Woodward Heights

About Woodward Heights

Woodward Heights sits east of Woodward Avenue in southern Ferndale, organized around Woodward Heights Boulevard itself and bounded loosely by 8 Mile to the south and the 9 Mile commercial corridor to the north. The grid is tight, the lots are modest, and most homes are served by rear alleys — a layout typical of the 1920s streetcar-suburb era when this section of Ferndale was platted. Walkability to downtown Ferndale’s restaurants and bars along 9 Mile is one of the neighborhood’s defining selling points.

Housing stock is dominated by Craftsman and Chicago-style bungalows, brick Tudors, and small cottages built largely between 1920 and 1950, when Ferndale absorbed Detroit’s auto-era population boom. Lots are generally narrow (often 35–40 feet wide), driveways are short or alley-accessed, and renovations over the past two decades have updated kitchens and basements while preserving the original front-porch street rhythm. There is no neighborhood HOA — Ferndale’s residential districts are almost entirely non-HOA, and exterior decisions sit with the homeowner subject to city zoning.

A quirk worth knowing: although the neighborhood carries Ferndale addresses and pays Ferndale taxes, a meaningful pocket of Woodward Heights falls inside the Hazel Park Schools attendance zone rather than Ferndale Public Schools. Webb Elementary at 2100 Woodward Heights Avenue and Jardon Vocational at 2200 Woodward Heights Avenue both sit physically within Ferndale but operate under Hazel Park Schools — buyers should verify the school assignment for any specific address before assuming district.

Community life centers on Harding Park, the 9 Mile bar-and-restaurant strip a few blocks north, and the broader Ferndale civic calendar (DIY Street Fair, Pride, the Ferndale Blues Festival). Walk Score for the eastern blocks runs in the high 70s; Woodward bus service and the planned Woodward Moves transit improvements keep car-light living realistic. The neighborhood draws a mix of first-time buyers, renovators, and long-tenured residents who bought before Ferndale’s price run-up.