The Finance Director/Treasurer works under the general supervision of the City Manager. The Director plans and directs the treasury, accounting, financial reporting and investment functions of the City. Responsibilities include management of the accounting staff, budget preparation and presentation, maintenance of accounting and financial records, and coordination of the annual audit.
The City office finance staff consists of a customer service representative and two account clerks. The finance staff has the direct responsibility of handling all daily transactions. This includes the collection of taxes and fees, issuance of permits, and generation and collection of water bills.
For further information on the budget process, to view graphs and more - visit the Reports and Dashboard Page.
TAX PAYMENT INFORMATION - Tax and water bill payments can be by mail or in person at city hall. Tax payments can also be made online with a credit card. Payments made this way will also be charged a courtesy fee of 3%. Taxes are billed twice a year - Summer (July) and Winter (December).
Click here to pay your taxes online. Due dates for taxes are August 10 and February 14.
Click here to pay your utility bill online.
Click here to search for tax, assessing and water billing records and information.
Click here to have your utility bills emailed to you.
Total 2023 millage rates - PRE (homestead) properties is 50.6736 and for Non-PRE properties (non-homestead) is 64.9623.
Water usage is billed 6 times per year.
WARNING: These files are extremely large and requires a system with a large memory capacity in order to download the files. System failure may occur.
Property Tax Estimator
You can now access estimates on property taxes by local unit and school district, using 2019 millage rates. Simply enter the SEV (for future owners) or the Taxable Value (for current owners), and select your county from the drop-down list provided. You will then be prompted to select your city, village or township along with your school district.
CLICK HERE, to access the State of Michigan's Tax Estimator Website.
Board of Review
The 2024 July Board of Review meeting(s) are scheduled as follows:
BOARD OF REVIEW MEETING
July 16, 2024 @ 11:00 AM to 12:00 PM
All Board of Review meetings are open meetings in compliance with the “Open Meetings Act”.
If you have any questions or concerns, please contact the Assessor’s Office at 313-885-5800.
For additional information regarding the March Board of Review, Click Here.
On March 15, 1994, the voters of the State of Michigan approved Proposal A which included significant changes to Section 3 of Article IX of the State Constitution. This law limits the value used to compute property taxes. The following definitions may be helpful in understanding the assessment process.
The following is a historical list of the Consumer Price Index (CPI) multiplier.
| 1995 | 1.026 | 2001 | 1.032 | 2007 | 1.037 | 2013 | 1.024 | 2019 | 1.024 |
| 1996 | 1.028 | 2002 | 1.032 | 2008 | 1.023 | 2014 | 1.016 | 2020 | 1.019 |
| 1997 | 1.028 | 2003 | 1.015 | 2009 | 1.044 | 2015 | 1.016 | 2021 | 1.014 |
| 1998 | 1.027 | 2004 | 1.023 | 2010 | 0.997 | 2016 | 1.003 | ||
| 1999 | 1.026 | 2005 | 1.023 | 2011 | 1.017 | 2017 | 1.009 | ||
| 2000 | 1.019 | 2006 | 1.033 | 2012 | 1.027 | 2018 | 1.021 |
If there was a transfer of ownership on your property last year, your taxable value for the current year will be the same as your state equalized value. Within 45 days of the property transfer, it is the buyer’s responsibility to file a Property Transfer Affidavit with the Assessor under authority of P.A. 415 of 1994. The information must include the parties to the transfer, the date of the transfer, the actual consideration for the transfer, and the property’s identification number or legal description.
Homeowners may also want to claim an exemption for property they own and occupy as their principal residence by completing the Homeowner's Principal Residence Exemption Affidavit and filing it with the Assessor’s office before Nov. 1st. If you are moving from one homestead to another, you may also need to file a Request to Rescind Homeowner's Principal Residence Exemption Affidavit for your former residence. You may claim only one residence as your homestead. These forms are usually provided at a real estate closing. However, copies of these forms may be obtained from the Assessor’s office or on-line through the Michigan Department of Treasury at http://www.michigan.gov/treasury.
An annual “Notice of Assessment and Taxable Valuation” is mailed to each property owner in late February each year. The notice includes the property classification, along with a comparison of the current year and prior year taxable, assessed, and state equalized values. The notice will also list the percentage of the property which is claimed as a Homestead, and whether or not a transfer of ownership occurred in the previous year. Property owners should review all the information carefully, as this information becomes the basis on which taxes are levied.
Assessments may be appealed to the March Board of Review. Dates and times of board meetings are included on the assessment notice, and also published in the Grosse Pointe News as required by law. Petitions will be available the day of your scheduled appointment. Please arrive ten (10) minutes prior to your appointment to fill out the petition form. Non-residents may also appeal by letter, provided the letter is received before the last scheduled meeting date. If an agent is acting as the property owner’s representative, they must submit a letter of authorization with an original signature and current date at the time of the appeal.
So how do I appeal my assessment and taxable value?
Call the City Office at 313-885-5800 to schedule an appointment. You must be prepared to provide evidence to the Board of Review to support your contention that the assessed value exceeds 50% of the True Cash Value of the property. “My taxes are too high,” is not considered a valid argument. Your appointment is limited to 10 minutes.
The March Board of Review will listen to all reasons for objecting to the assessment and determine the final value. Petitioners will be notified by letter of the Board’s decision by to June 1st. Property owners may wish to appeal further to the Michigan Tax Tribunal. The address will be provided in the Board of Review’s response. Please remember, the March Board of Review may only review the current year’s assessment, and they do not establish the tax rate. The March Board of Review may raise, lower, or affirm an assessment.
Most records in the Assessor’s office, including the assessment roll, field sheets, appraisal reports, legal descriptions, sales data, and lot and building sizes, are available to the public for inspection.