Published October 11, 2026 in Market Update

Ottawa County buyers still face a tight supply, even as more homes sold

By Michelle Teitsma

Real estate, Ottawa County

The one fact that changes what you should do right now: there are fewer homes to choose from, even though more sold. The Real Estate Data Aggregator counted 278 homes sold across Ottawa County in the three months ending August 31, 2026. That is up 12.1% from the same months of 2025. At the same time, homes for sale fell 9% to just 193. Demand is showing up. Supply is not keeping pace.

Borrowing costs are not helping buyers either. Freddie Mac put the average 30-year fixed rate at 7.40% as of October 8, 2026. That is a real cost. Yet buyers are still making offers, and homes are still moving.

New listings dropped 14.9% across Ottawa County in the same period, the Real Estate Data Aggregator shows. Only 302 new listings came to market. That shrinking pipeline is why inventory stays low even as sales climb.

How each ZIP code read

The county numbers tell one story. Each ZIP code tells its own. Here is what the Real Estate Data Aggregator found for the three months ending August 31, 2026.

49417: the fastest ZIP in the county

The Real Estate Data Aggregator counted 128 homes sold in ZIP 49417 in the three months ending August 31, 2026. That is up 4.9% from the same months of 2025. The median sale price dipped a little, down 1.5% to $422,700. Not every price moved up. But homes moved fast: the median was just 11 days on market, 1 day shorter than a year before.

Nearly 1 in 3 homes in 49417 sold above list price. The Real Estate Data Aggregator put that share at 33.6%, up 1.6 points from 2025. And 46.3% of homes went under contract within two weeks of listing, up 1.2 points. Sellers here are pricing close and getting close.

49456: prices up, homes moving in under three weeks

The Real Estate Data Aggregator counted 117 homes sold in ZIP 49456, up 9.3% from the same months of 2025. The median sale price rose 7.8% to $485,000. That is a meaningful gain. Homes sat for a median of just 18 days, 8 days shorter than a year before.

Nearly 3 in 10 homes in 49456 sold above list price. The Real Estate Data Aggregator put that share at 29.1%. And 44.5% went under contract within two weeks of listing, up 4.3 points. Inventory here is thin: only 87 homes for sale, down 3.3%, with 2.3 months of supply.

49460: the tightest supply, but homes take longer

ZIP 49460 is a different story. The Real Estate Data Aggregator counted 33 homes sold, up 73.7% from the same months of 2025. That jump is real, but the base was small. The median sale price dipped 6.8% to $600,000. Not every price moved up here either.

Supply in 49460 is the tightest of the three ZIPs. Only 14 homes were for sale, down 48.1%. Months of supply fell to just 1.3. But homes here took a median of 37 days to sell, 1 day longer than a year before. A tight supply does not always mean a fast sale.

The wider picture

Ottawa County is not alone in feeling this pressure. The Federal Housing Finance Agency reported U.S. house prices rose 2.6% from July 2025 to July 2026. Month over month, they rose 0.3% in July, seasonally adjusted. Local prices in two of the three Ottawa County ZIPs outpaced that national gain.

Nationally, Realtor.com reported active listings topped 1.16 million homes for sale in September 2026. Even so, Realtor.com noted mortgage rates surged above 7% for the first time since January 2025. That lines up with what Freddie Mac reported: a 30-year fixed rate of 7.40% as of October 8, 2026. Higher rates slow some buyers. They have not stopped Ottawa County's market.

That last point matters most. The county number is a starting point. Your street, your price range, your ZIP code may tell a different story. I am happy to pull what the Real Estate Data Aggregator shows for homes closest to yours.