Question: How are taxes calculated?
Answer: Taxes = Millage rate x Taxable Value

• Taxable Value is in your Assessment Change Notice every February
• Millage rate is voted on at the polls.

Question: Are taxes paid ahead or in arrears?
Answer: This question doesn’t actually apply to your taxes.

• Your taxes are based on your property as it existed December 31st of the prior
  year.
• The first tax bill arrives July 1st. Each taxing entity listed on that bill is collecting
  for that entire year (Jan 1 — Dec 31). The exception is the school operating
  millage. They collect half of the mills for that entire year.
• The second bill arrives on December 1st. These are different taxing entities,
  collecting for that entire year (Jan 1 — Dec 31). The exception is the school
  operating millage. They collect the other half of the mills for that entire year.

Question: Why did my assessment go up so much in a single year? | thought it was limited.
Answer: Your assessment must be 50% of the True Cash Value of your property. The only limitation to the change is the market. You are taxed on the Taxable Value. This is limited to the rate of inflation or 5%, whichever is less, and it may not exceed the Assessed Value.

Question: We just bought our house. Doesn’t what we paid establish the value of our property?
Answer: Michigan law specifically says that it does not.

• (MCL 211.27(6) the purchase price paid in a transfer of property is not the presumptive true cash value of the
  property transferred. In determining the true cash value of transferred property, an assessing officer shall assess
  that property using the same valuation method used to value all other property of that same classification in the
  assessing jurisdiction.

Question: We just bought our house last year and the taxes have jumped shockingly. Can this be right?
Answer: Since Proposal A was voted in, back in 1994, the law requires that in the year following a transfer of property, the Taxable Value (TV) must be the same as the Assessed Value (AV). This usually creates a large increase in the TV. Since your taxes are based on the TV, this can mean a larger than normal increase in taxes. This is generally referred to as “uncapping.” In subsequent years, your TV is “capped” and its increase is limited to the rate of inflation (CPI) or 5%, whichever is less, and may not exceed the AV.

Question: Can you take my late taxes after March 15th? How much are they with late penalties?
Answer: The assessor doesn’t collect taxes, that’s the treasurer’s job. The assessor doesn’t know what your taxes are. That said, here’s some information.

• Your taxes are either “real property” taxes (ie: vacant land, buildings) or “personal property” taxes (commercial and industrial equipment or buildings on leased land). The township treasurer is responsible to collect personal property taxes even after the roll is turned over to the county in March, as delinquent.
• If you received a bill from the county treasurer, the township can’t accept
  payment for it.

Question: How do I change the name on my tax bill?
Answer: We stick to what is on the deed, to the best of our ability. You could record a Quit Claim Deed from your former name to your current name.

Question: I need to join my lots into one description to get a building permit.
Answer: We can’t change platted lots. Only a circuit court judge can do that. We can (under certain conditions) put more than one parcel on a single tax bill. Submit a letter to the assessor asking that this be done. We’ll do what we can.

Question: Does the assessor have the right to just come on my property?
Answer: The assessor has no more right to come on your property than anyone else. The person who delivers your mail or packages, your neighbor who wants to bring you some fresh baked cookies, the census worker or the utilities meter reader, are all people who have the same right as the assessor. If you tell them to leave, they are trespassing if they don’t.

• That being said, you should understand that the assessor must still place an assessment on your property for the purpose of taxation. The accuracy of that assessment is largely based on the accuracy of the data collected by the assessor.
• Assessors just want to be correct in their work. It is to everyone’s advantage that they are and we use fewer erasers.

Purchasing a home that was exempt under the Disabled Veteran’s Exemption.
Your tax liability will be for the number of days you own it. We take what would have been the total tax levy for the year, divide it by 365, then multiply that by the number of days you own it. You will be responsible for part of both the summer and the winter taxes.

• If you have questions, feel free to contact the assessor. It’s usually easier than trying to fix something afterward. Please be patient with us. We may ask questions to ensure that the answer we give is the one you need.