Kent County MI Property Tax: Appeals, Rates & Exemptions (2026)

Kent County property values aren't set by the county — they're set each year by whichever city or township your home sits in, then audited by Kent County's Bureau of Equalization to confirm every parcel lands at 50% of true cash value, the ratio Michigan law requires under MCL 211.1 et seq. Assessment appeals follow the same two-step, unit-by-unit calendar every year: an Assessor's Review each February, then that unit's March Board of Review — in the county's largest city, Grand Rapids, the 2026 Assessor's Review closed February 13 and the Board of Review sat March 3–20. If you missed both this year, your options now are a further appeal already pending at the Michigan Tax Tribunal or waiting for your next Notice of Assessment, which every assessing unit in Kent County mails every February. Most owner-occupied homes here also carry Michigan's Principal Residence Exemption, which wipes out up to 18 mills of local school operating tax, and Kent County households near the federal poverty line can apply for a separate poverty exemption capped at $9,642 in household assets for 2026.

How assessments work in Kent County

Kent County has no single assessor. Instead, the county's 21 townships and 9 cities each run their own assessing department — in the state's second-largest city here, that's the Grand Rapids City Assessor's Office (300 Monroe Avenue NW, Grand Rapids, MI 49503 · 616-456-3081 · assessorgr@grcity.us). The Kent County Equalization Department (300 Monroe Avenue NW, Grand Rapids, MI 49503 · 616-632-7520, director Megan VanHoose) doesn't set your value — its Appraisal Division equalizes the 30 local rolls against each other so property taxes stay uniformly fair countywide, and its Property Description & Mapping Division maintains the tax maps every assessor relies on.

Michigan taxes property on Taxable Value, which is capped annually at the lesser of 5% or inflation until a property sells (Proposal A), but your State Equalized Value (SEV) — set at exactly 50% of true cash (market) value, per MCL 211.1 — is what an appeal actually challenges. A mill is $1 of tax per $1,000 of taxable value, and Kent County's 2025 certified rate table shows just how much that total varies by unit and school district: Ada Township homes in the Forest Hills school district carry a certified 2025 TOTAL-HOMESTEAD rate of 31.4954 mills, while non-homestead property in the same township and district pays 49.4954 mills — a swing driven entirely by the Principal Residence Exemption's 18-mill school operating exclusion. Kent County also levies five of its own countywide millages on top of any city/township and school rate: Ready by 5 Early Childhood, Senior, Veterans, Zoo & Museum, and Corrections and Detention.

Whether you should appeal

Because your SEV is fixed at 50% of true cash value, the question is whether your assessing unit's estimate of your home's market value holds up against what comparable homes near you actually sold for as of December 31 of the prior year (Michigan's tax day is December 31). If recent, truly comparable sales come in meaningfully below what your SEV implies your home is worth at 100%, that gap is your basis to appeal.

Worked example, using Ada Township's certified 2025 Forest Hills homestead rate of 31.4954 mills: a home with a $300,000 true cash value carries an SEV of $150,000 (50% under MCL 211.1). At 31.4954 mills, the estimated tax is $150,000 × 0.0314954 ≈ $4,724. If you successfully appeal the true cash value down to $270,000 — a $30,000 reduction backed by comparable sales — your SEV drops to $135,000, and the estimated tax becomes $135,000 × 0.0314954 ≈ $4,252. That's roughly $472 a year in savings, before accounting for your own unit and school district's actual combined rate, which can run well below 20 mills or above 50 depending on where in the county you are.

Step-by-step how to file

1. Find your assessing unit. Appeals go to the city or township where the property sits — not to Kent County. Look up your assessor's contact info through your local unit's website; Grand Rapids residents use the City Assessor's Office above.

2. Watch for your Notice of Assessment. It arrives every February and shows your new SEV and Taxable Value alongside last year's.

3. File for the local Assessor's Review, if your unit offers one. Grand Rapids requires written appeal letters (paper only; no online submissions) postmarked or delivered by 5:00 p.m. on the deadline during the first two full weeks of February.

4. Appear before your Board of Review in March. Every Michigan Board of Review must convene at least one day starting the Tuesday following the first Monday in March. Grand Rapids holds appointment-only hearings across roughly three weeks in March; you generally must have gone through the Assessor's Review first to be eligible.

5. Bring evidence. Recent comparable sales, a private appraisal, or documentation of condition issues the mass-appraisal process missed.

6. Escalate if still unresolved. Residential appeals that aren't resolved at the Board of Review can be taken to the Michigan Tax Tribunal (michigan.gov/taxtrib) — but only after going through your local Board of Review first.

7. Missed the window entirely? You cannot start a fresh valuation appeal outside this cycle. Watch for next February's Notice of Assessment and your unit's Board of Review the following March.

Exemptions and relief programs

Principal Residence Exemption (PRE). Exempts an owner-occupied home from up to 18 mills of local school operating tax. File the PRE Affidavit with your local assessor by June 1 to apply to the current year (later filings apply the following year); once filed, it stays in effect until you move, rent the property, sell, or otherwise stop qualifying. Grand Rapids residents file with the Assessor's Office at 300 Monroe Avenue NW, Grand Rapids, MI 49503 (311 or 616-456-3000).

Poverty Exemption. For households near the federal poverty guidelines. In Grand Rapids, 2026 applicants' household assets cannot exceed $9,642, and you must already have a PRE on file. Applications are accepted January 1 through the Board of Review's final meeting each December; required paperwork includes the state Poverty Exemption Application, Treasury Form 4988 for household members who don't file tax returns, ID, proof of ownership, current and prior-year tax returns, bank statements, and income verification for everyone over 16. Mail to the City Assessor's Office, 300 Monroe Avenue NW, Grand Rapids, MI 49503.

Disabled Veterans Exemption (statewide, MCL 211.7b). A 100% property tax exemption for veterans the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs has rated permanently and totally disabled from service (or who are compensated at the 100% rate for Individual Unemployability), and for their unremarried surviving spouse. File the Disabled Veterans Affidavit (Form 5107) with your local assessor.

When are property taxes due?

In Grand Rapids, summer tax bills mail the first week of July and are due July 31 (a 1% late fee applies per month after); winter bills mail the first week of December and are due February 14 (a 4% late fee applies after that date). Unpaid summer or winter bills transfer to the Kent County Treasurer for delinquent collection after March 1. Every city and township in Kent County bills separately, so confirm your own unit's exact due dates on your bill.

Contacts

• Kent County Equalization Department: 300 Monroe Avenue NW, Grand Rapids, MI 49503 · 616-632-7520
• Grand Rapids City Assessor's Office: 300 Monroe Avenue NW, Grand Rapids, MI 49503 · 616-456-3081 · assessorgr@grcity.us
• Michigan Tax Tribunal: michigan.gov/taxtrib
• For other Kent County cities/townships, contact your local assessor directly — Kent County itself does not set individual assessments.