Houghton Lake is a somewhat small town located in the state of Michigan. With a population of 5,294 people and five associated neighborhoods, Houghton Lake is the 183rd largest community in Michigan.

A relatively large number of people in Houghton Lake telecommute to their jobs. Overall, about 9.84% of the workforce works from home. While this may seem like a small number, as a fraction of the total workforce it ranks among the highest in the country. These workers are often telecommuters who work in knowledge-based, white-collar professions. For example, Silicon Valley has large numbers of people who telecommute. Other at-home workers may be self-employed people who operate small businesses out of their homes.

Another notable thing is that Houghton Lake is a major vacation destination. Much of the town’s population is seasonal: many people own second homes and only live there part-time, during the vacation season. The effect on the local economy is that many of the businesses are dependent on tourist dollars, and may operate only during the high season. As the vacation season ends, Houghton Lake’s population drops significantly, such that year-round residents will notice that the city is a much quieter place to live.

It is a fairly quiet town because there are relatively few of those groups of people who have a tendency to be noisy. (Children, for example, often can't help themselves from being noisy, and being parents ourselves, we know!) Houghton Lake has relatively few families with children living at home, and is quieter because of it. Renters and college students, for their own reasons, can also be noisy. Houghton Lake has few renters and college students. But the biggest reason it is quieter in Houghton Lake than in most places in America, is that there are just simply fewer people living here. If you think trees make good neighbors, Houghton Lake may be for you.

Being a small town, Houghton Lake does not have a public transit system used by locals to get to and from work.

The percentage of adults in Houghton Lake with college degrees is slightly lower than the national average of 21.84% for all communities. 14.26% of adults in Houghton Lake have a bachelor's degree or advanced degree.

The per capita income in Houghton Lake in 2022 was $28,527, which is middle income relative to Michigan, and lower middle income relative to the rest of the US. This equates to an annual income of $114,108 for a family of four. However, Houghton Lake contains both very wealthy and poor people as well.

The people who call Houghton Lake home describe themselves as belonging to a variety of racial and ethnic groups. The greatest number of Houghton Lake residents report their race to be White, followed by Black or African-American. Important ancestries of people in Houghton Lake include German, English, Polish, French Canadian, and Irish.

The most common language spoken in Houghton Lake is English. Other important languages spoken here include Polish and Italian.