UPDATE 12/27/10: On December 22nd, 2010, Governor Granholm VETOED supported legislation aimed at getting the housing market moving. Senate bill 77, which passed both the House and Senate in the last days of the 2010 session, allowed foreclosed properties to retain their principal residence exemption for a period of up to 3 years.
The Michigan Association of Realtors has recently posted a podcast discussing the potential outcome of Senate Bill 77 known as the “General Property Tax Act”. This bill could potentially extend the homestead exemption deadline from May 1 to a later date in the year. If you are planning on purchasing a primary home in Leelanau County or Grand Traverse County - Traverse City after May 1, 2011 you definitely should keep your eye on the outcome of this bill! I have also touched on this bill in a previous post found HERE and highlighted below.
"Currently, if you purchase a home in Michigan after May 1st and the house is currently not considered a “primary residence” the property taxes for the entire year will be based on the non-homestead tax rate which can be up to 18 mills higher. This would extend the deadline to October 1st which is great news for home buyers who purchase throughout the summer and intend to use the house as their primary residence if the seller is not currently taking advantage of the principal homestead exemption. "
-Jonathan Oltersdorf-
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231-271-7777