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Interested in knowing more about your property taxes? This guide provides you with helpful information about your bill and how it's calculated. If you came across this page looking for information on how to pay your bill, we've included that too.
For starters, let's discuss the difference between the summer and winter tax bill. On the summer tax bill, you'll see the majority of charges, which makes this a larger bill than your winter tax bill. Summer tax rates are approved by elected board members for the City, Kent Intermediate School District, GRCC, and State of Michigan. The State Education tax is also included on the summer tax bill - it's authorized by the State Treasurer.
Winter tax bills only have charges from the County, and the tax rates are approved by the Kent County Board of Commissioners.
Real property vs. personal property
Real Property
This is the land or building you own. The property can be residential, commercial, or industrial.
Personal Property
This only applies to business owners. Business owners are sent a personal property tax bill for their material assets. This include equipment and supplies, which are not real property.
Summer tax bills are mailed the first week of July and are due on July 31st. If the 31st falls on a weekend, they're due the following business day. The due date is always clearly marked on your bill.
Winter tax bills are mailed the first week of December and are due on February 14th. If the 14th falls on a weekend, they're due the following business day. The due date is always clearly marked on your bill.
Late fees
If you don't pay your bill by the due date, you'll have late fees. For summer tax bills, you'll have a 1% late fee on the unpaid amount for each month it's late. Winter tax bills have a 4% late fee after the due date. As of March 1st, any unpaid, real tax bills, summer or winter, are turned over to the County Treasurer for delinquent collection. After March 1st, contact the County to pay your real property tax bills. Keep in mind the County also has late fees. Delinquent personal property and most tax abatement bills remain with the City Treasurer.
If you didn't get your property tax bill, call us at 616-456-3020 and we'll send you another one. Remember, it's still due by the due date even if you didn't get the original bill.
How property taxes are calculated
The City calculates your property taxes using your taxable value, principal residence exemption (PRE) percentage, the full millage rate, and the school operating millage. There is also a 1% Property Tax Administration Fee (PTAF). Before we talk about the math, here's what each of those things mean:
Taxable Value Every year, the City Assessor's office does an assessment of your property based on market value. They calculate the assessed value and taxable value of your property. The taxable value is sometimes equal to or less than the assessed value. The taxable value is the amount the City uses to calculate your property taxes. If you have questions about this, contact the Assessor's office at 616-456-3081.
Principal Residence Exemption (PRE) Simply put, your PRE is an exemption from the school operating millage. Your percentage is determined by whether or not you own and live in the home as a Michigan resident and if it is a single or multi-family home. If you don’t know your PRE percentage you can find it on your summer tax bill or call us at 616-456-3000.
Millage Rate A millage rate is a rate to determine property taxes. Each item on your tax bill has a set number of mills that are multiplied by every $1000 of your taxable value. You can look up the current and recent year millage rate for Grand Rapids on Kent County's website.
School Operating Millage This millage is calculated for property owners that don't have a PRE. 18 mills go toward the operating budget for the local public schools.
Now that you know more about what's involved, here are formulas for how your bill is calculated:
PRE portion
(taxable value * PRE percentage) / 1,000 * (full millage rate - school operating millage) * 1% administration fee
When you don't have 100% PRE you will also have to calculate:
Non PRE portion
(taxable value * (100% - PRE percentage)) / 1,000 * full millage rate * 1% administration fee
Here are some examples:
Example 1
100% = 1 for the equation below
(50,000 * 1)/1,000 * (52.2390 - 18) * 1.01
50,000 * 1 = 50,000
50,000/1,000 = 50
52.2390 - 18 = 34.2390
(50 * 34.2390) * 1.01 = $1729.07 total for summer and winter property tax
Example 2
You will use both equations above because you don't have the full 100% PRE, adding the PRE portion to the non-PRE portion.
100% = 1 and 50% = .5 for the equations below
PRE portion
(50,000 * .5)/1,000 * (52.2390 - 18) * 1.01
50,000 * .5 = 25,000
25,000/1,000 = 25
52.2390 - 18 = 34.2390
(25 * 34.2390) * 1.01 = $864.53
Non-PRE portion
(50,000 * (1 - .5))/1,000 * 52.2390 * 1.01
1 - .5 = .5
50,000 * .5 = 25,000
25,000/1,000 = 25
25 * 52.239 = $1,305.97
1305.97 * 1.01 = $1,319.03
$864.53 + $1319.03 = $2,183.56 total summer and winter tax
If you need an estimate of your property taxes, you can use our Property Tax Estimator by clicking Next below. You'll need to choose your school district, enter your taxable value and PRE percentage. This information can be found on the BS&A Online website or by dialing 311 or 616-456-3000.
