| Michigan's Mathieu-Gast Home Improvement Act |
| You can increase the value of your property WITHOUT increasing your property taxes! What you DON'T KNOW can Hurt (Your Pocketbook)! Read on to learn how you can keep more money in your pocket at property tax time! (Click here for a printable article) |
Your home is probably your largest single investment, and is well worth looking after. But many people are reluctant to make
improvements because of the fear of raising their property taxes.
Did you know that you could make improvements that enhance the value of your home, prolong its life and adapt it to new
uses without the added cost of higher taxes?
Like all homeowners, you want to keep your home in top shape and make it an even better place to live. Home
improvements, maintaining, remodeling and redecorating your home are a good investment of your hard-earned dollars that
produces both a better and safer place for you and your family to live as well as increases your property's value.
And while home improvements increase the value of your property, they won't increase your property taxes.
Michigan's Mathieu-Gast Home improvement Act guarantees that the cost of normal repairs and maintenance on your home
cannot be considered by an assessor in determining the true cash value of the property until the property is sold.
This means your property taxes don't rise with every home improvement.
New Homeowners/Investment Real Estate
The Mathieu-Gast Home Improvement Act also applies if you just purchased your home, or if you are buying a "fixer-upper"
for investment purposes and never plan to live in the home.
Regardless of whether you are making improvements for your own home, or have purchased property to fix-up and resell,
the property taxes on the home don't rise with every home improvement.
Routine, careful maintenance and minor improvements can pay big dividends when its time to sell your home. A neat,
well-maintained home generates more traffic and quite possibly a faster sale for a better price than a comparable house in
less desirable condition.
And even if moving is not in your immediate future, keeping up with routine maintenance will pay big dividends in the long
run. You'll save considerable time, trouble and expense when you are finally ready to sell.
And just as importantly, proper maintenance makes home ownership a more enjoyable, rewarding, worry-free experience for
you and your family. Plus, it contributes to a healthy, safe, vital environment for your neighborhood and community.
The following home repairs and improvements cannot be considered for assessment purposes
when you own your home:
* Outside painting
* Repairing or replacing siding, roof, porches, steps, sidewalk and drives
* Repainting, repairing or replacing existing masonry
* Replacement of awnings
* Adding or replacing gutters and downspouts
* Replacing storm windows or doors, insulation or weather-stripping
* Complete rewiring
* Replacing plumbing and light fixtures
* New furnace, replacing a furnace of the same type or replacing oil or gas burner
* Plaster repairs, inside painting or other redecorating
* New ceiling, wall or floor surfacing
* Removing partitions to enlarge rooms
* Replacing automatic hot water heater
* Replacing dated interior woodwork
*Structural additions are not considered to be normal repairs or maintenance.
By filing your property with your local Assessor's office, you too can increase the value of your property without increasing
your property taxes through the Mathieu-Gast Home Improvement Act.
If you need a form visit this link at Michigan.gov web site. You'll need Abobe Reader to load this page and print.
This information is provided to you by the Michigan Association of REATLORS.
improvements because of the fear of raising their property taxes.
Did you know that you could make improvements that enhance the value of your home, prolong its life and adapt it to new
uses without the added cost of higher taxes?
Like all homeowners, you want to keep your home in top shape and make it an even better place to live. Home
improvements, maintaining, remodeling and redecorating your home are a good investment of your hard-earned dollars that
produces both a better and safer place for you and your family to live as well as increases your property's value.
And while home improvements increase the value of your property, they won't increase your property taxes.
Michigan's Mathieu-Gast Home improvement Act guarantees that the cost of normal repairs and maintenance on your home
cannot be considered by an assessor in determining the true cash value of the property until the property is sold.
This means your property taxes don't rise with every home improvement.
New Homeowners/Investment Real Estate
The Mathieu-Gast Home Improvement Act also applies if you just purchased your home, or if you are buying a "fixer-upper"
for investment purposes and never plan to live in the home.
Regardless of whether you are making improvements for your own home, or have purchased property to fix-up and resell,
the property taxes on the home don't rise with every home improvement.
Routine, careful maintenance and minor improvements can pay big dividends when its time to sell your home. A neat,
well-maintained home generates more traffic and quite possibly a faster sale for a better price than a comparable house in
less desirable condition.
And even if moving is not in your immediate future, keeping up with routine maintenance will pay big dividends in the long
run. You'll save considerable time, trouble and expense when you are finally ready to sell.
And just as importantly, proper maintenance makes home ownership a more enjoyable, rewarding, worry-free experience for
you and your family. Plus, it contributes to a healthy, safe, vital environment for your neighborhood and community.
The following home repairs and improvements cannot be considered for assessment purposes
when you own your home:
* Outside painting
* Repairing or replacing siding, roof, porches, steps, sidewalk and drives
* Repainting, repairing or replacing existing masonry
* Replacement of awnings
* Adding or replacing gutters and downspouts
* Replacing storm windows or doors, insulation or weather-stripping
* Complete rewiring
* Replacing plumbing and light fixtures
* New furnace, replacing a furnace of the same type or replacing oil or gas burner
* Plaster repairs, inside painting or other redecorating
* New ceiling, wall or floor surfacing
* Removing partitions to enlarge rooms
* Replacing automatic hot water heater
* Replacing dated interior woodwork
*Structural additions are not considered to be normal repairs or maintenance.
By filing your property with your local Assessor's office, you too can increase the value of your property without increasing
your property taxes through the Mathieu-Gast Home Improvement Act.
If you need a form visit this link at Michigan.gov web site. You'll need Abobe Reader to load this page and print.
This information is provided to you by the Michigan Association of REATLORS.
