When you are considering a purchase of a new home usually people have an idea of what they want to spend per month and then back that into a dollar amount they can spend. The thing that can make this a little tricky is that property tax rates can vary quite significantly from area to area. The property tax rate is determined by your taxing authority (the township, city, village, etc.) in combination with which school district you are in. As a general rule, townships are less expensive than anything starting with “City of”. For example, if you were trying to be in Forest Hills school district the millage rate for Grand Rapids township is 28.4003 while for the city of Kentwood it is 35.6272. For a $150,000 house this would mean a difference per month of approximately $45. Maybe not the end of the world, but certainly something to be aware of.
Property taxes are calculated by taking the assessed value of the home, which in theory is half of the fair market value, divide by 1,000 and multiply by the millage rate.
So, after giving you a little background, here is the top ten least and most expensive tax areas in Kent county:
Feel free to put in the comments if you have questions about your area and how it compares to others.