Census Estimates Show Gains and Losses in Population for Oakland County Communities
(Kurt Metzger, May 16, 2024)
Oakland County, MI- In March of this year, the Census Bureau issued 2023 population estimates for the nation’s counties. Oakland County was estimated to have lost about 600 residents since 2022, and almost 4,000 since the 2020 Census. Today, the Census Bureau released its 2023 population estimates for all cities, villages and townships across the country.
The following three charts show the results for communities across Oakland County – separated into cities (30), villages (10) and townships (20).
Figure 1 provides population change from 2020-23 and 2022-23 for cities. Of the 30 cities, 25 lost population between 2022 and 2023. The largest losses were sustained by Farmington Hills (-350) and Pontiac (-272). While Farmington Hills has now lost 1,471 residents since 2020, Pontiac is still 86 residents ahead. Of the five gaining cities, Southfield (+130) and Auburn Hills (+80) were the winners. While Auburn Hills increased their growth since 2020 to 1,229 residents, Southfield just decreased their loss to -920.
Figure 2 provides population change from 2020-23 and 2022-23 for townships. Things were much better for townships, as 13 out of 20 experienced population gains. Lyon (+570) and Independence (+319) townships easily beat all other gainers. Lyon’s gain brought their growth up to 2,108 since 2020, while Independence was able to overcome previous losses to register a gain of 264 residents since 2020. Among the population losers, Waterford (-298) and West Bloomfield (-185) took the biggest hits over the last year. Waterford has now lost 1,177 residents since 2020, while West Bloomfield has lost 765 residents.
Figure 3 provides population change from 2020-23 and 2022-23 for villages. Of the 10 villages, seven lost population, two added residents and one showed no change. The largest gain belongs to Franklin – 11 residents, though they are still 40 below their 2020 total. The largest decrease was experienced by Beverly Hills, losing 60 residents over the year. Their loss since 2020 is now up to 208 residents.
I anticipate that communities with losses will be disappointed and may want to challenge the Census Bureau estimates. There are procedures for that, and I will be happy to assist any community interested in such a challenge.
