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Updates to property tax laws: What the higher SALT cap means for homeowners

This article is for informational purposes only and is not intended to provide legal, financial, or tax advice. Tax rules change, and how they apply depends on your income, filing status, and property. Consult a qualified tax professional about your situation.

Older couple reviewing tax planning at home after updates to property tax laws

The biggest federal change affecting what homeowners pay in property tax, or more precisely, what they can deduct, is the cap on state and local tax (SALT) deductions, which rose from $10,000 to $40,000 for the 2025 tax year.1 That cap covers your property tax bill plus your state income or sales tax, combined into one number, and it is reduced by 30% of the modified adjusted gross income (MAGI) you report above $500,000, though it never falls below $10,000.

Two other changes matter to homeowners. Taxpayers age 65 and older can claim a new deduction of up to $6,000 for tax years 2025 through 2028, and the two big residential energy credits stopped applying to property placed in service after December 31, 2025.

Learn what actually changed, how the new cap rewrites the itemize-versus-standard-deduction math, why none of it lowers the bill your assessor sends, and what Michigan homeowners should check. If you’re newer to how the pieces fit together, start with our Homeownership guide.

Key takeaways:

  • The SALT cap quadrupled to $40,000: For 2025 it is $40,000 ($20,000 if married filing separately), reduced by 30% of MAGI above $500,000 but never below $10,000; for 2026 the figures step up to $40,400 and $505,000.
  • Seniors get up to $6,000 more: Taxpayers 65 and older can deduct up to $6,000 each ($12,000 for a joint return where both spouses qualify) for tax years 2025 through 2028, on top of the existing additional standard deduction for age.
  • Two energy credits closed on December 31, 2025: The 30% residential clean energy credit and the $1,200-to-$2,000-a-year home improvement credit no longer apply to property placed in service after that date, so insulation, window, and solar timing decisions changed.

What changed in property tax law for 2025?

The headline number is $40,000. For tax years beginning in 2025, the combined deduction for state and local taxes on Schedule A is limited to $40,000, $20,000 for married taxpayers filing separately, up from the $10,000 ceiling that applied before. The change was made by Public Law 119-21, enacted July 4, 2025, the reconciliation act widely referred to as the One Big Beautiful Bill Act.

The word “combined” is doing real work. The cap covers three Schedule A lines together: state and local income taxes or general sales taxes (you pick one), real property taxes, and personal property taxes. Your property tax bill gets no separate allowance of its own.

Three other pieces of the same law reach homeowners:

  • A new senior deduction: Taxpayers 65 and older may claim up to $6,000 ($12,000 on a joint return when both spouses qualify) for tax years 2025 through 2028. It phases down above $75,000 of MAGI ($150,000 for joint filers).
  • Two expiring energy credits: The residential clean energy credit (30% of qualifying costs) and the energy efficient home improvement credit (up to $1,200 or $2,000 a year, depending on the item) both stopped applying to property placed in service after December 31, 2025.
  • A higher standard deduction: For 2025 it is $15,750 for single filers and those married filing separately, $31,500 for married filing jointly, and $23,625 for heads of household. Which raises the bar your itemized deductions have to clear.

One caution worth stating plainly: proposals are not law. Property tax bills get introduced constantly at both the federal and state level, and most never pass. Before acting on a “change” you read about, trace it to a dated primary source, an IRS publication, a section of the Internal Revenue Code, or a state statute. Our companion piece on the impact of new tax laws on homeownership tracks what actually took effect, and a plain-language property tax law overview covers the vocabulary.

How the higher SALT cap changes what you can deduct

If your combined property tax and state income tax ran between $10,000 and $40,000, you can now deduct all of it instead of stopping at $10,000. Here is the before-and-after, using the amounts the IRS applies to each tax year.

RuleThrough tax year 2024Tax year 2025Tax year 2026
SALT deduction cap$10,000$40,000$40,400
Cap if married filing separately$5,000$20,000$20,200
MAGI threshold where the cap starts shrinkingNone$500,000$505,000
Reduction above the thresholdNot applicable30% of the excess30% of the excess
Floor the cap can’t drop below$10,000$10,000$10,000

The cap and the income threshold each rise by 1% a year through 2029. For tax years beginning after 2029, the statute returns the cap to $10,000, so this is a five-year window, not a permanent rewrite.

