Odessa, Michigan

Township in Ionia County · population 3,918 (2020 Census)

Median home: $197,200
Household income: $78,281
Jan low / Jul high: 16° / 81°
Snow a year: 59 in
Tornadoes ≤10 mi since 1950: 14
Median age: 35.2

Odessa is a township of 3,918 people in Ionia County, Michigan. The median home is worth $197,200, close to the typical Michigan town ($193,900). It ranks more of a college town than 91% of Michigan towns, better for families than 85% of Michigan towns, easier by car than 82% of Michigan towns.

How Odessa ranks

Percentile among Michigan towns with at least 500 people on The Town Files lifestyle rankings. 50 is typical for the state; 90 means better than 90% of Michigan towns.

The Town Files lifestyle rankings, built from federal demographic, school, crime and housing data (2025).

Homes and cost of living

The median home in Odessa is worth $197,200, close to the typical Michigan town ($193,900). Homes cost about 2.5 times the median household income of $78,281, which is more affordable than 74% of Michigan towns. Median rent is $978 a month. 81.5% of households own their home.

Census ACS 5-year estimates, 2020–2024. "Typical town" = median of Michigan towns with 500+ people.

Housing	Odessa	Typical Michigan town
Median home value	$197,200	$193,900
Median rent	$978	$955
Median household income	$78,281	$69,792
Home value ÷ income	2.5×	2.8×
Homeownership	81.5%	86.8%
Median year built	1961	1975
Seasonal / vacation homes	0.6%	—

Who lives in Odessa

People	Odessa	Typical Michigan town
Median age	35.2	43.7
Age 65 and over	16.2%	20.7%
Under 18	21.9%	—
Bachelor's degree or higher	19.2%	21.5%
Below the poverty line	9.0%	10.4%
Veterans	7.7%	—
Born outside the U.S.	0.3%	—
Work from home	16.5%	9.1%
Average commute	26.8 min	25.6 min
Homes with broadband	86.7%	88.8%

Weather in Odessa

July highs average 80.9°F and January lows 15.6°F. About 35.9 inches of rain and melted snow fall a year, with 58.6 inches of snow (typical Michigan town: 52.1 in). Expect about 7 days a year at 90°F or hotter and 148 nights at or below freezing.

NOAA 1991–2020 climate normals: average daily high and low by month; precipitation and snowfall in inches. Temperatures from the Ionia 2Ssw station (10.7 mi away); snowfall estimated from the 4 nearest snow stations, weighted by distance.

Tornadoes, storms and disasters

14 tornadoes have passed within 10 miles of Odessa since 1950, compared with 10 for the typical Michigan town. 4 rated (E)F2 or stronger. The strongest, an F3, struck on April 11, 1965 about 4.2 miles from the town center. The most recent was on May 15, 2025.

NOAA Storm Events Database, tornado tracks (start to end point) passing within 10 miles of the town center, 1950–2026.

Hail of 1 inch or larger has been reported within 10 miles 11 times; the largest was 2.50 inches on April 4, 2023.

Severe weather in Ionia County since 1996

NOAA Storm Events Database, Ionia County, 1996–2026 (all event types recorded since 1996).

Ionia County has been included in 16 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1953, most often for flood, hurricane, snowstorm.

Declared	Incident	Declaration
February 8, 2024	Flood	DR-4757: Severe Storms, Tornadoes, And Flooding
July 15, 2021	Severe Storm	DR-4607: Severe Storms, Flooding, And Tornadoes
March 27, 2020	Biological	DR-4494: Covid-19 Pandemic
March 13, 2020	Biological	EM-3455: Covid-19
June 18, 2013	Flood	DR-4121: Flooding

Jobs and pay in Ionia County

Ionia County had 18,530 jobs in 2024, paying an average of $48,605 a year. Unemployment was 3.6% in 2023; in Odessa itself the ACS puts it at 5.2%.

BLS Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages, 2024, private-sector jobs and average annual pay.

Annual average unemployment rate (BLS Local Area Unemployment Statistics via USDA ERS).

Towns near Odessa

Boston, MI
8.2 mi · 6,021 people · home $235,400
Castleton, MI
11.4 mi · 3,329 people · home $125,000
Bowne, MI
11.9 mi · 3,289 people · home $360,500
Ionia, MI
12.3 mi · 13,378 people · home $164,800
Danby, MI
12.3 mi · 2,953 people · home $288,800
Easton, MI
12.9 mi · 3,058 people · home $192,000
Hastings, MI
13.0 mi · 3,013 people · home $242,200
Hastings, MI
13.1 mi · 7,514 people · home $174,500

Odessa questions

Is Odessa, Michigan a good place to retire?

On The Town Files lifestyle rankings, Odessa scores better for retirees than 28% of Michigan towns and quieter than 26%. 16.2% of residents are 65 or older (median age 35.2).

How much does a house cost in Odessa?

The median owner-occupied home in Odessa is valued at $197,200 (Census ACS 2020–2024), against a median household income of $78,281, so homes cost about 2.5 times income. Median rent is $978 a month.

What is the weather like in Odessa?

July highs average 80.9°F and January lows 15.6°F (NOAA 1991–2020 normals). It gets about 35.9 inches of precipitation a year and 58.6 inches of snow.

Does Odessa get tornadoes?

14 tornadoes have passed within 10 miles of Odessa since 1950 (NOAA Storm Events); the strongest was a F3 on April 11, 1965. The typical Michigan town has had 10.

How this page is made. Every number comes from public data, matched to Odessa's Census boundary (GEOID 2606760200). Comparisons use the median of Michigan towns with at least 500 people. Weather comes from the nearest NOAA normals station; storm counts use NOAA tornado tracks within 10 miles of the town center.

U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-year estimates (2020–2024)
U.S. Census Bureau, 2020 Census and 2025 Gazetteer (2020 / 2025)
NOAA NCEI U.S. Climate Normals (1991–2020)
NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database (1950–2026)
FEMA OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations (this product uses the FEMA OpenFEMA API but is not endorsed by FEMA) (1953–2026)
NCES Common Core of Data (2023–24)
BLS Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages; USDA ERS county unemployment (BLS LAUS) (2000–2024)
The Town Files lifestyle rankings, built from federal demographic, school, crime and housing data (2025)

Data snapshot 2026-11-13.