HomeIllinoisLake CountyLake Forest
Lake Forest, Illinois: commercial real estate data.
Lake Forest is a Census city of 19,416 people across 17.20 square miles of land, in Lake County. Median household income is $235,081, 88.8 percent of occupied homes are owned, and the SBA record carries 29 7(a) approvals to borrowers here worth $20.2 m since FY2020.
Underlined figures are computed by MMCG Analytics, not published by the agency.
Lake Forest
What Lake Forest is
- Census place typecity
- Land area17.2 sq mi
- Water area0.07 sq mi
- Population per square mile of land1,129
- County holding the largest share of its areaLake County, 100.0 percent
US Census Bureau, cartographic boundary file, places, 2024 vintage. US Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates, place level, 2020-2024 5-year.
Lake Forest
How many people live in Lake Forest
- Population19,416
- Median age46.1
- Population under 183,735
- Share under 1819.2 percent
- Population 65 and over5,184
- Share 65 and over26.7 percent
- Households6,900
- Family households5,260
- Share of households that are families76.2 percent
US Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates, place level, 2020-2024 5-year.
Lake Forest
Income and work in Lake Forest
- Median household income$235,081
- Per capita income$109,918
- Civilian labor force8,756
- Employed8,602
- Unemployed154 plus or minus 69
- Unemployment rate1.8 percent plus or minus 0.8
- Adults 25 and over13,295
- Adults 25 and over with a high school diploma or higher98.1 percent
- Adults 25 and over with a bachelor degree or higher80.5 percent
- Adults 25 and over with a graduate degree41.9 percent
US Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates, place level, 2020-2024 5-year.
Lake Forest
Housing in Lake Forest
- Housing units7,282
- Occupied units6,900
- Vacant units382 plus or minus 192
- Vacancy rate5.2 percent plus or minus 2.6
- Owner occupied6,124
- Renter occupied776 plus or minus 175
- Ownership rate88.8 percent
- Median owner-occupied home value$938,300
- Median gross rent, monthly$1,815
- Annual rent as a share of median income9.3 percent
- Single family units6,067
- Share single family83.3 percent
- Units in buildings of two or more1,210 plus or minus 268
- Share in buildings of two or more16.6 percent plus or minus 3.6
- Mobile homes5 plus or minus 8
- Median year structure built1976
US Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates, place level, 2020-2024 5-year.
Lake Forest
How Lake Forest gets to work
- Workers 16 and over who commute5,971
- Commuting under 15 minutes1,630 plus or minus 327
- Share commuting under 15 minutes27.3 percent
- Commuting 30 minutes or more2,423 plus or minus 648
- Share commuting 30 minutes or more40.6 percent plus or minus 10.0
- Drove alone46.1 percent
- Carpooled1.8 percent plus or minus 0.9
- Public transport12.3 percent plus or minus 6.5
- Walked5.5 percent plus or minus 1.3
- Worked from home30.3 percent
US Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates, place level, 2020-2024 5-year.
Lake Forest
SBA loans in Lake Forest (7(a))
- Approvals29
- Gross approval$20,238,500
- Average approval$697,879
- Median approval$150,000
- Ninetieth percentile approval$1,944,000
- Largest approval$5,000,000
- Jobs supported260
- Jobs per approval9.0
- Loans with a final outcome3
- Paid in full2
- Charged off1
- Median term120 months
- Share on real estate terms of 20 years or more0.0 percent
- Share to franchises3.4 percent
- Distinct lenders18
- Distinct industries by NAICS21
Counted by borrower city: approvals to borrowers whose address is in Lake Forest, in any county, FY2020 to FY2026. Only 3 loans have reached a final outcome, fewer than the 30 a charge-off rate needs, so no rate is published.
US Small Business Administration, 7(a) FOIA release, FY2020 to FY2026 year to date, as of 2026-06-30.
Lake Forest
SBA loans in Lake Forest (504)
- Approvals13
- Gross approval$26,278,000
- Average approval$2,021,385
- Median approval$1,155,000
- Largest approval$5,500,000
- Jobs supported219
- Loans with a final outcome1
- Charged off0
- Median term240 months
- Distinct CDCs3
Counted by borrower city: approvals to borrowers whose address is in Lake Forest, in any county, FY2010 to FY2026. Only 1 loan has reached a final outcome, fewer than the 30 a charge-off rate needs, so no rate is published.
US Small Business Administration, 504 FOIA release, FY2010 to FY2026 year to date, as of 2026-06-30.
Lake Forest
Flood risk in Lake Forest
- NFIP communityCity of Lake Forest
- NFIP community number170374
- Participating in the NFIPYes
- Community Rating System classClass 7
- Currently effective map date10/05/23
The City of Lake Forest participates in the National Flood Insurance Program as community 170374 and carries Community Rating System class 7, a flood insurance premium discount for policies written there.
Federal Emergency Management Agency, NFIP Community Status Book (OpenFEMA), as of 2026-09-26.
Lake County, not Lake Forest
Lake County context, not Lake Forest figures
- Establishments in Lake County20,076
- Covered employment, Lake County329,354
- Average annual pay, Lake County$91,042
- Housing units permitted, Lake County1,042
Every figure in this section is published for Lake County as a whole and is not a measurement of Lake Forest.
US Census Bureau, County Business Patterns, 2023. US Bureau of Labor Statistics, Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages, 2024 annual averages. US Census Bureau, Building Permits Survey, 2024 annual.
Coverage
What this page does not hold.
Parcel detail, zoning and the flood zone at an address are not on this page; they resolve at the address in the platform. How this page was built →
Common questions
Lake Forest questions, answered from the record.
How many people live in Lake Forest, Illinois?
19,416, in 6,900 households. Lake Forest city covers 17.20 square miles of land, which is 1,129 people per square mile. Source: US Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates, place level, 2020-2024 5-year.
What county is Lake Forest in?
Lake County, which holds 100.0 percent of the place by area. Source: US Census Bureau, cartographic boundary file, places, 2024 vintage.
What is the median household income in Lake Forest?
$235,081. The median owner-occupied home is valued at $938,300. Median gross rent is $1,815 per month. Source: US Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates, place level, 2020-2024 5-year.
How much SBA lending goes to Lake Forest businesses?
29 7(a) approvals totaling $20.2 m since FY2020, across 18 lenders, median approval $150,000, plus 13 504 approvals worth $26.3 m since FY2010. These count approvals to borrowers whose address is in Lake Forest, not projects sited inside the place boundary, and they are approvals recorded in the release rather than loans disbursed.
Do SBA loans to Lake Forest borrowers get paid back?
No rate is published for Lake Forest. Only 3 loans have reached a final outcome, fewer than the 30 a charge-off rate needs, so no rate is published. The counts are shown instead.
Is Lake Forest in the National Flood Insurance Program?
Yes. Lake Forest appears in the FEMA Community Status Book as Lake Forest, city of, community 170374, carrying Community Rating System class 7, which is a premium discount for exceeding the program minimum. Whether a specific parcel sits in a mapped special flood hazard area is an address level question the platform answers.
Are the county figures on this page Lake Forest figures?
No, and they are labeled so. County Business Patterns, QCEW, the Building Permits Survey, BEA product and IRS migration are published for Lake County as a whole and there is no place level equivalent. They appear in one clearly marked section as context and are never presented as measurements of Lake Forest.
Is zoning published for Lake Forest?
No. Nothing on this page presents parcel level zoning.