HomeWisconsinWashburn CountyShell Lake
Shell Lake, Wisconsin: commercial real estate data.
Shell Lake is a Census city of 1,459 people across 5.85 square miles of land, in Washburn County. Median household income is $57,500, 77.6 percent of occupied homes are owned, and the SBA record carries 3 7(a) approvals to borrowers here worth $1.8 m since FY2020.
Underlined figures are computed by MMCG Analytics, not published by the agency.
Shell Lake
What Shell Lake is
- Census place typecity
- Land area5.85 sq mi
- Water area4.4 sq mi
- Population per square mile of land250
- County holding the largest share of its areaWashburn 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.
Shell Lake
How many people live in Shell Lake
- Population1,459
- Median age49.8
- Population under 18323 plus or minus 66
- Share under 1822.1 percent
- Population 65 and over448
- Share 65 and over30.7 percent
- Households616
- Family households371
- Share of households that are families60.2 percent
US Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates, place level, 2020-2024 5-year.
Shell Lake
Income and work in Shell Lake
- Median household income$57,500 plus or minus $12,843
- Per capita income$42,316
- Civilian labor force563
- Employed560
- Unemployed3 plus or minus 4
- Unemployment rate0.5 percent plus or minus 0.7
- Adults 25 and over1,056
- Adults 25 and over with a high school diploma or higher92.0 percent
- Adults 25 and over with a bachelor degree or higher32.0 percent
- Adults 25 and over with a graduate degree9.3 percent plus or minus 2.7
US Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates, place level, 2020-2024 5-year.
Shell Lake
Housing in Shell Lake
- Housing units945
- Occupied units616
- Vacant units329 plus or minus 72
- Vacancy rate34.8 percent
- Owner occupied478
- Renter occupied138 plus or minus 31
- Ownership rate77.6 percent
- Median owner-occupied home value$229,400
- Median gross rent, monthly$450 plus or minus $284
- Annual rent as a share of median income9.4 percent plus or minus 6.3
- Single family units789
- Share single family83.5 percent
- Units in buildings of two or more129 plus or minus 42
- Share in buildings of two or more13.7 percent plus or minus 4.2
- Mobile homes22 plus or minus 22
- Median year structure built1976
US Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates, place level, 2020-2024 5-year.
Shell Lake
How Shell Lake gets to work
- Workers 16 and over who commute478
- Commuting under 15 minutes195 plus or minus 51
- Share commuting under 15 minutes40.8 percent plus or minus 8.6
- Commuting 30 minutes or more114 plus or minus 35
- Share commuting 30 minutes or more23.8 percent plus or minus 6.3
- Drove alone69.5 percent plus or minus 15.5
- Carpooled13.6 percent plus or minus 7.6
- Public transport0.0 percent
- Walked1.8 percent plus or minus 1.4
- Worked from home12.3 percent plus or minus 5.9
US Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates, place level, 2020-2024 5-year.
Shell Lake
SBA loans in Shell Lake (7(a))
- Approvals3
- Gross approval$1,751,000
- Average approval$583,667
- Median approval$300,000
- Largest approval$1,350,000
- Jobs supported152
- Jobs per approval50.7
- Loans with a final outcome0
- Paid in full0
- Charged off0
- Median term120 months
- Share on real estate terms of 20 years or more33.3 percent
- Share to franchises0.0 percent
- Distinct lenders2
- Distinct industries by NAICS3
Counted by borrower city: approvals to borrowers whose address is in Shell Lake, in any county, FY2020 to FY2026. Only 0 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.
Shell Lake
SBA loans in Shell Lake (504)
- Approvals2
- Gross approval$2,337,000
- Average approval$1,168,500
- Median approval$1,168,500
- Largest approval$1,652,000
- Jobs supported5
- Loans with a final outcome1
- Charged off0
- Median term240 months
- Distinct CDCs1
Counted by borrower city: approvals to borrowers whose address is in Shell Lake, 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.
Shell Lake
Flood risk in Shell Lake
- NFIP communityCity of Shell Lake
- NFIP community number550469
- Participating in the NFIPYes
- Community Rating System classNone
- Currently effective map date10/02/12
The City of Shell Lake participates in the National Flood Insurance Program as community 550469 and carries no Community Rating System class, so no CRS premium discount applies to it.
Federal Emergency Management Agency, NFIP Community Status Book (OpenFEMA), as of 2026-09-26.
Washburn County, not Shell Lake
Washburn County context, not Shell Lake figures
- Establishments in Washburn County499
- Covered employment, Washburn County5,523
- Average annual pay, Washburn County$44,282
- Housing units permitted, Washburn County157
Every figure in this section is published for Washburn County as a whole and is not a measurement of Shell Lake.
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
Shell Lake questions, answered from the record.
How many people live in Shell Lake, Wisconsin?
1,459, in 616 households. Shell Lake city covers 5.85 square miles of land, which is 250 people per square mile. Source: US Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates, place level, 2020-2024 5-year.
What county is Shell Lake in?
Washburn 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 Shell Lake?
$57,500. The median owner-occupied home is valued at $229,400. Median gross rent is $450 per month. Source: US Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates, place level, 2020-2024 5-year.
How much SBA lending goes to Shell Lake businesses?
3 7(a) approvals totaling $1.8 m since FY2020, across 2 lenders, median approval $300,000, plus 2 504 approvals worth $2.3 m since FY2010. These count approvals to borrowers whose address is in Shell Lake, not projects sited inside the place boundary, and they are approvals recorded in the release rather than loans disbursed.
Do SBA loans to Shell Lake borrowers get paid back?
No rate is published for Shell Lake. Only 0 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 Shell Lake in the National Flood Insurance Program?
Yes. Shell Lake appears in the FEMA Community Status Book as Shell Lake, city of, community 550469, with no Community Rating System class, so no CRS discount applies. 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 Shell Lake figures?
No, and they are labeled so. County Business Patterns, QCEW, the Building Permits Survey, BEA product and IRS migration are published for Washburn 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 Shell Lake.
Is zoning published for Shell Lake?
No. Nothing on this page presents parcel level zoning.
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