Leland Township is home to Fishtown, that cluster of weathered fishing shanties, docks, and smokehouses along the Leland River. Leland was the county seat until 2008, and its harbor is the traditional mainland departure point for North and South Manitou Islands. For 2026, however, NPS says the passenger ferry will not run while the island docks are rebuilt, so check the park's current access page before planning an island trip. Inland, the long, clear water of Lake Leelanau runs down the spine of the peninsula.
At a glance
State millage data currently shows about 20.1 to 21.1 mills for a primary home. 2 school districts cover the community, so the parcel and PRE status decide the final bill.
Practical directory
Common home and paperwork paths
Start with the Michigan guide that matches the job. For a parcel, bill, permit, or recorded document in Leland Township, confirm the final answer with the local or county office shown farther down this page.
- Delinquent property tax Get help before the redemption date Find the foreclosing unit, exact payoff, assistance programs, counseling, and legal-help paths.
- Utility shutoff or past-due bill Work the utility-help sequence Call the provider, apply for emergency relief, use 2-1-1, and ask about household protections.
- Essential home repair Find repair or weatherization help Match the repair, household, service area, and rural status to programs that may actually fit.
- Home and estate Handle a home after someone dies Keep the property stable, find the deed and authority to act, and choose the right estate or title path.
- Manufactured home Transfer or repair the home title Start with the Secretary of State path for a sale, missing title, lien, or legal affixture to land.
- Buying rural or waterfront land Check the parcel before closing Work through access, survey, buildability, well, septic, wetlands, title, and local office checks.
Who handles what
Send the question to the right office
Start local for a parcel, tax bill, permit, or housing rule. Move to the county or a district when the record or service covers more than one community.
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Assessment, PRE, current tax bill, or Board of Review
Leland Township assessor or treasurer
Start with the Leland Township office shown on the assessment notice or tax bill. The assessor handles value and exemptions; the treasurer handles the current summer or winter bill.
Michigan property-tax basics -
Rental registration, building permit, or code problem
Leland Township building, rental, or code office
The enforcing agency can be the municipality, county, or state, and electrical, mechanical, and plumbing work may go to different places.
Find the official permit jurisdiction ↗ Michigan homeowner guide -
Marriage license, local record, deed, or delinquent tax
Leelanau County offices
The clerk, register of deeds, and county treasurer handle different parts of this work. The county page separates them for you.
Open the official Leelanau County site ↗ Getting married in Michigan -
Private well, septic system, local health, or trial court
County, district, or court finder
A health district or court can serve more than one community. The county page links to the official statewide finders.
Find the local health department ↗ Michigan well and septic guide
The practical stuff
Buying, owning, or selling in Leland Township
The seller's tax bill may not be your tax bill.
2025 property-tax snapshot
- Primary home (PRE)
- 20.1451 mills - 21.1352 mills
- Other property / non-homestead
- 32.0365 mills - 37.774 mills
- School districts available
- 2 in Leland Township
One mill means $1 per $1,000 of Taxable Value. Rate rows come from the official 2025 Michigan Treasury report. Last reviewed July 12, 2026.
What these local words mean
- Primary home (PRE)
- A home you own and live in as your main home. PRE stands for Principal Residence Exemption and can lower the school operating tax.
- Non-homestead
- Property that is not treated as the owner's main home, such as a rental, vacation home, or second home.
- Assessor
- The local office that estimates and records property values and exemptions.
- Treasurer
- The local office that collects property tax payments and can confirm bill timing.
Michigan homebuyer tax calculator
See the tax bill after you buy.
Where is the house?
Pick the county, city or township, and school district. We use the official 2025 tax rates published by Michigan Treasury.
Not sure of the school district? Check the property listing. It is usually under "Schools."
Need to double-check the exact parcel? Use the official state estimator at treas-secure.state.mi.us/ptestimator or call the local treasurer. Rates can change across city, township, village, and school district lines, so the exact parcel matters.
Why a buyer's property-tax bill can change after a sale
In Michigan, property tax isn't figured on what you paid — it's figured on the home's Taxable Value, with the local millage rates applied to that number. While one owner keeps the home, Proposal A caps how fast that Taxable Value can climb. When the home sells, the cap usually comes off — this is called uncapping — and the Taxable Value resets toward the State Equalized Value, or SEV, which tends to run about half of a home's market value.
