Estate & Trust Appraisal

An inherited Michigan home is usually valued as of the date of death

For most estates, the house is valued for one particular day: the day the owner died. The probate inventory and the heirs' federal basis both refer back to the home as it was then, and several property-tax rules are timed from the death or the transfer that follows it. An estate appraisal develops an opinion of the property's market value on that date, or on another date your attorney or tax adviser specifies, and documents how it was reached.

What applies in Michigan, and what does not

• No Michigan inheritance tax on current deaths. The Michigan Department of Treasury says its inheritance tax reaches only people who inherited from someone who died on or before September 30, 1993.
• No Michigan estate tax collected. The Michigan estate tax is pegged to a federal credit for state death taxes (MCL 205.232). The Senate Fiscal Agency explains that the federal government phased that credit out in 2005 and that Michigan has not collected estate tax revenue since.
• No federal inheritance tax either. The federal government taxes the estate, not the heir. Under 26 U.S.C. 2001 the tax attaches to the transfer of the taxable estate, and under section 2002 the executor pays it. The threshold a Michigan executor checks is $15,000,000, the sum the IRS has posted for a U.S. citizen or resident who dies in 2026, with nothing added on top by Michigan (IRS).
• Heirs generally do not report the house as income. Under IRS Publication 525, an inheritance is in most cases left out of income; rent or other income the house earns afterward is taxed.

The date-of-death value still does real work: it generally becomes the heirs' basis for a later sale (see IRS step-up appraisals), and it is the value the probate inventory asks for (see probate appraisals). Which date applies, and for what use, is a call for your attorney or tax adviser.

Property tax once the owner has died

These rules turn on who receives the house and how it is used. An appraisal does not decide any of them, but knowing them helps when you plan a sale or a buyout.

• Uncapping. After a transfer of ownership, the next year's taxable value becomes that year's state equalized value (MCL 211.27a(3)).
• Transfers that do not uncap. A transfer from a decedent to a surviving spouse is not a transfer of ownership (MCL 211.27a(7)(a)). Since December 31, 2014, neither is a transfer of residential property to the transferor's or the transferor's spouse's mother, father, brother, sister, son, daughter, adopted son, adopted daughter, grandson or granddaughter, as long as it is not used for any commercial purpose afterward (MCL 211.27a(7)(u)). A similar rule covers conveyances from a trust (MCL 211.27a(7)(v)).
• The 45-day notice. The new owner tells the local assessing office about the transfer within 45 days, on the State Tax Commission's form (MCL 211.27a(10)).
• The principal residence exemption. Treasury says the exemption stays for the tax year of the death only and must come off as of December 31 of that year unless a new owner claims it. The personal representative or trustee files Form 2602 with the assessor within 90 days of the death (Treasury).

Local offices. The Ottawa County Register of Deeds, part of the County Clerk & Register of Deeds, offers a search of recorded documents, and Ottawa County provides Grand Haven's assessing under contract. In Muskegon County, the Register of Deeds records real-property documents and the Equalization Department posts guidance on reading a notice of assessment. Holland owners deal with the City of Holland Assessing Office.

Before the inspection: three settled answers

Which day the value describes

The date of death is the usual starting point. A buyout among heirs or a later sale may also call for a current value; agree on every date you need before the inspection.

How the house stood on that day

Houses change after a death: furniture goes, repairs get made, a kitchen gets redone. The appraiser values the home as it stood on the effective date, so bring whatever shows that earlier state: dated photographs, an earlier listing, inspection reports, contractor invoices.

Choosing sales that fit this house

Sales near the effective date, and similar in size, age, condition and setting, carry the most weight. An older house in one of Grand Haven's historic districts, for instance, is compared with sales of similar age and character rather than with new construction.

Papers and details to pull together

• The address, the type of property and the date of death.
• The readers of the report, such as a personal representative, trustee, beneficiaries, attorney or tax adviser.
• Dated evidence of the home's condition, and a list of any work done since the death.
• The deed or trust paperwork showing how title was held, if it is at hand.
• The deadline, and who can open the house.

An estate assignment in four steps

1. Settle the terms first. Property, intended use, intended users and effective date, plus a written scope, fee and delivery estimate.
2. The appraiser's visit. Someone opens the house for the appraiser, and you pass along anything that shows its condition on the effective date.
3. Research the market for that date. The appraiser gathers sales from around the effective date and weighs each one against the house as it stood then.
4. Look over what was delivered. Make sure the effective date and use are the ones you asked for, and send any factual error to the appraiser.

Estate appraisal price and schedule

For an inherited Michigan home, ask for a written scope, fee and delivery estimate after gathering the date of death and the list of report readers. A death several years back, thin condition records, a large or unusual property and a near deadline each lengthen the research. If a probate or Tax Tribunal date is close, say so at the outset; see rush appraisals.

Ready when you have an address and a date

Call 231-638-4774 or request a quote and include the street address, what the value is for and the date it must reflect. Every other Michigan request is listed on our services page.