Best Web Design in Lake Angelus, MI (2026)

Web Design for Lake Angelus, Michigan

Lake Angelus is a tiny, exceptionally affluent city in Oakland County that wraps entirely around its namesake private lake, roughly 35 miles north of Detroit. With fewer than 300 residents and some of the highest per-capita income in Michigan, it is a gated enclave of lakefront estates where more than a third of the city's area is water. The lake itself is private, all-sports, and known for unusually clear water.

AppWT works with Lake Angelus businesses from Livonia, a short drive away.

About Lake Angelus

Also known as. One of Michigan's wealthiest cities. Michigan's second-smallest city (by population).

History. In the early 1900s the lake was called Three Mile Lake, reportedly for the distance across its shores. Renamed Lake Angelus during the 1920s by Mrs. Sollace B. Collidge. Residents, fearing annexation by neighboring municipalities, petitioned the state and incorporated as a village in 1929 through special legislation. Officially became a city in 1984.

Local economy. Almost entirely a high-end residential community; wealth is concentrated in lakefront estates rather than local industry. Consistently ranks as one of (often the) wealthiest cities in Michigan by household income, with reported average household incomes in the hundreds of thousands of dollars and median home values well over $1 million. In the 2000 census, median household income was about $114,524 and per capita income about $83,792, exceptionally high for a community its size.

Culture and community. Lifestyle centers on the private, all-sports Lake Angelus; recreation and lake access are reserved for residents and their guests. Older median age (about 55 in the 2010 census) and a high share of married-couple households, reflecting an established, estate-oriented community.

What makes Lake Angelus distinct. More than one-third (about 34%) of the city's total area is water. Despite a population under 300, it maintains full city status with its own government, ZIP code (48326), and area code (248). The lake is fully private with no public access, giving the city a gated, exclusive character rare even among wealthy Detroit suburbs. It is Michigan's second-smallest city by population, just behind Omer.

Lake-ringed enclave of about 287 residents with no downtown or businesses, incorporated as a village by special state act in 1929 to fend off annexation and as a city in 1984

Notable. The second-smallest city in Michigan by population, behind only Omer.

Lake Angelus Landmarks and Local Life

• Lake Angelus - The lake the city surrounds, called Three Mile Lake until Mrs. Sollace B. Collidge renamed it in the 1920s
• Auto-era lakefront estates - Summer retreats built around the lake by affluent Detroiters during the automotive boom, the origin of the community
• Lake Angelus waters - Residents' lake recreation on the private-shoreline lake; the city has no commercial district or public downtown

Lake Angelus at a Glance

U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 2023.

• Median household income: $212,368
• Adults with a bachelor degree or higher: 79.8%
• Housing: 100% of occupied housing units are owner-occupied
• Housing: 100% of housing units are single-family detached homes