That reset is the part that catches buyers: a longtime owner may have been paying on an old, capped number, so the year after you buy, yours can jump to the new one — and your first full-year bill can land well above what the seller was paying. In Leland Township, your rate can vary by parcel. The school district tied to the property matters, and 2 school districts cover Leland Township. For a primary home with PRE, Michigan's main-home exemption, rates currently run about 20.1 to 21.1 mills. Without PRE, non-homestead rates run about 32 to 37.8 mills. The calculator above turns those local rates into your actual number.
If this will be your main home, make sure that PRE is filed with the local assessor — it can lift up to 18 school-operating mills off the bill. Rentals, vacation homes, and second homes stay on the higher non-homestead rate.
The tax reset is the big one, but it isn't the whole checklist. Out here, a home beyond city water and sewer usually comes with a private well and septic system worth testing before you close. It's also worth checking whether the address sits in a floodplain, and whether you'll owe a city income tax where you live or work. The buying-a-home guide walks through the rest.
School districts in this area
Leland Public School
Primary home (PRE) 21.1352 mills · non-homestead 32.0365 mills
Suttons Bay Public SC
Primary home (PRE) 20.1451 mills · non-homestead 37.774 mills
Local rules and costs to check
Note-sized practical catches tied to Leland Township: taxes, property rules, permits, local costs, or other things worth checking before you decide.
Local check
Fishing Sleeping Bear: Lakes, Fish, and the Rules That Matter
Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore holds more than 90 native fish species and some great fishing spots — here's what licenses and permits you'll need, and which waters are worth your time.
Local check
Inland Lake Levels and Special Assessments in Leelanau County
Michigan law can set a lake's water level by court order, and both waterfront and lake-access parcels may owe annual special assessments to maintain it.
Local check
Bluffs, Dunes, and Erosion on Leelanau's Lake Michigan Shore
Leelanau's Lake Michigan bluffs and dunes are ancient glacial features still actively eroding — landslides, moving sand, and high-water years all matter if you're eyeing shoreline property.
Local check
In Leelanau County, Your Township Handles More Than You'd Think
In Leelanau County, your township — not the county — handles zoning, property assessment, STR permits, and private road rules, and each township sets its own policies.
Stories & local context
Get to know Leland Township
This is prime water country, and that shapes the buying basics. Lake Michigan and Lake Leelanau frontage are prized and priced accordingly, while homes outside the sewered Leland area run on wells and septic. Lake levels carry their own special assessments, the township handles plenty of local detail, and Michigan sends summer and winter tax bills. The notes below have the details.
Featured local story
Leelanau's History, Collected and Kept in Leland
The Leelanau Historical Society Museum holds more than 20,000 items — from Anishinaabek arts to Great Lakes shipwrecks — and a deep newspaper archive going back to 1858.
Read the story →-
Lake Leelanau: Two Basins, One Lake
Lake Leelanau runs as two connected basins — North Lake Leelanau near Leland and South Lake Leelanau — joined by the Lake Leelanau Narrows before draining to Leland's waterfront at M-22.
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Leland, Fishtown, and the Manitou Islands
Leland, Fishtown, Lake Leelanau, and the Manitou Islands shape the historic Lake Michigan side of the Leelanau Peninsula.
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South Manitou Island: ancient cedars and a shipwreck offshore
Ancient cedars, a deep-water harbor, and a freighter wrecked just offshore on an island in Sleeping Bear Dunes.
Nearby places
The closest Michigan Porch pages to Leland Township. Open one to read it, or put it side by side with Leland Township — tax rates, school districts, and city income tax.
Compare Leland Township with a neighbor →Next steps
What to check next for Leland Township
Use the county office map for records and services, or follow the home path that matches what you are doing now.
- County Open Leelanau County See the county page for other cities, townships, villages, local notes, and the county-wide tax snapshot. Open county page →
- Homeowner Keep the house on track Use one calm directory for tax notices, insurance, contractors, permits, records, and repairs. Open homeowner guide →
- Seller Plan the Michigan closing Walk through disclosure, title, transfer tax, PRE rescission, and the records worth keeping. Open seller guide →
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