DELINQUENT PROPERTY TAXES
YOU MAY LOSE YOUR HOME FASTER THAN YOU THOUGHT!!
If you fail to pay your property taxes on time, your property may be sold by the government. Your right to pay back taxes
and keep your property is called your right to “redeem.”
A 1999 Michigan law significantly shortens the time and reduces your opportunities to redeem your home.
* If you fail to pay property taxes billed in 2014, in most cases your last chance to pay and keep your home will be in
March 31, 2017.
Under this law, a court hearing will be scheduled in early 2017. If the court finds that the taxes are owed, you must pay the
taxes (including fees, penalties and interest) immediately or you will lose all rights to keep or redeem your home.
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QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS
Q. If I don’t pay my taxes, will I really lose my house and property?
A. YES. Property owners who had delinquent taxes under the old law could also lose their property, but they had more time to pay and more “second
chances.” Under the new law, if your taxes are delinquent for three years, that’s it. You’ve lost the property.
Q. What is delinquent tax?
A. A delinquent tax is a tax that has been forwarded to the county treasurer for collection on March 1 of the year after it was due. For example, taxes that
are billed by your city or township treasurer in 2015 will be turned delinquent to the county treasurer on March 1, 2016.
Q. What happens after the property is forwarded to the county treasurer for collection?
A. The county treasurer adds a 4% administration fee and interest of 1% per month. After one year, the property is forfeited to the county treasurer. For
example, the 2014 taxes that are still unpaid as of March 1, 2016, will be in forfeiture.
Q. What does it mean for my property to be in forfeiture? Does that man I lose my property?
A. No. Forfeiture is not foreclosure. If your property is in forfeiture, you will still have a year before it will be foreclosed. However, the interest and fees
will be higher. When a property is forfeited, the interest rate goes up from 1% per month to 1.5% per month, back to the date the taxes became delinquent.
There are additional fees added: $175 forfeiture fee, $45 visitation fee, and a $60 recording fee. On October 1, a $15 publication fee is added if it is unpaid.
Q. What happens after my property is in forfeiture?
A. After a property has been in forfeiture for one year, it will be foreclosed. 2014 property taxes will be in foreclosure in March, 2017.
Q. What happens after my property is foreclosed? How do I get it back?
A. YOU CANNOT GET YOUR PROPERTY BACK AFTER IT HAS BEEN FORECLOSED. FORECLOSURE IS FINAL!! PROPERTY THAT HAS
BEEN FORECLOSED WILL BE SOLD AT PUBLIC AUCTION.
Q. I still owe my property taxes from 2014 & 2015. What should I do about those?
A. Pay them as quickly as you can. We do accept partial payments, but the taxes must be paid in full in order to avoid foreclosure.
Q. What if I can’t come up with all the money right now?
A. Even if you can’t pay your taxes all at once, you can still make partial payments. Make your check payable to the Gogebic County Treasurer. To ensure
your payment is applied to your parcel, please write your parcel number on your check or money order. The mailing address is 200 N. Moore St., Bessemer,
MI 49911. If you can’t pay all of your taxes before foreclosure, contact the Dept. of Human Services at 906-663-6200, Gog. Veteran’s Affairs at 906-6671110, or Gog. Ont. Community Action at 906-667-0283 or www.stepforwardmichigan.org for possible financial assistance.
Q. Will I receive any notification before my property is foreclosed?
A. Yes. Five notifications will be made. Two will be by first class mail, two by certified mail and the last notification will be made by personal service. In
addition to these notifications, names and addresses of delinquent property owners may be published in the newspaper.
Q. I no longer own this property. Why am I still getting the bill? I now own this property. Why is the previous owner’s name on the bill?
A. Ownership changes are typically recorded with the County Register of Deeds who notifies your local assessor. The assessor then passes along the
changes to the local treasurer and the county treasurer. Our updates arrive only a few times a year. We can provide you with the name and number of your
local assessor to resolve any incorrect ownership information. If this is a homestead, you will need to Recind the property. If you purchase a property, make
sure you file a P.R.E. with the assessor so you receive a homestead credit.
Q. What if my mortgage company should have paid this bill?
A. When mortgages are sold or transferred sometimes the new mortgage company fails to make a timely tax payment on your behalf. If your tax payments
are held in escrow by your bank or mortgage company and they did not pay (or paid late), we suggest that you contact them immediately. If funds were
available in your escrow account and they did not pay on time, you should request that your bank or mortgage company reimburse you for any late fees,
penalties, or interest. We recommend that all taxpayers with escrow arrangements check with their local treasurer every year to make sure that the tax
payment has been made by the lender.
Q. What if I think I already paid?
A. If you have a cancelled check or receipt showing your payment to your local township or city, please bring it in or have a copy mailed to us for proof.
Sometimes taxpayers overlook a summer or winter bill or don’t realize they’ve paid late and incurred fees or interest.
Q. What if I am in bankruptcy?
A. Bankruptcy typically stops the property tax forfeiture/foreclosure process (although interest continues to accrue). However, a customer in bankruptcy
needs to include their property taxes in their bankruptcy filing. We do not mail tax
statements to customers with active bankruptcy protection. If you receive a tax statement from us, it is likely that we do not know about your bankruptcy, or
will mail for information only. Please call us immediately or ask your attorney to call.
MAKE SURE YOU RECEIVE TAX NOTICES
General Property Tax Act 211.44 (2) Failure to send or receive the notice does not prejudice the right to collect or enforce the payment of the tax.
It is important that you receive tax notices so that you know when you are in danger of losing your property. In Michigan, you receive two statements per
year. The summer tax bill is sent the first week in July. The winter tax bill is sent the first week in December. If you do not receive a statement, please
contact your local unit of government. If you are not currently receiving copies of tax bills, then you have no assurance that you will receive delinquent tax
notices, and you should take steps to make sure that you receive them in the future. You should pay particular attention after you buy property or change the
address where tax bills should be sent.
Under the new law, people can also receive notices of tax delinquencies by paying a $5 fee to the county treasurer by February 1 each year. So, if you are
assisting other people (such as elderly parents) in handling their property, you may want to contact the county where the property is located and request tax
delinquency notice for that property each year.