Michigan · County property tax · ACS 2024
Bay County Property Taxes
The median homeowner in Bay County pays $2,271 a year, an effective rate of 1.49%, notably higher than the U.S. average.
- $2,271
- Median tax / yr · Above-median bill
- 1.49%
- Effective rate · High rate
- +14%
- vs U.S. average
- #5 of 83
- rank in MI
The verdict
Homeowners in Bay County pay a median $2,271 a year in property tax, an effective rate of 1.49%, more affordable than 11% of U.S. counties (Census ACS 2024).
- $2,271
- Median annual tax bill, 2024
- 1.49%
- Effective rate on median home
- #2787 of 3135
- U.S. counties by tax burden
- +14%
- vs the national average bill
Effective rate is the median property tax bill divided by the median home value ($152,200). U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-Year Estimates · 2024.
Census Bureau ACS property tax data for Michigan. Population: 103,008. Owner-occupied homes: 34,745.
The median annual property tax in Bay County is $2,271, which is 22% lower than the Michigan state average and 14% above the national average. The effective tax rate is 1.49% on a median home value of $152,200. Property taxes represent 3.7% of the median household income in this county.
Bay County's rate standing among U.S. counties
Primary signal
The effective rate sits near the national middle
Bay County's 1.49% effective rate sits near the middle of 3,135 tracked counties (more affordable than 11%).
Decision signal 2
Low among Michigan counties by effective rate
Bay County ranks #5 of 83 counties in Michigan by effective rate (94% of in-state counties pay a lower rate).
Decision signal 3
The bill sits below the Michigan median
Homeowners in Bay County pay a median annual property tax of $2,271, notably higher than the national median and notably lower than the Michigan state median. On a $152,200 median home, that works out to an effective rate of 1.49% once the local assessment base and millage are combined.
Decision signal 4
Income and the tax bill sit in the middle band
Property taxes in Bay County run within the commonly cited 2%-4% national benchmark, at about 3.7% of the $61,763 median household income.
Informational notice
Figures describe the median homeowner household in Bay County as reported to the Census Bureau; your parcel can differ. Not tax, legal, or financial advice: check the county assessor or a qualified professional before decisions that depend on these numbers.
A falling rate took the edge off
Bay County's effective rate fell 15.3% across the 4-year span while its median home value rose 43.0%, leaving the median bill 21.1% higher at $2,271. That rate move is larger than the one in 65% of counties, so a good deal of the market's rise never reached the bill.
Effective rate is the published median bill divided by the published median home value, so the two multiply back to the bill exactly; the rate's movement here is derived from those two figures rather than read from the rounded published rate. Both are ACS 5-year survey estimates for the median owner-occupied household, compared across non-overlapping releases. They describe what the Census published, not a local policy, assessment, or exemption change.
How to read this county's bill
Bills rose across 2020-2024, from $1,875 to $2,271, a gain of 21%. This is a comparison of published ACS medians, not an explanation of a particular property's assessment or tax bill.
The plurality of owner-occupied homes here falls in the $2,000 to $2,999 band, at 9,419 of 34,745 (27.1%). This shows the reported distribution around the county median, while individual assessments can vary.
A top-quartile rate meets below-median earnings here, and the median bill reaches 3.7% of median household income. A rate ranking places this county by the rate alone; the ratio above is the figure that accounts for what is earned here.
The share above is the median annual bill divided by median household income, a ratio of two county-level medians rather than a household-by-household figure.
What Bay County Homeowners Actually Pay
The single largest group of Bay County homeowners, 9,419 of 34,745 owner-occupied homes (27.1%), pays $2,000 to $2,999 a year. The median is one point in this spread, not a typical bill.
- Less than $800 3.7% (1,283)
- $800 to $1,499 18.2% (6,321)
- $1,500 to $1,999 17.6% (6,109)
- $2,000 to $2,999 27.1% (9,419)
- $3,000 or more 27.1% (9,401)
Census ACS 2024, table B25102. Bands and the no-tax share sum to 100%.
2,212 homes here (6.4%) report no real estate tax at all. Exemptions are set by state: how Michigan handles assessments and appeals.
With vs Without Mortgage
Mortgaged and non-mortgaged homeowners in Bay County pay about the same bill, a 7% gap.
Bay County's effective rate vs peers
Effective property tax rate (median tax ÷ median home value), ACS 2024.
Bay County's effective rate is higher than 94% of the 83 counties in Michigan - ranking #5 of 83.
Where Bay County sits among every U.S. county
Effective property tax rate (median tax ÷ median home value)
1.49% more affordable than 11% of 3,135 U.S. counties
Show national distribution
Each bar is a band; taller bars hold more U.S. counties. The dashed line + filled bar mark this entry. Hover or tap any bar for its full count, share, and where it sits relative to this entry.
Source U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-Year Estimates · 2024
A high rate, a smaller bill
Bay County taxes property at 1.49%, about 19% above the Michigan average, yet its median bill of $2,271 lands roughly 22% below it. The effective rate is the bill divided by the home's value, so a county can only sit on opposite sides of the state average this way when its homes are worth materially less than the state norm. The rate is the policy; the bill is what the housing market does with it.
