Title
Resolution to Waive Penalties for Non-Filing of Property Transfer Affidavits
Memorandum
Attached please find for Council action the necessary resolution to waive penalties for non-filing of Property Transfer Affidavits in accordance with MCL 211.27b.
Under PA 415 of 1994 (Proposal A), the State of Michigan mandated that owners file a Property Transfer Affidavit (Form 2766) and authorized a non-filing penalty.
Michigan Compiled Law (MCL) 211.27a(10) requires property owners to file a Property Transfer Affidavit (PTA) with the local assessor within 45 days of the transfer of ownership of real estate. The reason for the mandatory filing requirement of the affidavit is to inform the assessor of title transfers for determination of the uncapping of the taxable value or if the transfer is exempt from the uncapping of the property's taxable value. The Property Transfer Affidavit also requires the owner to disclose the sale price, which is used for sale study analysis.
The law requires local governments to levy penalties for failure to file a PTA unless a resolution to the contrary has been adopted. MCL 211.27b requires that if the buyer, grantee, or other transferee in the immediately preceding transfer of ownership of property does not notify the Assessor's Office, then penalties are levied. More specifically, if the property owner fails to file the PTA timely, the statute requires the local tax collecting unit to levy a penalty of $5 per day, up to a maximum of $200, for residential property and $20 per day, up to a maximum of $1,000 for commercial and industrial property.
The Michigan Department of Treasury establishes standards for review of assessing practices of municipalities and periodically audits assessing departments pursuant to a program called Audit of Minimum Assessing Requirements (AMAR). One of the standards in the current AMAR review is the local government's compliance with MCL 211.27b, including evaluation of the procedure used by asse...
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