Worked example. Say a married couple filing jointly pays $7,000 in property tax and $11,000 in state income tax, $18,000 combined.2 Under the old rule they deducted $10,000 and lost the other $8,000. For 2025, with MAGI well under $500,000, they deduct the full $18,000. Nothing about their tax bills changed; only the portion the federal return recognizes did.

Above the threshold the math tightens fast. A household with $600,000 of MAGI is $100,000 over the line, so the cap drops by 30% of that, $30,000, back to the $10,000 floor. The benefit is fully phased out by roughly $600,000 of MAGI. Our Taxes & Money hub collects the rest of the homeowner tax picture.

Should you itemize in 2025?

It depends on whether four numbers add up to more than your standard deduction, $31,500 for married filing jointly, $15,750 for single filers, $23,625 for heads of household. The higher cap only helps if it pushes your total over that line. Work through it in order:3

  • Line 1, State and local taxes: Add your property tax to either your state income tax or your state sales tax, whichever is larger. Stop at $40,000.
  • Line 2, Mortgage interest: Interest on home acquisition debt, limited to $750,000 of debt ($375,000 if married filing separately) for debt incurred after December 15, 2017. Debt taken on before December 16, 2017 keeps the older $1 million limit ($500,000 if married filing separately).
  • Line 3, Charitable contributions: Cash and non-cash gifts you can document.
  • Line 4, Add lines 1 through 3 and compare: If the total beats your standard deduction, itemizing is worth the paperwork. If it doesn’t, take the standard deduction and stop.

Run the couple from the last section through it. With $18,000 of SALT, $12,000 of mortgage interest, and $4,000 of charitable giving, they total $34,000 against a $31,500 standard deduction, so they itemize, deducting $2,500 more. Under the old $10,000 cap the same couple totaled $26,000 and took the standard deduction. What the extra $2,500 is worth depends on their marginal rate, a question for their tax preparer.

Two notes change the answer for a lot of people. Mortgage interest shrinks every year you own the home, because more of each payment goes to principal, so a household that barely clears the line this year may not next year. Our guide to how mortgage interest deductions work covers that effect and the IRS Publication 936 rules on the mortgage interest deduction. And the senior deduction below doesn’t require itemizing at all, so don’t assume the two decisions are linked.

What is the $6,000 senior deduction worth?

Up to $6,000 per qualifying person, or $12,000 on a joint return when both spouses qualify, for tax years 2025 through 2028. To claim it you must have been born before January 2, 1961, have a valid Social Security number, and, if married, file jointly. The deduction is limited once MAGI passes $75,000 ($150,000 joint).

The detail that gets lost in summaries: qualified individuals can claim it whether they take the standard deduction or itemize. It is not an itemized deduction competing with your SALT total; it sits alongside it.

It also stacks with the long-standing additional standard deduction for age, which for 2025 is $2,000 for an unmarried filer 65 or older and $1,600 per qualifying person for married filers. A couple filing jointly where both spouses are 65 or older and neither is blind has a $34,700 standard deduction for 2025, the $31,500 base plus $1,600 each, before the new $6,000-per-person deduction is applied. Retirees weighing a move should also check the tax credits available to buyers.

Which home energy credits expire after 2025?

Both of the big residential ones. The IRS says the residential clean energy credit, 30% of qualifying clean energy property such as solar, “is not available for any property placed in service after December 31, 2025.” The energy efficient home improvement credit, covering insulation, doors, windows, heat pumps, and home energy audits, applies to property placed in service before that same date.

  • The clean energy credit was worth 30%: It applied to qualifying property installed from 2022 through December 31, 2025, with no annual dollar cap.
  • The improvement credit was capped annually: $1,200 a year for most items, with sub-limits of $500 for exterior doors, $600 for windows and skylights, and $150 for an energy audit, plus a separate $2,000 for qualified heat pumps, heat pump water heaters, and biomass stoves or boilers.
  • “Placed in service” is the trigger, not the invoice date: A 2025 deposit on an installation that happened later does not meet the test.

