Wayne County, Michigan property tax
The median homeowner in Wayne County, Michigan pays $2,794 a year in property tax on a home worth $170,200, an effective rate of 1.64%. The national effective rate is 0.98%.
What the rate means here
At 1.64%, Wayne County taxes property more heavily than the country as a whole, which sits at 0.98%. That combination is the usual one. Houses here are worth $170,200 against a national $303,400, and a smaller tax base has to be taxed at a higher percentage to fund the same schools and roads. Whether the state also leans on property tax by choice, as several do in place of an income tax, is a separate question the rate alone cannot answer.
Inside Michigan it is one of the most heavily taxed counties there is, ranking #2 of 82, against a statewide 1.28%. At the other end of the same state, Leelanau County charges 0.70%. A spread that wide inside one state is normal, because school districts, not states, set most of the levy.
The median home costs 2.86 times the median household income of $59,521, against 3.86 nationally, which is a comfortable ratio by American standards. 64.48% of occupied homes are owned rather than rented, and cheap housing relative to income is usually why. With 1,773,767 residents this is one of the larger counties in the country, so the medians here average across a genuinely varied housing market and hide a lot of local range.
The rate is derived rather than quoted. How and why.
What that costs at different home values
Arithmetic at the county effective rate, before any exemption or assessment cap.
Housing and income
| Wayne County | Michigan | United States | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Effective property tax | 1.64% | 1.28% | 0.98% |
| Median tax bill | $2,794 | $2,795 | $2,969 |
| Median home value | $170,200 | $217,600 | $303,400 |
| Median gross rent | $1,087 | $1,084 | $1,348 |
| Median household income | $59,521 | $71,149 | $78,538 |
| Home price to income | 2.86× | 3.06× | 3.86× |
| Rent as share of income | 21.91% | 18.28% | 20.6% |
| Owner-occupied | 64.48% | 72.92% | 65.02% |
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2023 five-year estimates. Population 1,773,767.
Nearby counties of similar size
| County | Rate | Median bill | Home value |
|---|---|---|---|
| Oakland County | 1.32% | $4,241 | $320,400 |
| Macomb County | 1.42% | $3,293 | $231,400 |
| Kent County | 1.14% | $3,028 | $265,700 |
| Genesee County | 1.40% | $2,417 | $172,900 |
| Washtenaw County | 1.56% | $5,505 | $353,000 |
Wayne County property tax: common questions
What is the property tax rate in Wayne County, Michigan?
The effective rate is 1.64% of home value, from a median tax bill of $2,794 against a median home value of $170,200. That is 0.66 points above the national 0.98%.
How much is property tax on a $400,000 home in Wayne County?
Roughly $6,560 a year at the county effective rate of 1.64%.
Is Wayne County expensive compared with the rest of Michigan?
It ranks #2 of 82 Michigan counties by effective property tax rate, and #240 of 2,826 nationally. That is 0.36 points above the Michigan average of 1.28%.
What does housing cost in Wayne County?
The median home is worth $170,200 and median gross rent is $1,087 a month. Median household income is $59,521, which puts the home at 2.86 times annual income and rent at 21.91% of it.