Michigan · County property tax · ACS 2024
Otsego County Property Taxes
The median homeowner in Otsego County pays $1,755 a year, an effective rate of 0.80%, notably lower than the U.S. average.
- $1,755
- Median tax / yr · Above-median bill
- 0.80%
- Effective rate · Below-median rate
- -12%
- vs U.S. average
- #81 of 83
- rank in MI
The verdict
Homeowners in Otsego County pay a median $1,755 a year in property tax, an effective rate of 0.80%, more affordable than 50% of U.S. counties (Census ACS 2024).
- $1,755
- Median annual tax bill, 2024
- 0.80%
- Effective rate on median home
- #1567 of 3135
- U.S. counties by tax burden
- -12%
- vs the national average bill
Effective rate is the median property tax bill divided by the median home value ($219,700). U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-Year Estimates · 2024.
Census Bureau ACS property tax data for Michigan. Population: 25,584. Owner-occupied homes: 8,673.
The median annual property tax in Otsego County is $1,755, which is 40% lower than the Michigan state average and 12% below the national average. The effective tax rate is 0.80% on a median home value of $219,700. Property taxes represent 2.6% of the median household income in this county.
Otsego County's rate standing among U.S. counties
Primary signal
The effective rate sits near the national middle
Otsego County's 0.80% effective rate sits near the middle of 3,135 tracked counties (more affordable than 50%).
Decision signal 2
High among Michigan counties by effective rate
Otsego County ranks #81 of 83 counties in Michigan by effective rate (2% of in-state counties pay a lower rate).
Decision signal 3
The bill sits below the Michigan median
Homeowners in Otsego County pay a median annual property tax of $1,755, notably lower than the national median and well below the Michigan state median. On a $219,700 median home, that works out to an effective rate of 0.80% 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 Otsego County run within the commonly cited 2%-4% national benchmark, at about 2.6% of the $68,183 median household income.
Informational notice
Figures describe the median homeowner household in Otsego 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 Otsego County rose 49.4%, from $147,100 to $219,700. The effective rate fell 22.5% over the same span, a steeper move than in 89% of U.S. counties.
The median bill still rose 15.8%, to $1,755. 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 $1,516 to $1,755, a gain of 16%. This is a comparison of published ACS medians, not an explanation of a particular property's assessment or tax bill.
The fullest band here is the $800 to $1,499 range, holding 2,569 of 8,673 owner-occupied homes (29.6%). The band shows where the largest share of reported owner-occupied households falls; it is not an individual-bill estimate.
Above-median earnings meet a slightly-below-median rate, and the median bill amounts to 2.6% of median household income. That is the comfortable middle of this dataset, and comfortable middles are easy to overlook when only rankings get published.
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 Otsego County Homeowners Actually Pay
The single largest group of Otsego County homeowners, 2,569 of 8,673 owner-occupied homes (29.6%), pays $800 to $1,499 a year. The median is one point in this spread, not a typical bill.
- Less than $800 9.9% (855)
- $800 to $1,499 29.6% (2,569)
- $1,500 to $1,999 16.7% (1,449)
- $2,000 to $2,999 22.4% (1,945)
- $3,000 or more 17.4% (1,510)
Census ACS 2024, table B25102. Bands and the no-tax share sum to 100%.
345 homes here (4.0%) 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 Otsego County pay about the same bill, a 4% gap.
Otsego County's effective rate vs peers
Effective property tax rate (median tax ÷ median home value), ACS 2024.
Otsego County's effective rate is higher than 2% of the 83 counties in Michigan - ranking #81 of 83.
Where Otsego County sits among every U.S. county
Effective property tax rate (median tax ÷ median home value)
0.80% more affordable than 50% 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
Below Michigan on both measures
Otsego County's effective rate runs 36% under the Michigan median and its bill 40% under. Both sitting on the same side means the gap is not a valuation artefact: a county can post a low rate purely because its homes are expensive, but then the bill rises to meet the state. Here it does not, so the $1,755 median bill reflects a genuinely lighter charge than the Michigan norm rather than a different denominator. Compare it against the state page before reading anything into the county rank.