If you completed qualifying work in 2025, the credit belongs on that year’s return. If you’re scheduling work now, price it without assuming a federal credit and ask whether your utility offers a rebate instead.

Does the SALT change lower your actual property tax bill?

No. Not by a dollar. Your bill is set locally by your assessor’s valuation and by the millage rates your taxing units levy. Federal deduction rules touch neither input. What changed is how much of that bill your federal return recognizes if you itemize.

To lower the bill itself, you have two levers, and both are local:

  • Challenge the assessment: If your assessment looks high against comparable sales, the appeal runs through your local board of review and, above that, the state tax tribunal. Deadlines are short and set by state law.4 Our walkthrough of how property tax assessments work explains what assessors measure.
  • Claim every exemption you qualify for: Homestead or principal residence exemptions, and those tied to age, disability, or veteran status, remove millage from the bill instead of shifting it to a deduction. They require a form filed with your local unit. They are not automatic.

What Michigan homeowners should know

Michigan’s two biggest property tax protections are state-level and unaffected by the federal SALT change. Which means a Michigan homeowner can benefit from both at once.

  • The Principal Residence Exemption removes up to 18 mills: Michigan’s Department of Treasury describes the PRE as exempting an owner’s principal residence from the local school operating millage, up to 18 mills. On a home with $100,000 of taxable value, 18 mills is $1,800 a year off the bill.
  • The filing deadlines are June 1 and November 1: Under state law, you claim the exemption by filing an affidavit on or before June 1 for the next summer tax levy, or on or before November 1 for the next winter levy. Miss both and you wait for the next cycle.
  • The PRE does not remove the 6-mill State Education Tax: Michigan levies a state education tax of 6 mills separately, and the principal residence exemption applies to local school operating millage, not to that levy. Budget accordingly.
  • Proposal A caps growth until the property sells: State law limits annual taxable value growth to the lesser of 5% or the inflation rate, plus additions, for as long as you own the home. The calendar year after a transfer of ownership, taxable value resets to state equalized value, the “uncapping” that surprises buyers whose first bill dwarfs the seller’s last one.

One honest caveat: Michigan’s property taxes and flat income tax produce smaller SALT totals than high-tax coastal states, so plenty of Michigan homeowners will still land under the standard deduction even with a $40,000 cap. Confirm current rules on the state’s Michigan’s principal residence exemption page before you file.

Which property tax payments count toward the SALT cap?

Only tax you actually paid, and only the part of the bill that is a tax. IRS Publication 530 (2025) says you “can deduct only the real estate taxes that the lender actually paid from escrow to the taxing authority,” so the total you deposited into escrow during the year is not the number to use. Your real estate tax bill shows the amount that counts.

In the year a home changes hands, the tax is split by days. Per the IRS in Publication 530, the seller is treated as paying the tax up to but not including the date of sale, and the buyer from that date on. In the publication’s own example, a buyer who owned the home for 122 days of a calendar tax year deducts 122/365 of a $730 bill, which is $244, even if the purchase contract did not require reimbursing the seller. Our guide to closing costs shows where that proration appears among your settlement charges.

A tax bill can also carry charges that are not taxes. Publication 530 lists a periodic residential service fee, such as a $240 annual trash charge, as not deductible. Assessments for local benefits that tend to raise the property’s value, such as new streets, sidewalks, or water and sewer lines, are added to the home’s basis instead. The exception is the part of an assessment that pays for maintenance, repair, or interest, which counts only if you can show that amount.

Escrow is also why a new tax year can change your house payment. The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau notes that property taxes and insurance premiums can change from year to year, so the escrow part of a monthly payment can go up or down. Our guides to mortgage escrow accounts, payments, escrow and servicing and the role of escrow in buying a home show how the annual escrow review works.

What do the 2026 inflation adjustments change?

The standard deduction rises again. The IRS announced the tax year 2026 amounts on October 9, 2025, in release IR-2025-103: $16,100 for single filers and married filing separately, $32,200 for married filing jointly, and $24,150 for heads of household. Each is higher than its 2025 amount, so itemized deductions have a higher bar to clear for 2026 returns.

