Michigan · County property tax · ACS 2024
Kent County Property Taxes
The median homeowner in Kent County pays $3,217 a year, an effective rate of 1.11%, far above the U.S. average.
- $3,217
- Median tax / yr · High bill
- 1.11%
- Effective rate · Above-median rate
- +61%
- vs U.S. average
- #39 of 83
- rank in MI
The verdict
Homeowners in Kent County pay a median $3,217 a year in property tax, an effective rate of 1.11%, more affordable than 28% of U.S. counties (Census ACS 2024).
- $3,217
- Median annual tax bill, 2024
- 1.11%
- Effective rate on median home
- #2262 of 3135
- U.S. counties by tax burden
- +61%
- vs the national average bill
Effective rate is the median property tax bill divided by the median home value ($289,900). U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-Year Estimates · 2024.
Census Bureau ACS property tax data for Michigan. Population: 663,150. Owner-occupied homes: 180,482.
The median annual property tax in Kent County is $3,217, which is 11% higher than the Michigan state average and 61% above the national average. The effective tax rate is 1.11% on a median home value of $289,900. Property taxes represent 3.9% of the median household income in this county.
Kent County's rate standing among U.S. counties
Primary signal
The effective rate sits near the national middle
Kent County's 1.11% effective rate sits near the middle of 3,135 tracked counties (more affordable than 28%).
Decision signal 2
The bill sits well above the national median
Homeowners in Kent County pay a median annual property tax of $3,217, far above the national median and notably higher than the Michigan state median. On a $289,900 median home, that works out to an effective rate of 1.11% once the local assessment base and millage are combined.
Decision signal 3
Income and the tax bill sit in the middle band
Property taxes in Kent County run within the commonly cited 2%-4% national benchmark, at about 3.9% of the $82,631 median household income.
Decision signal 4
Near the middle of Michigan counties by effective rate
Kent County ranks #39 of 83 counties in Michigan by effective rate (53% of in-state counties pay a lower rate).
Informational notice
Figures describe the median homeowner household in Kent 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.
The rate gave way faster than almost anywhere
Between the 2020 and 2024 releases the median home value in Kent County rose 53.8%, from $188,500 to $289,900. The effective rate fell 19.7% over the same span, a steeper move than in 81% of U.S. counties.
The median bill still rose 23.5%, to $3,217. Where the rate drops this far and the bill rises anyway, what changed is the value the rate is applied to.
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 $2,605 to $3,217, a gain of 23%. This is a comparison of published ACS medians, not an explanation of a particular property's assessment or tax bill.
The heaviest band is also the fullest one here: 92,013 of 180,482 owner-occupied homes (51.0%) report annual real-estate taxes above $3,000. That band has no upper edge in the source, so the county median understates the burden carried by the plurality rather than describing it.
Earnings are in the national top quarter and the rate is above the midpoint, so the median bill represents 3.9% of median household income. A headline bill conflates the dollar figure with the proportion; the two come apart here, and the ratio above is the second of them.
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 Kent County Homeowners Actually Pay
The single largest group of Kent County homeowners, 92,013 of 180,482 owner-occupied homes (51.0%), pays $3,000 or more a year. The median is one point in this spread, not a typical bill.
- Less than $800 3.2% (5,852)
- $800 to $1,499 7.8% (14,097)
- $1,500 to $1,999 8.5% (15,312)
- $2,000 to $2,999 23.2% (41,958)
- $3,000 or more 51.0% (92,013)
Census ACS 2024, table B25102. Bands and the no-tax share sum to 100%.
11,250 homes here (6.2%) report no real estate tax at all. Exemptions are set by state: how Michigan handles assessments and appeals.
With vs Without Mortgage
In Kent County, mortgaged homeowners pay 12% more than those without a mortgage, a gap that typically tracks higher home values rather than a different tax rate.
Kent County's effective rate vs peers
Effective property tax rate (median tax ÷ median home value), ACS 2024.
