When Eric Szerlag first sold 332 E. Main Street in downtown Northville back in 2014, it was already the highest price per square foot comp in the market. Over a decade later, the same client came back ready to sell, and this time, the property closed at $1.63 million, 82% higher per square foot than the first sale.
That kind of appreciation doesn’t happen by accident. It happens in markets where demand is real, sustained, and quietly outpacing supply.
Downtown Northville was already one of the most desirable submarkets in Metro Detroit before any new development broke ground, a mature, walkable, affluent downtown with a loyal community and strong foot traffic. Now, with 440 new homes coming to the area through The Downs Development, that demand is only growing. The catch? All of that new residential development adds just 10,000 square feet of new retail. That gap between new residents and new commercial space means existing buildings like 332 E. Main become increasingly difficult to replace and more valuable to own. When the property came back to market, interest was immediate.
As demand for commercial space tightens and the cost of tearing down and rebuilding existing sites continues to rise, development will naturally begin pushing outward. The corridors and neighborhoods surrounding downtown Northville are poised to become the next frontier for retail and commercial activity, absorbing the demand that the downtown simply can no longer accommodate. For investors and business owners paying attention, that’s where the next opportunity lives.
At Thomas Duke Co., we’ve been working in these markets for decades. We don’t just watch them change; we help our clients navigate what that change means for them.
Eric Szerlag, Vice President