Michigan is often called a non-disclosure state for real estate, but that reputation is only half true. The state doesn’t publish sale prices in a central searchable database, and no line on a deed is required to say “sale price.” What Michigan law does require is enough to let a determined person figure out what a property sold for: every taxable deed must state the property’s total value (on its face or in an attached affidavit), transfer tax stamps on the recorded deed let anyone reverse the math, and the buyer must file a Property Transfer Affidavit with the local assessor that includes the sale price.1Michigan Legislature. Michigan Compiled Laws 207.501-207.508 – Real Estate Transfer Tax Act2Michigan Department of Treasury. Property Transfer Affidavit Compared to truly closed states like Texas or Wyoming, Michigan is far more open than its label suggests.
What Michigan Requires to Be Disclosed
The Michigan Real Estate Transfer Tax Act taxes every deed or contract that transfers an interest in real property for consideration. Under MCL 207.504, every taxable instrument must either state the property’s total value on its face or carry an attached affidavit (on a form prescribed by the State Tax Commission) declaring that value. If the sale bundles real and personal property together, the two values have to be broken out separately so the tax applies only to the real portion.1Michigan Legislature. Michigan Compiled Laws 207.501-207.508 – Real Estate Transfer Tax Act Once recorded at the county register of deeds, those instruments are public.
Separately, the buyer must file a Property Transfer Affidavit with the assessor of the city or township where the property sits, within 45 days of the transfer. The affidavit includes the sale price, and at least some Michigan municipalities confirm that the information on it is not confidential.2Michigan Department of Treasury. Property Transfer Affidavit So the sale price exists in two different government files: one at the register of deeds, one at the local assessor’s office. Neither is centralized or easy to search statewide, but both are reachable with some effort.
How to Back Into the Sale Price From Transfer Tax Stamps
Michigan imposes two layers of real estate transfer tax: a state rate of $7.50 per $1,000 of value and a county rate of $1.10 per $1,000, for a combined $8.60 per $1,000. The tax is calculated after rounding the value up to the nearest $500, and the seller pays it.3Ottawa County, MI. Michigan Real Estate Transfer Tax
The transfer tax paid is stamped on the recorded deed, and the math runs in reverse easily. A deed showing $2,150 in total transfer tax divided by $8.60 per thousand gives a property value of $250,000. Any person who pulls the recorded deed from the register of deeds can run that calculation, which is why experienced appraisers, agents, and curious neighbors in Michigan can usually find out what a property sold for despite the state’s non-disclosure label.
When the Trick Doesn’t Work
The transfer tax calculation only works when transfer tax was actually paid. Michigan law exempts a long list of transactions, and on those deeds you’ll see an exemption code citing a provision of MCL 207.505 instead of tax stamps. Exempt transfers include:
- Transactions where the total consideration is less than $100.
- Mortgages, mortgage assignments, and mortgage discharges.
- Leases, including oil and gas leases and transfers of leasehold interests.
- Deeds where the grantor is the United States, Michigan, or a local government acting in an official capacity, and foreclosure documents tied to government-backed loans.
- Transfers between spouses to create or dissolve a tenancy by the entireties.
- Deeds issued by court order or judgment, unless the court specifies a dollar amount.
- Instruments correcting or straightening boundary lines with no money changing hands.
- Land contracts, where the seller retains legal title until the buyer completes payment.
- Transfers involving only mineral interests.
For those transfers, the public record will show that something changed hands but won’t give you a dollar figure. Family transfers, gift deeds, and quitclaims between related parties often fall into these exempt categories, which is why not every ownership change in a neighborhood produces a decodable sale price.
How People Actually Find Sale Prices in Michigan
Licensed real estate agents get sold data through the local Multiple Listing Service. The MLS tracks listing prices, sale prices, days on market, and seller concessions for essentially every agent-assisted transaction. It is restricted to licensed professionals and is the primary tool agents use to run comparable market analyses.
Appraisers pull from the MLS, from data-sharing agreements with other appraisers, and sometimes from direct contact with parties to a transaction. Because lenders require appraisals before funding a mortgage, verified sale data flows through the appraisal process no matter what public records say. Tax assessors gather the same kind of information through the Property Transfer Affidavits that buyers file and through their own research, using it to keep assessed values aligned with the market.
Consumers without agent access have thinner options but not none. Pulling the recorded deed from the register of deeds and calculating backward from the transfer tax stamps is the direct route. Many county register of deeds offices now offer online search tools. The local assessor’s office may share the sale price from the Property Transfer Affidavit on request. Online real estate platforms publish value estimates based on proprietary models, though in a state without direct access to confirmed sale prices those estimates can lag behind the ones they produce in full-disclosure states.
Beyond price, Michigan property records are generally rich. Through assessor offices and register of deeds portals you can usually find ownership history, legal descriptions, square footage, lot size, bedroom and bathroom counts, assessed values, taxable values, and tax payment history. The assessed value on record isn’t the sale price, but Michigan assesses property at 50% of its true cash value, so doubling the State Equalized Value gives a rough estimate of what the assessor believes the property is worth on the open market.
Why Buyers Need to Care About More Than the Sale Price
In Michigan, finding out what a house sold for is only half the homework. Under MCL 211.27a, a property’s taxable value normally rises each year by the lesser of 5% or the rate of inflation, no matter how fast market values climb. Over a long hold in a rising market, that cap creates a widening gap between the taxable value and the State Equalized Value (SEV), which tracks actual market conditions.4Michigan Legislature. Michigan Code 211.27a – Property Tax Assessment; Determining Taxable Value
When the property changes hands, the taxable value “uncaps.” For the calendar year after the transfer, the taxable value resets to equal the SEV.4Michigan Legislature. Michigan Code 211.27a – Property Tax Assessment; Determining Taxable Value A house with a taxable value of $80,000 and an SEV of $150,000 can see its property tax bill nearly double for the new owner compared to what the seller was paying. First-time buyers in Michigan get caught by this more often than they should. Certain family transfers and other scenarios listed in MCL 211.27a(7) are exempt from uncapping. Before making an offer, ask the local assessor for the current SEV and estimate your own tax bill from that number, not from the seller’s.
One more practical note for buyers filing their Property Transfer Affidavit: the 45-day deadline matters. Penalties run from $5 per day for a principal residence (capped at $200) up to a flat $20,000 for the largest commercial properties, with a $4,000 cap for non-principal-residence residential property that took effect after April 2, 2025.5Michigan Department of Treasury. Transfer of Ownership Guidelines Skipping the filing doesn’t keep the sale price private; it just adds a penalty on top of a disclosure that was going to happen anyway.