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Michigan homebuyer planner
Put the place, price, closing date, property-tax reset, cash to close, and city income tax on one shareable page.
Build the full plan →Buying a home in Michigan
Start with the full planner if you know the place and price. If one question is holding you up, open that step directly. The important Michigan pieces are the buyer's future tax bill, cash to close, Form 2766, and the Principal Residence Exemption.
Before you choose
Compare two places
Put two cities, townships, or villages side by side for property-tax rates, school districts, and city income tax.
Compare places →Before you offer
Estimate the buyer's tax bill
Do not budget from the seller's old bill. Estimate the first full-year bill after Michigan's Taxable Value reset.
Estimate property tax →Before closing
Estimate cash to close
Add the down payment, buyer-side cost cushion, prepaid tax and insurance, and Michigan transfer-tax lines.
Estimate closing costs →After closing
Build the after-closing calendar
Turn the closing date into reminders for Form 2766, PRE filing, the tax reset, and the first summer and winter bills.
Build the calendar →Rural or waterfront
Check land, wells, and septic
Find the local health, zoning, access, water, title, and mineral-rights questions to settle before the contingency clock runs out.
Open the land directory →Put insurance on the deal checklist, too. Compare the dwelling limit, replacement-cost terms, deductibles, water backup, flood gap, and lender requirements in the Michigan homeowners-insurance guide.
Specific questions
Short reads on inspections, first-year bills, local rules, and paperwork that may matter for the property.
A whole town planned by one woman in the 1920s
Lathrup Village grew out of 1,000 acres that Louise Lathrup Kelley bought in 1923 and laid out as her own planned community — masonry houses, attached garages, and a shuttle to the shops.
Read the note →Buying on Hamburg's chain of lakes? You may help pay for the weeds
Many Hamburg Township lake homes sit on the Huron River chain of lakes, where a township special assessment district bills waterfront owners for invasive-weed and algae control each year.
Read the note →Buying on Lake Diane? It's a lake somebody built in the 1960s
Lake Diane in Amboy Township is a private developer-built reservoir from the mid-1960s, held back by a dam and ringed with small platted lots — facts worth knowing before you buy on it.
Read the note →Garden City: a suburb laid out so every family could grow its own food
Garden City was platted in the 1920s on the English garden-city idea — home lots sized near an acre so each household could raise fruit and vegetables to feed itself.
Read the note →The Lady Bird Deed: How Michigan Passes a House Without Probate
An enhanced life estate deed hands your home to an heir at death outside probate, yet you keep the right to sell it, mortgage it, or tear the deed up tomorrow.
Read the note →Where Michigan Wants Smoke and CO Alarms in a Home
Michigan's code wants a smoke alarm in every bedroom, outside each sleeping area, and on every floor — but for existing homes it only kicks in when you pull a permit or add a bedroom.
Read the note →Assembly Solar spans two Shiawassee County townships
Assembly Solar is a 239-megawatt project in Hazelton and Venice townships, with state records that put its land, lease, tax, and siting context in clearer terms.
Read the note →Benton Harbor's water and the lead-line replacement
Benton Harbor's lead-in-water crisis triggered a full lead-service-line replacement program, and the city's water has since met lead standards.
Read the note →Buying in Ann Arbor's Old West Side? Check the local historic-district rules
Ann Arbor's Old West Side is a local historic district, so exterior work goes through the city's Historic District Commission process.
Read the note →Buying in Canadian Lakes: it's a private community
Canadian Lakes buyers should budget for property-owner membership, dues, and community rules.
Read the note →Buying in Flint? An honest, up-to-date look at the water
Flint's water crisis caused lasting harm, but the city's water meets standards today; buyers should still check service-line history and current reports.
Read the note →Buying in Sugar Springs: it's a private community
Sugar Springs is a private lake community in Butman Township, Gladwin County, with POA dues and rules.
Read the note →Sources and review
Where the buyer rules come from
Michigan Treasury controls the property-tax forms and guidance. Your assessor, lender, title company, and closing documents control the parcel and deal-specific numbers.
- Data used
- 2025 Michigan Treasury millage rates and current Michigan property-transfer guidance
- Last reviewed
- July 29, 2026
- Michigan Treasury property tax for property-tax guidance, forms, and official tools.
- Michigan Treasury property-transfer forms for Form 2766 and transfer guidance.
- Consumer Financial Protection Bureau home-loan tools for Loan Estimate, Closing Disclosure, and mortgage-shopping guidance.
Use this carefully: These are planning guides, not legal, lending, or tax advice. Confirm the parcel, contract, loan, forms, and deadlines with the responsible local office and professionals before you act.
Rules, rates, forms, office practices, and local facts can change. For a legal, tax, insurance, safety, or filing decision, confirm the current details with the responsible office or a qualified Michigan professional.
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