Charitable gifts also count differently starting with 2026 returns. Under 26 U.S.C. § 170(b)(1)(I), added by Public Law 119-21 for taxable years beginning after December 31, 2025, an itemizer’s gifts are deductible only to the extent they exceed 0.5% of the contribution base, which the same section defines as adjusted gross income figured without any net operating loss carryback. Section 170(p) lets a filer who takes the standard deduction also deduct up to $1,000 of cash gifts ($2,000 on a joint return) to public charities, not counting gifts to supporting organizations or donor-advised funds.

Hypothetical example, not an offer. For example, carry the couple from the itemizing section into 2026 with the same $18,000 of state and local taxes and $4,000 of cash gifts to a public charity, $150,000 of adjusted gross income, and mortgage interest that falls from $12,000 to $11,000 as principal is paid down. The 0.5% floor in section 170(b)(1)(I) is $750, so $3,250 of the giving counts and itemizing totals $32,250. Taking the $32,200 standard deduction from IR-2025-103 and deducting $2,000 of the cash gifts under section 170(p) totals $34,200, so the standard route comes out $1,950 ahead, where itemizing won by $2,500 for 2025.

How quickly does the senior deduction phase out?

By 6 cents for every dollar of income over the threshold. Under 26 U.S.C. § 151(d)(5), the $6,000 amount is reduced, but not below zero, by 6 percent of modified adjusted gross income above $75,000 ($150,000 on a joint return). At that rate the reduction reaches the full $6,000 once MAGI is $100,000 over the threshold: $175,000 for a single filer and $250,000 on a joint return.

Hypothetical example, not an offer. A single filer age 66 with $95,000 of MAGI is $20,000 over the $75,000 threshold. Six percent of $20,000 is $1,200, so the deduction is $4,800 instead of $6,000 under the section 151(d)(5) phase-out.

How do you appeal a Michigan property tax assessment?

Michigan sets the appeal calendar in state law, so the steps are the same in every city and township.

  • Start at the March board of review: Under MCL 211.30, the board of review meets on the second Monday in March, or on the Tuesday or Wednesday after it when the city or township adopts that alternative start.
  • A residential protest generally goes there first: Except as the law otherwise provides, MCL 205.735a says a dispute over the valuation or exemption of property must be protested before the board of review before the Michigan Tax Tribunal acquires jurisdiction.
  • The Tax Tribunal deadline is July 31: For residential real property, the same section requires the petition to be filed on or before July 31 of the tax year involved. The Tribunal’s Small Claims Division publishes petition forms for valuation appeals and for principal residence, poverty and disabled veterans exemption appeals.

The yearly cap on a home you keep is also set at the state level. The State Tax Commission’s Bulletin 14 of 2025, dated November 18, 2025, sets the 2026 inflation rate multiplier at 1.027, a 2.7% change, and tells local units they cannot use any other multiplier in 2026. Its formula: 2026 capped value equals 2025 taxable value minus losses, times 1.027, plus additions.

Hypothetical example, not an offer. A home with $150,000 of 2025 taxable value, no losses and no additions has a 2026 capped value of $154,050 under that bulletin. Under MCL 211.27a, taxable value is the lower of that capped value and the current state equalized value, and property is assessed at 50% of its true cash value. In Michigan, a home’s taxable value is capped while one owner holds it. The year after it sells, that cap comes off and taxable value resets to the state equalized value, which is half of the assessor’s estimate of market value, not automatically half of what you paid.

That reset is why Samantha Shelton puts the buyer’s side this way: “So I stop the buyer and say, ‘Don’t build your budget around somebody else’s tax bill.’ That’s the simplest way I know how to explain it.” To estimate the new owner’s number for a specific address, use our Michigan property tax calculator. The Michigan Property Tax Uncapping Study explains the reset in more detail.

Which Michigan exemptions go beyond the principal residence exemption?

Two state exemptions can cancel more than school operating millage, and both are claimed locally.