Bay County vs Benchmarks
| Metric | Bay County | Michigan Avg | U.S. Avg |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median Annual Tax Above-median bill | |||
| Effective Tax Rate High rate | |||
| Median Home Value | |||
| Tax as % of income Heavy income burden | 3.7% | - | - |
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-Year Estimates. Tax-burden differences across rows reflect millage decisions, assessment-ratio practices, and the residential-vs-commercial mix of each tax base.
Bay County's STEEP · MID lane - is an appeal worth running?
On Bay County's published figures (STEEP · MID), a $152,200 median home carries a $2,271 median bill, so every 10% off an assessed value is worth about $227 a year at the same rate. Appeal Savings Estimator · appeal guide for Michigan.
Bay County rate trail · STEEP
| Year | Median Tax (vs prior release) | Effective Rate |
|---|---|---|
| 2024 | $2,271 +3.0% | 1.49% |
| 2023 | $2,205 +5.5% | 1.63% |
| 2022 | $2,091 +7.1% | 1.67% |
| 2021 | $1,952 +4.1% | 1.77% |
| 2020 | $1,875 | 1.76% |
Each row is a separate ACS 5-year release, and consecutive releases share four of their five survey years. The percentage beside each bill is therefore movement in the published estimate against the previous release, not a single year's tax change. The two releases largely describe the same households. For change over time, compare releases that do not overlap.
Bay County: tax-to-income at 3.7%
Counties near Bay County's effective rate
On effective rate, Bay County sits nearest Hampden County (MA), Sheridan County (KS), Osage County (KS).
On published median-tax change, the nearest matches are Jasper County (IA), Mifflin County (PA), Coffee County (AL).
How peers are chosen
These are the nearest cross-state matches in the published Census data, not neighboring counties or recommendations. Peers are rebuilt with each data release; see the calculation method.
Similar effective rates
Similar published median-tax changes, 2020–2024
Bay County: only 2% of returns show Schedule A real-estate tax
Tax year 2022: 1,300 of 53,200 returns from Bay County reported real estate taxes, averaging $4,313 - 36% of those reporters sat in the $100-200k AGI band.
What this IRS county file does not say
Amounts are reported before the SALT cap, not deducted; the share is of filers, not homeowners. Source: IRS SOI county data, tax year 2022.
Other Counties in Michigan
Bay County rate FAQs
- What is the tax affordability score for Bay County?
- Bay County, Michigan scores F (32/100) on PlainPropertyTax's tax affordability composite across 5 Census ACS dimensions (effective rate, bill size, income share, mortgage gap, and home-value/income). Its strongest scored dimension here is housing pressure at B (2.46×). The score compares published county medians to U.S. percentiles, it is not a personal bill and not advice to buy, sell, appeal, or relocate.
- What is the average property tax in Bay County, Michigan?
- The median annual property tax in Bay County is $2,271, an effective rate of 1.49% on a $152,200 median home (Census ACS, 2024).
- How does Bay County property tax compare to the national average?
- Property taxes in Bay County run notably higher than the national median of $1,993, an effective rate of 1.49% versus 0.92% nationally.
- Are property taxes increasing in Bay County?
- The ACS median property-tax bill for Bay County jumped 21.1% between the 2020 and 2024 5-year releases, from $1,875 to $2,271, a 4-year span. These are survey estimates covering five years each, so this compares the two releases furthest apart rather than consecutive ones, which overlap and would mostly measure the same households twice.
- What percentage of income goes to property taxes in Bay County?
- Property taxes in Bay County run within the commonly cited 2%-4% national benchmark, at about 3.7% of the $61,763 median household income.
What to do with Bay County's STEEP rate
Inside Michigan, Bay County's $2,271 median bill runs low versus the state median - check peer counties before assuming the lowest bill is the best move. Michigan overview →
Bay County ranks #5 of 83 Michigan counties by effective rate - on the higher-burden half of the state ACS set. Michigan overview →
Nationwide peers by effective rate (then bill)
Rate-first peers for Bay County's STEEP effective rate, then a disjoint out-of-state bill set so the two neighborhoods stay distinct.
Similar effective rate
Nearest out-of-state counties by ACS effective rate. This county: 1.49%.
Similar median bill
Nearest out-of-state counties by ACS median annual tax. This county: $2,271/yr. Rate peers are excluded so the two link sets stay distinct.
Read with Bay County
Nearest ABS(median_tax) ACS peers for Bay County (STEEP · MID), replacing the old fixed Keep exploring strip.
STEEP MID
St. Louis County, MN
ABS(median_tax) peer · tied with Bay County at $2,271/yr; rate 1.03% vs Bay County 1.49%.
Pima County, AZ
ABS(median_tax) peer · $2,272/yr (near-tied bill ABS $1); rate 0.71% vs Bay County 1.49%.
Wallowa County, OR
ABS(median_tax) peer · $2,270/yr (near-tied bill ABS $1); rate 0.57% vs Bay County 1.49%.
Davis County, IA
ABS(median_tax) peer · $2,269/yr (near-tied bill ABS $2); rate 1.40% vs Bay County 1.49%.
Michigan county set
State ACS overview for every published Michigan county rate and median bill.
Appeal filing windows
Bay County stamps STEEP · MID - review notice deadlines before quoting the ACS median.
Data vintage and method
Data as of 2024. Source: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates.
Property tax data reflects median amounts paid by homeowners. Effective rates are calculated as median tax divided by median home value.
Source: U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates, county median real-estate taxes · 2024 Bay County (STEEP · MID) - ACS medians, not a parcel bill.