Otsego County vs Benchmarks
| Metric | Otsego County | Michigan Avg | U.S. Avg |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median Annual Tax Above-median bill | |||
| Effective Tax Rate Below-median rate | |||
| Median Home Value | |||
| Tax as % of income Above-median income burden | 2.6% | - | - |
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.
Otsego County is UNDER · MID on ACS medians, still verify your parcel card before quoting the county figure. Estimate appeal savings · Michigan counties.
Otsego County rate trail · UNDER
| Year | Median Tax (vs prior release) | Effective Rate |
|---|---|---|
| 2024 | $1,755 +0.2% | 0.80% |
| 2023 | $1,751 +3.4% | 0.89% |
| 2022 | $1,693 +4.3% | 0.95% |
| 2021 | $1,623 +7.1% | 1.04% |
| 2020 | $1,516 | 1.03% |
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.
Otsego County: tax-to-income at 2.6%
Counties near Otsego County's effective rate
On effective rate, Otsego County sits nearest Pendleton County (KY), Fulton County (KY), Vanderburgh County (IN).
On published median-tax change, the nearest matches are Black Hawk County (IA), Clarke County (VA), Howard County (MO).
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
Otsego County: only 3% of returns show Schedule A real-estate tax
Tax year 2022: 350 of 13,340 returns from Otsego County reported real estate taxes, averaging $4,149 - 31% 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
Otsego County rate FAQs
- What is the average property tax in Otsego County, Michigan?
- The median annual property tax in Otsego County is $1,755, an effective rate of 0.80% on a $219,700 median home (Census ACS, 2024).
- How does Otsego County property tax compare to the national average?
- Property taxes in Otsego County run notably lower than the national median of $1,993, an effective rate of 0.80% versus 0.92% nationally.
- What is the tax affordability score for Otsego County?
- Otsego County, Michigan scores C- (52/100) 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 A- (+$63). 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.
- Are property taxes increasing in Otsego County?
- The ACS median property-tax bill for Otsego County climbed 15.8% between the 2020 and 2024 5-year releases, from $1,516 to $1,755, 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 Otsego County?
- Property taxes in Otsego County run within the commonly cited 2%-4% national benchmark, at about 2.6% of the $68,183 median household income.
What to do with Otsego County's UNDER rate
Inside Michigan, Otsego County's $1,755 median bill runs low versus the state median - check peer counties before assuming the lowest bill is the best move. Michigan overview →
Otsego County ranks #81 of 83 Michigan counties by effective rate - on the lower-burden half of the state ACS set. Michigan overview →
Nationwide peers by effective rate (then bill)
Rate-first peers for Otsego County's UNDER 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: 0.80%.
Similar median bill
Nearest out-of-state counties by ACS median annual tax. This county: $1,755/yr. Rate peers are excluded so the two link sets stay distinct.
Read with Otsego County
Nearest ABS(median_tax) ACS peers for Otsego County (UNDER · MID), replacing the old fixed Keep exploring strip.
UNDER MID
Hendry County, FL
ABS(median_tax) peer · $1,756/yr (near-tied bill ABS $1); rate 0.80% vs Otsego County 0.80%.
Montgomery County, KS
ABS(median_tax) peer · $1,754/yr (near-tied bill ABS $1); rate 1.72% vs Otsego County 0.80%.
Trego County, KS
ABS(median_tax) peer · $1,753/yr (near-tied bill ABS $2); rate 1.45% vs Otsego County 0.80%.
Vermilion County, IL
ABS(median_tax) peer · $1,757/yr (near-tied bill ABS $2); rate 1.81% vs Otsego County 0.80%.
Michigan county set
State ACS overview for every published Michigan county rate and median bill.
Assessment cycle basics
Otsego County stamps UNDER · MID - 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 Otsego County (UNDER · MID) - ACS medians, not a parcel bill.