Property Tax Law Public Act 123 of 1999 reduced the time frame in which delinquent taxes can be paid, from 5 years to approximately 2 years.  Tax bills delinquent for more than one year will now incur a higher interest rate (1.5%/month instead of 1%/month), as well as additional fees, such as the $175.00 forfeiture fee.  If taxes remain unpaid for a two-year period, the property will be foreclosed and sold at a public auction held by the County Treasurer.  ONCE FORECLOSED, THE PROPERTY CAN NO LONGER BE REDEEMED.   EXAMPLE:   2005 TAXES GO DELINQUENT ON MARCH 1, 2006   MARCH 1, 2006              COLLECTION FEE OF 4% PLUS INTEREST AT 1%/MONTH UNTIL                                            PAID (FOR THE FIRST YEAR)   OCTOBER 1, 2006          $15.00 FORFEITURE MAILING FEE   MARCH 1, 2007               ENTERS FORFEITURE:                                             $175.00 FORFEITURE FEE                                             PLUS $20.00 IN RECORDING FEES   SEPT/OCT 2007              PERSONAL VISIT FEE   NOV/DEC 2007                PUBLICATION FEE   JAN 2008                          CERT MAILING FEE It is very important to try to pay delinquent taxes within the first year of delinquency, as the fees/penalties added after one year are considerable.   FORECLOSURE IS FINAL!! PAY YOUR DELINQUENT PROPERTY TAXES AS SOON AS YOU CAN!!    TO VIEW THE ACTUAL ACT, YOU MAY GO TO THE FOLLOWING LINK, SELECT PA NO. 123, AND YEAR 1999: http://www.legislature.mi.gov/(vqrmmc452fgy2g45jngxkimw)/mileg.aspx?page=MCLPASearch

P.A. 123 Questions and Answers On July 22, 1999, the Governor of Michigan signed Public Act 123 of 1999, which shortens the time property owners have to pay their delinquent taxes before losing their property under the process called tax reversion. Property owners with taxes that are 2 years delinquent will go through a foreclosure process and the property will be sold at public auction. Q. If I don’t pay my taxes, will I lose my home and property? A. YES. Property owners who have 2 years delinquent taxes could lose their property. Q. What is a delinquent tax? A. A delinquent tax is a tax that has been forwarded to the county treasurer for Collection on March 1 of the year after it was billed. For example, taxes that are billed by your township treasurer in 2006 will be forwarded as delinquent to the county treasurer on March 1, 2007. Q. What happens after the property is forwarded to the county treasurer for collection? A. The county treasurer adds a 4% administration fee and interest of 1% per month. After one year, the property is forfeited to the county treasurer. For example, the 2006 taxes that remain unpaid as of March 1, 2008 will be in forfeiture. Q. What happens after my property is in forfeiture? A. After a property has been in forfeiture for one year, it enters the foreclosure process. Properties with 2006 delinquent taxes will be foreclosed on April 1, 2009. Q. What happens after my property goes through foreclosure? How do I get it back? A. Foreclosure is final. You cannot get your property back after it has been foreclosed and it will be sold at public auction. Q. What if I can’t come up with all the money right now? A. Even if you can’t pay your taxes all at once, you can still make partial payments. The entire amount must be paid prior to foreclosure. Make you check payable to the Ogemaw County Treasurer, PO Box 56   West Branch, MI 48661. To ensure your payment is applied to your parcel, write your parcel number on your check or money order. Q. Will I receive any notification before my property is foreclosed? A. YES. A total of five notifications may be made. Two will be by first class mail, two by certified mail and one by personal site visit to the property in forfeiture. In addition to these notifications, names and addresses of delinquent property owners may be published in a local newspaper.

Common Property Tax Problems 1. Purchasing a home in May/June or October/November? Please contact your township/city to verify the name and address to which the tax bill should be sent. In Ogemaw County, tax bills are issued in July and December. Please be advised that, as a property owner, it is your responsibility to question why you have not received a tax bill. 2. Have you refinanced lately? Many people find that their taxes were not paid by the mortgage company. This can happen during the transitional period following a refinance. Please be sure that your mortgage company is paying the taxes as they should. 3. Do you have an escrow account for your taxes? Taxes are often left unpaid because mortgage companies miss paying them. Please watch your mortgage statements or call your local township/city to check that your taxes are being paid promptly. Ogemaw County does not submit tax statements to mortgage companies. It is the property owner’s responsibility to inform their financial institution of the amount owed.