Find out what you don’t know-Why your pay property taxes and how to calculate how much you pay.
To calculate your taxes you need to know two numbers. The first number you need to find out is The Mill rate also known as the tax rate in your municipality—the amount of tax payable per dollar of the second number you need to know, the assessed value of a property.
To find the mill rate is very easy, each municipality post the mill rates on their websites. Make sure you use the combined rate (township and county rate). If you can’t find the number online a quick call to the tax department of your municipality and they can give you the rate. As for the MPAC value of your property, you can find that on your MPAC assessment letter or calling MPAC direct. You take the Assessed value and times it with the mill rate percentage and you have your property taxes!
Government entities set mill rates based on the total value of property within the entity’s jurisdiction, to provide the necessary tax revenue to cover projected expenses in their annual budgets, including things such as infrastructure, police and emergency services, and public schools. For this reason, and also because of fluctuating real estate values, a tax assessor typically updates the taxable value of the property annually. Mill rates frequently vary for different types of property, such as residential, commercial, or industrial properties.
If a property owner believes that his property has been assessed at an unreasonably high value, he can request a reassessment from MPAC but MPAC rarly likes to admit they are wrong.
