Assessor’s Office

The Grass Lake Charter Assessing Department is dedicated to the establishment & maintenance of fair, accurate and equitable property assessments for township residents and businesses. The Assessing Department has the responsibility of annually preparing the Assessment Roll and Tax Roll of the Township for all classes of property subject to taxation.  By determining the true cash value and taxable status of all properties in the Township, this responsibility is carried out. The state constitution and statutes require the assessed values placed on the assessment roll shall be placed at fifty percent (50%) of true cash or market value.  Assessment and Tax Rolls are based on the status of the property as of December 31st (Tax Day) of the previous year.

Proposal A passed by the voters on March 15, 1994, places additional and profound limits on values used to compute property taxes. Prior to Proposal A, taxes were calculated using “State Equalized Value” (S.E.V.) which keeps pace with market value regardless of ownership change.  Starting in 1995, property taxes are calculated annually using “taxable” value, capped by the consumer price index or 5% whichever is less, until a property transfers ownership.  The year following that transfer of ownership, the taxable value is then uncapped at whatever the assessed value is at that time and then recaps to meet the guidelines of Proposal A.

The Assessing Department serves as a source of information to the various township departments, property owners, realtors, and private appraisers. The Assessing Department is committed to maintaining accurate property information on each parcel within the township by:

• Annually updating the parcel record cards
• Annually performing physical inspections of 20% of township parcels
• Utilizing township plat maps and the Jackson County Geographic Information System (GIS)
• Maintaining open communication with the property owners

As of March 1, 2023 there are 3614 parcels of which 3217 are Real, 244 are Personal and 153 are Exempt.

The Assessing Department does NOT issue tax bills or receive tax payments; these functions are performed by the Treasurer’s Office.

Anyone with any questions or concerns in regards to a parcel within the township is encouraged to contact the Assessing Department Monday thru Thursday 8:00 am – 4:30 pm.  Free on-line information through https://bsaonline.com/?uid=533 can also be found on the Township’s website.  To access this information, go under Online Tax & Assessment and then choose between the various options.