Treasurer

An owner of eligible property may file a completed summer property tax deferment form with his or her city or township treasurer
before September 15, or before the date your summer taxes are due, which ever is later. A valid deferment permits summer property
taxes to be paid on or before February 14 without any additional penalty and interest.
Taxpayers may defer their summer property tax if they meet the following criteria. Payment may be deferred until February
15 (payment must be received on or before February 14 in order to avoid penalties and interest) for principal residence property
owned by a taxpayer who:
• Has a total gross household income of $40,000 or less for the preceding tax year, and
• Is totally and permanently disabled, blind, paraplegic, hemiplegic, quadriplegic, or
• Is an eligible serviceperson, eligible veteran, or eligible widow or widower, or
• Is at least age 62

• Residential real property that is the principal residence of the taxpayer seeking deferment of summer taxes
• Agricultural real property, if the gross receipts of the agricultural or horticultural operations in the previous year, or the average
gross receipts of the operations from the previous three years, are not less than the total household income of the owner in the
previous year or the combined household incomes in the previous year of the individual members of a limited liability company
or partners in a partnership that owns the agricultural real property. A limited liability company or partnership may claim the
deferment under this section only if the individual members of the limited liability company or partnership qualified for the
deferment under this section before the individual members formed the limited liability company or partnership.

Household Income is the total income (taxable and nontaxable) of both spouses or of a single person maintaining a household and
other sources of income for all individuals living in the household.
It is your Adjusted Gross Income (AGI) plus all income exempt or excluded from your AGI. Total household income includes
wages, salaries, tips; net income from a business, rent, or farm; Social Security less the amount deducted for Medicare premiums;
SSI (Supplemental Security Income), DHS (Department of Human Services), and FIP (Family Independence Program) benefits;
child support; alimony; unemployment, workers’ and veterans’ disability compensation; pension benefits; interest income; gifts
and winnings in excess of $300, and other sources of income. Total household income includes gains realized on the sale of your
residence regardless of your age or whether or not these gains are exempt from federal income tax.
Household income does NOT include:
• Federal economic stimulus payments (rebates) issued by the Internal Revenue Service.
• Payments received by participants in the foster grandparent or senior companion program.
• Energy assistance grants.
• Government payments to a third party (e.g., a doctor) Note: If payment is made from money withheld from your benefit, the
payment is part of household income. (For example, the DHS may pay your rent directly to the landlord.)
• Money received from a governmental unit to repair or improve your homestead.
• Surplus food or food stamps.
• State and city income tax refunds and homestead property tax credits.
• Chore service payments (these payments are income to the provider of the service).
• The first $300 from gambling, bingo, lottery, awards, or prizes.
• The first $300 in gifts, cash, or expenses paid on your behalf by a family member or friend.
• Amounts deducted from Social Security or Railroad Retirement benefits for Medicare premiums.
• Life, health, and accident insurance premiums paid by your employer. However, if you pay medical insurance or Health
Maintenance Organization (HMO) premiums for you or your family, you may deduct the cost from household income.
• Loan proceeds.
• Inheritance from a spouse.
• Life insurance benefits from a spouse.
• Payments from a long-term care policy made to a nursing home or other care facility.

You can defer the summer taxes on only your principal residence. You are required to pay the summer taxes for all other
properties that you own in a timely manner. All property classified agricultural under your ownership and contributing to the
household income can be deferred.

Your local treasurer will review the submitted tax deferment forms for completeness. If, as the property owner, you are requesting a
summer tax deferment, you will be responsible for determining that you qualify for the deferment. If the deferment form contains
any misleading or false statements, as the property owner, you may be subject to penalties and late payments on the taxes deferred

Payment is due by no later than February 14. Interest and penalty payments are not assessed for the deferment period. Cities
and townships may allow certain homeowners and farmers to pay deferred property taxes in the last two weeks of February without
penalty or interest (see MCL 211.44(3)). County boards of commissioners may allow certain homeowners to pay deferred property
taxes before May 1 without penalty or interest (see MCL 211.59(3)). Contact your local collecting treasurers for more information.

A special assessment is an assessment against real property calculated on a benefit or ad valorem basis. Special assessments are
assessments for curbs, gutters, sewers, water, connection fees to sewers or water, sidewalks, street paving and drains. Special
assessments DO NOT include charges for current service.

A Principal Residence Exemption (PRE) is a property tax benefit available in some U.S. states—most notably Michigan—that exempts a homeowner from paying a portion of local school operating taxes on their primary residence.

Requirements:

1. You must own and occupy the home as your primary residence.

2. You cannot claim a similar exemption on another property (in Michigan or another state).

3. You must file the appropriate form (e.g., Form 2368 in Michigan) with your local assessor.

To qualify for the special assessment deferment you or your spouse (if jointly owned) must:

A. Be 65 years of age or older at the time this affidavit is filed (Exception: If you or your spouse are totally and permanently
disabled, the age requirement is waived by authority of Public Act 360 of 1978, as amended)
B. Have been a Michigan resident for five years or more and must have owned and occupied the homestead for five years or more
C. Be a citizen of the United States
D. Have a household income less than $24,305 for the year 2019. Household income is the total income (taxable and
nontaxable) of both spouses, or of a single person maintaining a household. It is the sum of your AGI plus all income exempt
or excluded from your AGI. Total household income includes wages, salaries, and tips; net income from a business, rent, or
farm; Social Security less the amount deducted for Medicare premiums; SSI, DHS and FIP benefits; child support; alimony;
unemployment, workers’ and veterans’ disability compensation; pension benefits; interest income; gifts and winnings in
excess of $300, and other sources of income for all individuals living in the household
E. Have a special assessment of $300 or more
F. If a mortgage or an unpaid balance on a land contract encumbers the homestead, a deferment of special assessments shall not be
made without the written consent of the mortgagee or the land contract vendor. The consent letter must state that the mortgagee
or the land contract vendor understands that the lien by the State of Michigan is the ‘First Lien’ on the property.

The deferment application is initially made to the local assessing officer in the city or township where the property is located. After
the local assessing officer verifies the information provided, it is forwarded to the Department of Treasury for processing. The
Department will approve the application if all of the requirements are met.