate view of closed-sale performance.
Market | Sold | Active | Pending | Avg. sale | Median sale | Avg. $/SF | Median DOM | Sale/original | Highest sale |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Harrison Township Canal, river, channel and direct lakefront | 23 | 40 | 7 | $808,987 | $655,000 | $303 | 53 | 92.7% | $1,835,000 |
St. Clair Shores Canal, basin and select direct lakefront | 19 | 13 | 2 | $755,211 | $585,000 | $289 | 27 | 96.3% | $1,400,000 |
Chesterfield Township Canal, Anchor Bay and direct waterfront | 9 | 8 | 0 | $1,061,222 | $1,000,000 | $345 | 19 | 92.0% | $1,850,000 |
New Baltimore Anchor Bay, canal and direct shoreline | 2 | 2 | 2 | $740,400 | $740,400 | $322 | 57 | 98.0% | $756,000 |
Grosse Pointe Park Rare direct Lake St. Clair estate waterfront | 2 | 0 | 0 | $3,275,000 | $3,275,000 | $501 | 58 | 84.0% | $4,250,000 |
Swipe horizontally to view the complete comparison on mobile.
01
Harrison Township
23 sold · 40 active · 7 pending
The region’s volume leader also carried the deepest active inventory. Its $655,000 median sale price, 53-day median market time and 92.7% sale-to-original-list ratio reinforce the importance of disciplined positioning.
Median sale $655,000
Average $/SF $303
02
St. Clair Shores
19 sold · 13 active · 2 pending
St. Clair Shores posted the strongest original-list-price retention among the higher-volume communities and a faster 27-day median market time.
Median sale $585,000
Sale/original 96.3%
03
Chesterfield Township
9 sold · 8 active · 0 pending
The core volume market’s highest median sale price paired with its fastest median market time. Its 92.0% sale-to-original-list ratio also shows meaningful negotiation at the upper end.
Median sale $1,000,000
Median DOM 19 days
04
New Baltimore
2 sold · 2 active · 2 pending
A balanced active and pending count accompanied a $740,400 median sale price and 98.0% original-list-price retention. The small sample should be interpreted cautiously.
Median sale $740,400
Average $/SF $322
05
Grosse Pointe Park
2 sold · 0 active · 0 pending
Two luxury transactions defined the market’s ceiling. Their $3.275 million average is not a citywide benchmark; it reflects the highly individual nature of direct-lakefront estates.
Median sale $3,275,000
Average $/SF $501
Largest waterfront sales
The transactions defining the upper market.
The five highest closed sales included direct-lakefront estates, high-value canal homes and distinctive properties with exceptional frontage or boating access.
01
15410 Windmill Pointe Drive
Grosse Pointe Park
$4,250,000
02
801 Park Lane
Grosse Pointe Park
$2,300,000
03
49016 Pointe Lakeview Drive
Chesterfield Township
$1,850,000
04
29303 S Seaway Court
Harrison Township
$1,835,000
05
46 Evergreen Drive 1
Harrison Township
$1,800,000
Second-half 2026 outlook
What this means for waterfront sellers.
Qualified waterfront buyers remain active, but results vary sharply by community, price tier, property type and the quality of the water-access experience.
Sellers entering the late-summer or fall market should evaluate active competition carefully. In Harrison Township especially, active inventory materially exceeded year-to-date closing volume. Pricing from an aspirational listing instead of a relevant closed sale can make a property difficult to distinguish.
For owners considering a spring 2027 sale, this is the period to complete repairs, document seawall and dock improvements, capture late-summer photography and establish the launch strategy before the next seasonal window.
“The strongest result comes from matching the property to its specific waterfront market—not treating every shoreline home as comparable.”
Confidential waterfront valuation
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