Farmington Hills

Living in Farmington Hills

Farmington Hills is frequently confused with its smaller neighbor — the city of Farmington — but the two are distinct municipalities. Farmington Hills covers roughly 33 square miles and houses close to 84,000 residents, geographically wrapping around the much smaller city of Farmington on three sides. The scale difference matters for buyers: Farmington Hills offers a far broader range of housing stock, price points, and neighborhood character than the compact, walkable downtown-oriented city it surrounds.

The city’s commercial footprint is one of the largest in western Oakland County. The 12 Mile, Northwestern Highway, and Orchard Lake Road corridors host major office parks, regional retail, and a dense concentration of professional services — a base that supports both a substantial daytime employment population and a tax structure that funds the city’s well-regarded amenities. Heritage Park, a 211-acre municipal park with trails, a nature center, and an interpretive farm, is among the largest city parks in the region.

Farmington Hills is one of Metro Detroit’s most diverse communities. The city is home to large and well-established Indian and South Asian populations, a significant Jewish community anchored around several synagogues and cultural institutions, and substantial Black and East Asian populations as well. That diversity is reflected in the restaurant scene, religious institutions, and cultural programming — including The Hawk, the city’s community and cultural center, and the adjacent Power Center for the Performing Arts on the Schoolcraft College campus just to the south.

School district boundaries are a meaningful factor for family buyers. Most of Farmington Hills is served by Farmington Public Schools — shared with the city of Farmington — but portions of the city’s northern and western edges fall within West Bloomfield Schools, and a small section is served by Walled Lake Consolidated Schools. Housing stock runs the full range: mid-century ranches in the older southern neighborhoods, 1970s-80s colonials through the central core, and newer executive subdivisions and condominium developments concentrated along the northern and western edges.