Kent County's effective rate is higher than 53% of the 83 counties in Michigan - ranking #39 of 83.
Where Kent County sits among every U.S. county
Effective property tax rate (median tax ÷ median home value)
1.11% more affordable than 28% 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
Kent County vs Benchmarks
| Metric | Kent County | Michigan Avg | U.S. Avg |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median Annual Tax High bill | |||
| Effective Tax Rate Above-median rate | |||
| Median Home Value | |||
| Tax as % of income Heavy income burden | 3.9% | - | - |
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.
Kent County is PAR · HEAVY on ACS medians, still verify your parcel card before quoting the county figure. Estimate appeal savings · Michigan counties.
Kent County rate trail · PAR
| Year | Median Tax (vs prior release) | Effective Rate |
|---|---|---|
| 2024 | $3,217 +6.2% | 1.11% |
| 2023 | $3,028 +4.8% | 1.14% |
| 2022 | $2,889 +6.4% | 1.19% |
| 2021 | $2,716 +4.3% | 1.31% |
| 2020 | $2,605 | 1.38% |
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.
Kent County: tax-to-income at 3.9%
Counties near Kent County's effective rate
On effective rate, Kent County sits nearest Kiowa County (KS), Calhoun County (GA), Dodge County (MN).
On published median-tax change, the nearest matches are Columbia County (OR), Newton County (IN), Box Butte County (NE).
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
Kent County: only 6% of returns show Schedule A real-estate tax
Tax year 2022: 18,970 of 326,180 returns from Kent County reported real estate taxes, averaging $7,376 - 36% of those reporters sat in the $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
Kent County rate FAQs
- How does Kent County property tax compare to the national average?
- Property taxes in Kent County run far above the national median of $1,993, an effective rate of 1.11% versus 0.92% nationally.
- What is the tax affordability score for Kent County?
- Kent County, Michigan scores F (26/100) 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 mortgage premium at D (+$346). 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 Kent County, Michigan?
- The median annual property tax in Kent County is $3,217, an effective rate of 1.11% on a $289,900 median home (Census ACS, 2024).
- Are property taxes increasing in Kent County?
- The ACS median property-tax bill for Kent County jumped 23.5% between the 2020 and 2024 5-year releases, from $2,605 to $3,217, 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 Kent County?
- Property taxes in Kent County run within the commonly cited 2%-4% national benchmark, at about 3.9% of the $82,631 median household income.
What to do with Kent County's PAR rate
Kent County's $3,217 median bill sits well above the U.S. median - size a personal estimate before treating the county headline as your budget. Estimate your bill →
Kent County ranks #39 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 Kent County's PAR 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: 1.11%.
Similar median bill
Nearest out-of-state counties by ACS median annual tax. This county: $3,217/yr. Rate peers are excluded so the two link sets stay distinct.
Read with Kent County
Nearest ABS(median_tax) ACS peers for Kent County (PAR · HEAVY), replacing the old fixed Keep exploring strip.
PAR HEAVY
Hood County, TX
ABS(median_tax) peer · tied with Kent County at $3,217/yr; rate 1.05% vs Kent County 1.11%.
Marathon County, WI
ABS(median_tax) peer · $3,218/yr (near-tied bill ABS $1); rate 1.47% vs Kent County 1.11%.
Stanislaus County, CA
ABS(median_tax) peer · $3,216/yr (near-tied bill ABS $1); rate 0.71% vs Kent County 1.11%.
Elbert County, CO
ABS(median_tax) peer · $3,214/yr (near-tied bill ABS $3); rate 0.45% vs Kent County 1.11%.
Michigan county set
State ACS overview for every published Michigan county rate and median bill.
Assessment cycle basics
Kent County stamps PAR · HEAVY - how assessed value and millage become the ACS median bill.
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 Kent County (PAR · HEAVY) - ACS medians, not a parcel bill.