Small vs. Large: Two Different Homes For Sale in Kent County

The housing market is still crazy here in west Michigan. It is a great time to sell, but many buyers are having a tough time finding a place to buy. There just aren't that many homes on the market.

Currently, there are only 365 single-family homes for sale in all of Kent County. If you narrow that down to just homes in the $150,000 to $250,000 range, that number drops down to just 66 homes.

Let's take a look at both the smallest house and the largest house (determined by total finished square feet) currently on the market in Kent County.

The smallest home we will be using for comparison has has only 600 square feet of finished living space. It is located at 16665 Bromley Drive in Gowen. It has just one bedroom and one bathroom. The home is listed at $155,900. (There is actually one home smaller than this one that is currently for sale in Kent County. That house is located at 2307 Riverbank Avenue, NE, in Grand Rapids. It has just one bedroom and one bathroom. It is listed for $99,900. Unfortunately, there were no inside photos of this home to use for comparison in this article. You can view the listing for that home here.)

The largest home has 12,070 square feet of finished living space. It is located at 325 Lakeside Drive, SE, in East Grand Rapids. It has a total of six bedrooms and comes with five full bathrooms and four half bathrooms. It is listed for $2,950,000.

The largest home is almost 24 times bigger than the smallest home!

Let's compare the two...

Location

Not only are the homes extremely different in size, their locations are also vastly different...

The larger home is located in East Grand Rapids on Fisk Lake. This home is very close to the city of Grand Rapids and very close to being in an urban setting.

The smaller home is located in northern Kent County in Gowen, a much more rural setting.

Exterior of the Home

The exterior of the large home is made up of brick and stone. Very easy to maintain.

The exterior of the smaller home is wood siding. Easy to paint, and being so small -- it wouldn't take but a few gallons of paint to do the whole house.

A Look Inside

The entrance of the larger home features a long staircase and lots of wood paneling and wooded floors.

The smaller home is more basic but still has wood-like flooring.

Living Room

The floors of 325 Lakeside Drive are the same floors that you saw in the entrance. A big spacious living room has plenty of room for lots of furniture.

The living room of 16665 Bromley Drive also features the same floor as you saw in the entrance. There  are also wood beams and vaulted ceilings in this home.

Kitchen

The kitchen of the larger home features a tile backsplash and white cabinets. There is also a center island.

The kitchen of the smaller home also features white cabinets on the top, with gray bottom cabinets. The renovated kitchen also features a center island counter.

Dining Room

Wooden floors continue through the larger home into the dining room, which has plenty of room for a formal dining room table.

There is no dining room in the smaller home, but two can fit comfortably around the kitchen island for a cozy dinner.

Bedrooms

The larger home features a total of 6 bedrooms.

The smaller home features just one bedroom, but there is an additional loft -- that overlooks the main living area -- for additional sleeping space.

Bathrooms

The home at 325 Lakeside Drive has a total of 6 full bathrooms and 5 half bathrooms. That's a grand total of 11 bathrooms!

The home at 16665 Bromley Drive features just 1 full bathroom -- that's 10 less bathrooms to clean! The bathroom features a newer shower.

View Outside of the Homes

While sitting outside the larger home, you have a view of charming Fisk Lake.

You have a view of Bass Lake from the yard of the smaller home. The lake is an "all-sports, sandy bottom, boating, swimming, sunning, and fishing lake" (according to the listing).

Aerial View

The larger home also has a much larger water front, including a long walk down to the water.

The smaller home's property does not sit directly on the lake, but offers access and views of Bass Lake. From the aerial shots, it looks like the walk to the water is about the same for both the larger and smaller houses.

Monthly House Payment

Let's take a look and compare the costs for each home. The calculation for the monthly mortgage payment is based on putting 10% down with an interest rate of 5% on a 30 year mortgage.

The home at 325 Lakeside Drive is listed at $2,950,000. Your monthly principal and interest payment would be $15,678.

The home at 16665 Bromley Drive is listed at $155,900. Your monthly principal and interest payment would be $829..

Annual Taxes

In addition to your monthly mortgage, you will also have yearly property taxes due for each of the homes.

The annual property tax for 325 Lakeside Drive in 2021 was $69,258, while the annual property tax for 16665 Bromley Drive was just $1,211. That's a difference of $68,047 just in annual property taxes!

See the Compete Listings for Both Homes

Click here to view the complete listing for 325 Lakeside Drive, SE, East Grand Rapids, MI 49506.

Click here to view the complete listing for 16665 Bromley Drive, Gowen, MI 49326.

If neither of those two homes are quite what you are looking for, you can always check out the most expensive home for sale in Kent County...