  • Disabled veterans: Under MCL 211.7b, a homestead owned and used by a disabled veteran, or by a qualifying surviving spouse who has not remarried, is exempt from the collection of property taxes. The statute defines a disabled veteran as a Michigan resident whom the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs has found permanently and totally disabled as a result of military service and entitled to veterans’ benefits at the 100% level, has rated individually unemployable, or has certified for specially adapted housing assistance.
  • Filing for it: The City of Grand Rapids assessor asks for State Tax Commission Affidavit 5107, a copy of the DD214 and the VA letter, and notes that beginning January 1, 2025, the exemption, once granted, remains in effect until the owner removes it. MCL 211.7b(2) says the same: an exemption granted for taxes levied on or after January 1, 2025 remains in effect without reapplication until the owner rescinds it or the assessor denies it, and a new application is filed with the local assessing officer after January 1 and before December 31 of the year claimed.
  • Poverty exemption: MCL 211.7u lets the supervisor and board of review exempt, in whole or in part, the principal residence of an owner who by reason of poverty is unable to contribute toward the public charges. The owner generally applies every year, must own and occupy the home as a principal residence, and files the claim with the board of review along with the federal and state income tax returns of everyone living in the home.

An exempt tax is never billed, so it never becomes a paid tax you could deduct on Schedule A. Our homestead exemption filing guide walks through the principal residence exemption forms.

What can replace the expired energy credits in Michigan?

A state-run rebate program, where funds remain open. ENERGY STAR notes that, through December 31, 2025, the federal home improvement credit allowed homeowners up to $3,200 a year, the $1,200 general limit and the separate $2,000 limit combined.

The Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy (EGLE) runs the Michigan Home Energy Rebates (MiHER) program with federal Inflation Reduction Act funds. As of October 2026, its program page lists two pathways: HOMES rebates for whole-home efficiency work such as insulation and air sealing, sized by modeled energy savings, with $105.7 million allocated to Michigan, and HEAR rebates for electric equipment such as heat pumps and water heaters, for households at or below 150% of area median income, with $105.3 million allocated. The same page says new income-qualified applications in the Detroit, Warren, Grand Rapids, Lansing and Kalamazoo districts are temporarily suspended.

Before you book the work, our guides to a home energy audit and energy-efficient home upgrades help you rank projects, and how home improvements affect property taxes explains when new construction counts as an addition to taxable value.

How Align handles Michigan property taxes

The year after a Michigan home sells, its taxable value resets to half of the assessor's market value, so the seller's tax bill is not your tax bill. Samantha quotes the number you will pay, and she quotes it on the high side on purpose.

Veterans may owe far less. Michigan's Disabled Veterans Exemption removes property taxes on the home a qualifying disabled veteran lives in, and Samantha points eligible buyers to it.

Sources: Michigan Treasury, transfer of ownership and uncapping; Michigan Treasury, Disabled Veterans Exemption (MCL 211.7b).

FAQ: 2025 property tax law updates

Here are answers to common questions about updates to property tax laws.

What is the SALT deduction cap for 2025?

$40,000, or $20,000 if you are married filing separately. Above $500,000 of modified adjusted gross income the cap is reduced by 30% of the excess, but it never drops below $10,000. The cap applies to the combined total of your property taxes plus either state income tax or state sales tax, not to each of them separately. See our Taxes & Money hub for how the deduction fits the rest of your return.

Should I itemize now that the SALT cap is higher?

It depends on your total itemized deductions. Add your state and local taxes up to the cap, your mortgage interest, and your charitable giving, then compare the total to your standard deduction, $31,500 for joint filers in 2025. Homeowners who were previously stopped at $10,000 are the group most likely to flip to itemizing. Start with how mortgage interest deductions work, since that number usually decides it.

What is the extra $6,000 senior deduction?

It is a deduction of up to $6,000 per qualifying taxpayer age 65 and older, $12,000 on a joint return when both spouses qualify, available for tax years 2025 through 2028. It phases down above $75,000 of MAGI ($150,000 joint), and you can claim it whether you itemize or take the standard deduction. Our overview of the impact of new tax laws on homeownership covers how it interacts with the rest of the 2025 changes.

Do these federal changes lower my property tax bill?

