Mayor Duggan: Property tax bills to be substantially reduced

Less than a month into his first term as mayor of Detroit, Mike Duggan has already tackled one of the city’s most stubborn issues – outlandish taxes from overassessed property values.

Duggan said most homeowners will see a 5% to 20% drop in their tax bill this summer after making adjustments to how the values are assessed.

Detroiters have long complained that property taxes are outrageously high because they’re based on assessments that far exceed the value of the property.

The reassessment follows an exhaustive review of home sales between October 1, 2011, and September 30, 2013. While some neighborhoods have maintained their sales value, most of the northwest side was over-assessed by a minimum of  20%, Duggan said.

“The process we used was very well thought out and I was extremely impressed with the thoroughness of the work of our assessors,” Duggan said. “It left no doubt in my mind that these reductions are not only warranted, but the right thing to do by our residents.”

The mayor said the citywide reassessment is the first step in reforming Detroit’s property assessment and taxation process. Over the next three to five years, Detroit will assess the value of every family home.

The big drawback from a tax cut, however, is the loss of taxes to pay for services such as police and fire protection. But Duggan said the city has anticipated a reduction in property tax revenue of about 13% for the fiscal year beginning in June 2014, and that is in line with those estimates.

More affordable tax bills, Duggan added, will cut down on home foreclosures, which have left thousands of houses abandoned.

“With many people seeing large reductions, we expect to see an increase in the number of homeowners who pay their full taxes,” Chief Assessor Gary Evanko said. “In the near term, we expect this move to keep fewer taxpaying residents from leaving the city. In the long term, we believe it will help to bring in more new homeowners and help to start growing our residential tax base.”

By the end of January, the city is expected to mail out assessment notices to each homeowner.

Still don’t like your bill?

The appeals process for tax assessments begins Feb. 1 and ends Feb. 15 in room 804 of the Coleman A. Young Municipal Center, 2 Woodward.

Tax bills are to be mailed in June, and payments are due by August 31.

  Houses, mayor duggan, Property taxes, tax bills

Steve Neavling

Steve Neavling lives and works in Detroit as an investigative journalist. His stories have uncovered corruption, led to arrests and reforms and prompted FBI investigations.

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