Transfer tax
Michigan charges state and county real estate transfer taxes based on value. It is customarily charged to the grantor, and how it applies to a gift with no consideration is confirmed when we prepare the deed.
Donate a house, lot or cottage in Michigan, in any of the 83 counties
Michigan property specialists: (888) 228-7320
Donate Real Estate in Michigan
Michigan combines two things that make donations useful: a fast property tax foreclosure timetable, and a large stock of sound houses in cities where the repair bill is bigger than the finished value. Add up north cottage property held by families who have scattered, and you have most of what reaches us here. All 83 counties.
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We Handle the Paperwork
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501(c)(3) Recognized Charity
Michigan rules for a property donation
Federal tax rules are the same in every state. These three are set by Michigan and by the county where the property sits.
Property transfer affidavit and uncapping
Michigan requires a property transfer affidavit within 45 days of a transfer, and a transfer generally uncaps the taxable value, resetting it to the assessed value. That matters to what the property costs to hold afterwards, which is part of what we review. We prepare the affidavit with the deed.
Recording
Deeds are recorded with the register of deeds for the county where the property sits. You sign before a notary wherever you live, and we handle the filing.
What Michigan owners call us about
Four situations the state produces more of than most.
A March forfeiture date approaching
Michigan’s tax foreclosure runs on a short statutory calendar ending in a county foreclosure judgment. The date is the whole conversation, which makes this a call to make now.
A sound house nobody will lend on
Detroit, Flint, Saginaw and the older industrial cities have solid housing where the appraisal will not support a mortgage, so the buyer pool is cash only.
A cottage up north
Lake property bought in the 1960s and now owned by six cousins in four states, with taxes, insurance and a dock to maintain.
Side lots and land bank parcels
City lots where the house came down years ago. Valuable to the neighbor, hard to sell to anyone else.
Michigan property we accept
Each links to the full guide for that type, including how a donation compares with selling.
Houses in MichiganBungalows, four-squares, post-war ranches and lake cottages.
Michigan landUp north acreage, hunting land, inland lake and river parcels, city lots.
Farm groundRow crop in the south, orchards and vineyards on the west side.
Commercial propertyMain street blocks and storefronts in the small cities.
Industrial buildingsPlant and warehouse space from the automotive supply chain.
Land contractsVery common in Michigan. We take over the payments and deliver the deed at payoff.
What a donation looks like by region
Six regions, each with a different reason a property becomes a burden.
Metro Detroit
Sound older housing that will not appraise, side lots beside occupied houses, and an active county land bank.
Flint, Saginaw and the Tri-Cities
Similar housing economics, with tax foreclosure running on the same short annual calendar.
West Michigan
Grand Rapids and the lakeshore, with orchard ground inland and second homes near the water.
Northern lower peninsula
Cottage and cabin property held by extended families, hunting acreage, and inland lake lots.
The Upper Peninsula
Large timbered parcels, remote camps and small-town housing with real carrying costs.
The southern farm counties
Cash-rented cropland owned by heirs who farm elsewhere, with farmhouses standing empty.
Michigan real estate donation questions, answered
Is a donated deed subject to Michigan transfer tax?+
Michigan charges state and county real estate transfer taxes based on value. It is customarily charged to the grantor, and how it applies to a gift with no consideration is confirmed when we prepare the deed.
I live outside Michigan. Do I have to travel there to sign?+
No. We prepare the deed in the form Michigan requires for the county where the property sits, you sign before a notary where you live, and we record it with the county register of deeds.
My property is in tax forfeiture. How long do I have?+
Less time than most people think, and the exact date is what matters. Michigan runs forfeiture and foreclosure on a fixed annual calendar, and once judgment enters, the window is gone. Send the parcel number and the notice today rather than next week.
Does Michigan give a state tax deduction for a property donation?+
Michigan has a state income tax, and how it treats a charitable contribution is set by Michigan law rather than by us. Your federal deduction follows the usual IRS rules. Take the state question to your own advisor.
We sold on a land contract years ago and the buyer is still paying. Can that be donated?+
Yes. A vendor’s interest in a land contract is a recognized interest and land contracts are common in Michigan. We take over as the seller, receive the payments and deliver the deed at payoff. See land contract donations.
We do not provide tax or legal advice. State and local transfer tax rules change; we confirm current requirements when we prepare each deed. Consult your own advisor.
Tell us about your Michigan property and we will review it
The county and a parcel number are enough to start.