No. Your property tax bill is set by your local assessor’s valuation and local millage rates, and federal law does not change either one. What changed is how much of that bill you can deduct on your federal return. To lower the bill itself, appeal your assessment or claim a local exemption such as Michigan’s principal residence exemption, our guide to how property tax assessments work explains where to start.

Can I deduct the transfer tax paid when I sell my home?

Not as a property tax. IRS Publication 530 says transfer taxes on the sale of a personal home are not deductible. A seller who pays them treats them as an expense of the sale, which reduces the amount realized, and a buyer who pays them adds them to the home’s cost basis. The seller net sheet calculator totals Michigan’s state and county amounts, and our capital gains guide covers how the amount realized feeds the gain on a sale.

Are HOA dues deductible as property taxes?

No. IRS Publication 530 says homeowners’ association assessments can’t be deducted as real estate taxes because the association, rather than a state or local government, imposes them. The same publication lists condominium association fees and common charges among costs you can’t deduct. Only taxes a government levies uniformly on real property for general public purposes count toward the SALT cap, so separate those lines when you total your closing and escrow statements.

What happens to my Michigan principal residence exemption when I move?

You generally give it up on the old home. MCL 211.7cc(5) says that not more than 90 days after the home stops being your principal residence, you file a rescission form with the local tax collecting unit, unless an exception in the statute applies. Missing it can bring a penalty of $5 a day, up to $200. The new home needs its own affidavit to carry the exemption.

Do I have to report a property tax refund?

Sometimes. IRS Publication 530 says a refund or rebate of real estate taxes you paid in the same year reduces that year’s deduction. If the refund covers taxes paid in a prior year, you may have to include some or all of it in income, and the publication points to the recoveries rules in Publication 525. Keep the refund notice with your return records.

The bottom line on 2025 property tax updates

The SALT deduction cap rose from $10,000 to $40,000 for the 2025 tax year, reduced by 30% of modified adjusted gross income above $500,000 and never falling below $10,000, with the cap and threshold stepping up 1% a year through 2029 before reverting to $10,000. Taxpayers 65 and older can claim up to $6,000 more for 2025 through 2028, whether or not they itemize. Two residential energy credits closed to property placed in service after December 31, 2025. None of it lowers the bill your assessor sends, that still takes an appeal or an exemption.

If you’re ready to see what your housing payment really looks like under the current rules, talk to Align Lending. We’ll shop your scenario across our lender network and re-run your escrow estimate with your actual tax numbers. Call 248-506-5727 or start online.

Footnotes:

1. This is general information, not tax advice. Whether any deduction or credit described here applies to you depends on your income, filing status, and property, and the amounts shown are the amounts in effect for the tax years stated. Consult a qualified tax professional about your situation. Return to text.

2. Example figures in this article are hypothetical and for educational purposes only; they do not constitute an advertisement of credit terms or a rate quote under federal or state lending laws, and they are not a projection of your tax result. Your deduction depends on your actual tax bills, income, and filing status. Return to text.

3. This four-line comparison is a simplified illustration, not a complete Schedule A. Other itemized deductions, including certain medical expenses and casualty losses in federally declared disaster areas, may also apply, and separate limits govern each. Work the full form with a qualified tax professional before choosing. Return to text.

4. Assessment appeal deadlines, board of review meeting dates, and exemption filing requirements are set by state law and administered by your local tax collecting unit; they vary and change. Confirm current dates with your local assessor before relying on them. Return to text.

