Wayne County, MI — Property Tax Underwriting Guide
Michigan · Prop 13 event-driven
What this means for multifamily underwriting
Wayne County multifamily spans Detroit (very high millage) and affluent suburbs with dramatically different effective rates. Always determine the gap between the current Taxable Value and the State Equalized Value before closing.
Transaction type breakdown
Michigan's Proposal A (1994) operates functionally like California's Prop 13 for ownership transfers. The Taxable Value (TV) is capped annually; on any transfer of ownership, the TV uncaps and resets to the current State Equalized Value (SEV = 50% of True Cash Value). For a building held for years with a depressed TV, a sale triggers a full reset — often a dramatic tax increase.
Refinance is NOT a transfer of ownership and does not uncap the Taxable Value.
Any transfer of ownership — including LLC membership transfers and corporate acquisitions — is an uncapping event that resets TV to the current SEV.
Tax appeal information
40.0 mill applied to 50% of True Cash Value yields ~2.0% effective rate for suburban Wayne County. Detroit city millage (~67+ mills) produces effective rates of 3.3%+ on market value.
Guide review
County guidance last reviewed: June 15, 2026
Tax-rate scope: Tax-rate scope is not established as parcel-specific; confirm the parcel's taxing-authority stack.
Official sources: Wayne County Assessors
Proposal A uncapping model is firm and well documented; millage varies dramatically between Detroit and suburban Wayne.
Parclio estimates are underwriting guidance, not legal or tax advice. Always verify millage rates, the seller's assessed value, and appeal deadlines with the county assessor or local counsel before relying on these numbers for a credit decision.
Run a tax reset estimate for Wayne County
Use Parclio's estimator to model the post-closing tax bill, NOI impact, DSCR change, and underwriting memo language for your next Wayne County deal.