Want to get an idea of what your property tax bill will be for the current tax year? Use the Property the Property Tax Estimator below to find out. Remember, this is an estimate. You'll need the following to get your estimate:
Not sure what these are? You can find them on a recent tax bill or look them up on BS&A Online. You can also dial 311 or 616-456-3000 and we can tell you.
Property tax assessment lookup
The City uses a service called BS&A Online to let you see your property tax information online. This is a free service and you don't need to create an account to use the site. We recommend reviewing our Search or Pay Using BS&A guide if this is your first time using this service.
Or go directly to BS&A Online.
The City has several incentive programs that may provide property tax benefits for investment in vacant, underutilized, contaminated, or obsolete property. Visit the Economic Development Department’s site about incentives for more information: https://growgr.grandrapidsmi.gov/Incentives or call them at 616-456-3431.
Pay your property tax bill the way that works best for you! You can submit your payment online, in the mail, over the phone or in person. Explore your property tax payment options here.
Wrong name on my bill
Did you get a tax bill with someone else's name on it? There was likely a recent sale of the home. If the address and parcel number of the property are correct, this is still your bill to pay. If you want to make sure, call us at 616-456-3020.
Taxable value or PRE are incorrect
For real property, the Taxable Value, the Assessed Value, the State Equalized Value, or the Property Classification may be appealed by filing a petition with the City Assessor during a specific time set aside in February for the Assessor’s Review. Petitioner’s may appeal the Assessor’s decision to the March Board of Review by letter or appointment. Appeals to the March Board of Review are limited to only those owners who appealed assessments to the Assessor. July and December Boards of Review may take action regarding qualified errors verified by the Assessor for the current year and one prior year, such as for a clerical error or mutual mistake of fact, an error of measurement or calculation. The July and December Boards of Review may also grant a Poverty Exemption for the current year only. Please see MCL 211.53b for more details as to what may be appealed to the July or December Boards of Review.
Principal Residence Exemption (PRE) affidavits must be filed with the City Assessor. To qualify for a principal residence exemption on a dwelling, MCL 211.7cc requires that the property be: (1) owned by a qualified owner as defined by MCL 211.7dd(a); (2) occupied as a principal residence by that owner of the property; (3) none of the disqualifying factors listed in MCL 211.7cc (3) apply; and 94) claimed by the owner of the property by filing an affidavit with the local tax collecting unit in which the property is located. In the City of Grand Rapids, the property owner must file the affidavit to claim owner occupancy by June 1. The November 1 deadline for benefit on the winter tax bill does typically apply in the City of Grand Rapids since the school operating tax is usually billed only on the summer tax cycle. If the June 1 filing deadline is missed, the City Assessor may require proof of owner occupied residency status as of the June 1 deadline before approving a PRE adjustment to the current calendar year and up to three prior years.
For Questions regarding the Assessments, Taxable Valuation, Property Classifications, Principal Residence or Other Tax Exemptions, please contact the City Assessor’s Office at 616-456-3081 or by emailing: assessorgr@grcity.us.
If you've already gone to the Board of Review
The Board of Review will mail you a letter to let you know what they've decided. We can't make any changes to your property tax bill until we receive their final report. If we need to change your bill, it'll be done within 30 days of receiving their final report. Keep in mind your original bill is still due by the due date. You'll get late fees if you don't pay it.
Refunds from the Treasurer are issued to the party that paid the tax, unless otherwise specified in a tax adjustment judgement or order. After a tax adjustment change has been made to a property tax bill, refunds or revised billings are usually processed within 30 days. Prior year, real property tax adjustments are handled by the Kent County Treasurer and may take a longer processing time due to the higher volume.
Problem making property tax payment
Unable to pay your tax bill in full? Contact us about making installment payments. Keep in mind that these payments will include a penalty fee. Call us at 616-456-3020 for more information.
Late payments of your property taxes won't harm your credit score. We don't report late payments to the Credit Bureau.
Did you know there are property tax exemptions for disabled veterans and those who live in poverty? Check them out below to see if you're eligible and for instructions to apply:
Poverty Property Tax Exemption Information
Online Information
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