Sources: SALT deduction limited to a combined total of $40,000 ($20,000 if married filing separately) across Schedule A lines 5a, 5b and 5c, subject to a modified adjusted gross income limitation but not reduced below $10,000, IRS Topic No. 503 and Instructions for Schedule A (Form 1040), 2025; reduction of 30% of modified adjusted gross income above $500,000 ($250,000 if married filing separately), and floor of $10,000 ($5,000 if married filing separately), Instructions for Schedule A (Form 1040), 2025. Statutory limitation amounts of $40,000 for 2025 and $40,400 for 2026, threshold amounts of $500,000 for 2025 and $505,000 for 2026, 101% annual step-ups through 2029, and reversion to $10,000 for taxable years beginning after 2029, 26 U.S.C. § 164(b)(6). Enacting legislation, Public Law 119-21, approved July 4, 2025 (An act to provide for reconciliation pursuant to title II of H. Con. Res. 14), U.S. Government Publishing Office. Enhanced deduction for seniors of up to $6,000 ($12,000 if married filing jointly and both spouses are eligible) for tax years 2025 through 2028, limited above $75,000 of modified adjusted gross income ($150,000 if married filing jointly), claimable whether the taxpayer itemizes or takes the standard deduction, and eligibility requirements including birth before January 2, 1961, IRS Publication 501 (2025) and IRS Newsroom. 2025 standard deduction amounts of $15,750, $31,500 and $23,625; additional standard deduction for age or blindness of $2,000 ($1,600 if married) per qualifying box; and $34,700 for married filing jointly where both spouses are 65 or older, IRS Publication 501 (2025), Tables 6, 7 and 8. Home acquisition debt limits of $750,000 ($375,000 if married filing separately) for debt incurred after December 15, 2017 and $1,000,000 ($500,000 if married filing separately) for earlier debt, IRS Publication 936. Residential clean energy credit of 30% and unavailability for property placed in service after December 31, 2025, IRS, Residential Clean Energy Credit. Energy efficient home improvement credit annual limits of $1,200 and $2,000, sub-limits of $500, $600 and $150, and application to qualifying property placed in service before December 31, 2025, IRS, Energy Efficient Home Improvement Credit. Principal residence exemption from local school operating millage up to 18 mills, Michigan Department of Treasury; affidavit filing deadlines of June 1 for the immediately succeeding summer tax levy and November 1 for the immediately succeeding winter tax levy, MCL 211.7cc(2). State education tax levied at a rate of 6 mills, MCL 211.903(1). Taxable value limited to the lesser of the prior year’s taxable value less losses multiplied by the lesser of 1.05 or the inflation rate plus additions, or current state equalized valuation, with taxable value set to state equalized valuation in the calendar year following a transfer of ownership, MCL 211.27a(2) and (3).

This article is for informational purposes only and is not intended to provide legal, financial, or tax advice. Tax provisions described here have scheduled expiration dates and are subject to change; deduction and credit amounts depend on your income, filing status, and property, and property tax bills, millage rates and exemption rules vary by jurisdiction. Confirm current figures with the IRS, your local assessor, and a qualified tax professional before acting. Figures shown are illustrative, are not a rate quote or an offer of credit, and are subject to change. Align Lending is an independent Michigan mortgage broker, NMLS #2041154.

Sources

Every outside source this guide links to, in the order it appears. How we choose and check sources

  1. Public Law 119-21, enacted July 4, 2025govinfo.gov
  2. A plain-language property tax law overviewNolo
  3. IRS Publication 936 rules on the mortgage interest deductionInternal Revenue Service
  4. Michigan’s principal residence exemptionState of Michigan
  5. IRS Publication 530 (2025)Internal Revenue Service
  6. Consumer Financial Protection Bureau
  7. Release IR-2025-103Internal Revenue Service
  8. 26 U.S.C. § 170(b)(1)(I)law.cornell.edu
  9. 26 U.S.C. § 151(d)(5)law.cornell.edu
  10. MCL 211.30Michigan Legislature
  11. MCL 205.735aMichigan Legislature
  12. Small Claims DivisionState of Michigan
  13. Bulletin 14 of 2025detroitmi.gov
  14. MCL 211.27aMichigan Legislature
  15. MCL 211.7bMichigan Legislature
  16. City of Grand Rapids assessorgrandrapidsmi.gov
  17. MCL 211.7uMichigan Legislature
  18. ENERGY STAR
  19. Michigan Home Energy Rebates (MiHER) programState of Michigan
  20. MCL 211.7cc(5)Michigan Legislature
  21. IRS Topic No. 503Internal Revenue Service
  22. 26 U.S.C. § 164(b)(6)law.cornell.edu
  23. IRS NewsroomInternal Revenue Service
  24. IRS, Residential Clean Energy CreditInternal Revenue Service
  25. IRS, Energy Efficient Home Improvement CreditInternal Revenue Service
  26. MCL 211.903(1)Michigan Legislature




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