Delta County, MI Property Records: Search Deeds, Owners, Tax Records, and Maps

The Michigan Freedom of Information Act authorizes the disclosure of Delta County property records by custodians, including the Register of Deeds, Equalization Department, and county or local treasurer’s offices. These custodians provide public access to property information for over 22,000 land parcels spread across the county's 1,991 square miles.

Properties listed for sale spend an average of 72 days on the market before getting offers, which is significantly slower than Michigan’s average. Detached single-family homes make up to 80% of the county’s housing inventory, featuring styles from ranch homes and bungalows to American Foursquares. Manufacturing, healthcare, agriculture, and tourism are the major industries that drive the county’s local economy.

Recent records reveal the underlying factors influencing the local real estate market, with a median home value of $147,500 and median rent of $664.5, alongside a median household income of $58,924 and a median real estate tax rate of 1.02 as a percentage of the property's assessed value.

How to Look Up Delta County Property Records

Delta County offers three online search portals for looking up property records. Each portal provides access to different types of property information maintained by the local and county offices that hold official real estate records. The portals require you to enter certain information to locate a parcel, such as the grantee or grantor name, liber/page, property address, recording date range, or parcel number.

Who Keeps Delta County Property Records?

Delta County ensures public access to property records as required by law under the Michigan Freedom of Information Act. The following county and local-level offices keep these records:

• The Delta County Register of Deeds is responsible for recording, indexing, and maintaining deeds, mortgages, liens, land contracts, and other instruments affecting real property.

• Each Delta municipality has an assessing department/office that handles property valuation and maintains assessment information for land parcels within its jurisdiction.

• The Equalization Department equalizes property values countywide to ensure fairness across all municipalities. It also maintains the county’s GIS and mapping data.

• Each municipality's local and county treasurer has a local office that holds property tax data. At the county level, the Delta County Treasurer maintains delinquent tax records and handles foreclosures.

How to Search Delta County Property Records Online

You can follow these steps to conduct a comprehensive property records search online:

1. Begin your search by locating the parcel through the BS&A Online portal to view the parcel ID and other property details. Enter the property address or owner’s name in the search query box to see matching parcels in the search results.

2. Visit the Register of Deeds Land Records Search to search for recorded real estate records maintained by the Register of Deeds. The database provides free online access to warranty deeds, liens, assignments, plats, and related filings. You can log in as a guest to search by grantee or grantor name or liber/page, but more thorough research requires you to create an account on the platform.

3. Obtain the property deeds through the Register of Deeds database to verify the chain of title. Each deed connects to the next through the grantee and grantor details. Ensure the ownership information matches chronologically, and note any gaps in the chain.

4. Check for mortgages, land contracts, and liens through the land records search system to review claims against the property. For more accurate searches, use the document category or document type filters.

5. Tax records maintained by the local treasurers and the Delta County Treasurer are accessible online through the BS&A Online portal. You can search for a tax record by the property address, owner name, or parcel number.

Register of Deeds: Deeds, Mortgages, and Plats

The Delta County Register of Deeds is responsible for recording real estate instruments and ensuring they meet Michigan’s recording requirements. Documents recorded by the office include:

• Warranty deeds, quitclaim deeds, and covenant deeds

• Mortgages, discharges, assignments, and land contracts

• Federal and state tax liens, construction liens, and judgment liens

• Easements, restrictive covenants, and powers of attorney

• Subdivision plats, condominium master deeds, and surveys

Per MCL 565.28, the Register of Deeds also maintains public indexes of recorded real estate instruments with reference information such as liber/page, instrument type, and grantee/grantor names.

Assessors and Equalization: Ownership, Values, and Parcel Data

The local assessor or assessing department in each Delta County city or township determines property values, while the Delta County Equalization Department ensures the values are equal across all municipalities.

A property’s State Equalized Value (Assessed Value) in Michigan is 50% of its True Cash Value, as appraised by the local assessor. However, the state calculates property taxes based on the property’s Taxable Value. Visit the county’s property search portal to obtain assessing records, including ownership information, acreage, parcel data, assessed values, taxable value, exemptions, and sales activity.

Treasurer’s Office: Taxes, Bills, and Payments

Under MCL 211.1, Michigan authorizes taxation on all real property statewide, including Delta County. Local city or township treasurers in the county issue property tax bills twice a year, typically in early July (summer bill) and early December (winter bill). Property owners must pay their bills by the municipal deadline to avoid late penalty fees and interest charges. Although deadlines vary across the county, summer bills are typically due in mid-September, while winter bills are due in February.

On March 1, unpaid taxes are officially “Delinquent,” and the local treasurers hand over such accounts to the Delta County Treasurer. Tax collections on delinquent accounts occur for about two years before the county Treasurer initiates the foreclosure process.

Property Tax in Delta County: Values, Exemptions, and Appeals

Property tax in Delta County is based upon the Taxable Value of the specific property, multiplied by the local millage rate. Your total property tax bill generally depends on the specific city or township where the property is located.

Proposal A and Uncapping

Michigan enforces property tax caps by limiting increases on a property’s Taxable Value. The annual increase in Taxable Value must not exceed the lower of 5% or the inflation rate. However, the property tax cap does not apply to the tax year following the sale of the property. The new owner will pay the property tax for that year based upon the property’s State Equalized Value (Assessed Value).

Under MCL 211.27a, certain property conveyances in Delta County do not trigger the Taxable Value uncapping. This includes the owner transferring non-commercial properties to a spouse, parent, child, sibling, grandparent, or grandchild.

Exemptions and Relief

Appealing Your Value

Property value appeals in Delta County go through the local March Board of Review. The property owner can submit a petition to the board to challenge the assessed value, alongside relevant evidence such as independent appraisals or comparable sales.

The board will review the appeal and issue a decision. If the owner is unhappy with the board’s decision, they can file another appeal with the Michigan Tax Tribunal.

GIS Maps and Parcel Viewer

The CUPPAD GIS portal provides online access to Delta County's Geographic Information System and parcel viewer. You can use the interactive map to identify land parcels in the county and view parcel information, including boundaries, zoning, acreage, sale history, assessed value, taxable value, and owner details. To search for a parcel on the portal, enter the parcel ID, owner name, or property address.

To access statewide GIS data, use the Michigan GIS Open Data resources.

Foreclosure and Tax Sales

Michigan handles the two categories of foreclosures with different processes:

Property-Tax Foreclosure

Property-tax foreclosure allows the county Treasurer to recover unpaid property taxes pursuant to MCL 211.78. The process takes about three years, with delinquent taxes collected for two years before the foreclosure occurs in the third year. The homeowner can redeem the property by paying delinquent taxes, penalties, interest, and associated fees before the county issues the final foreclosure judgment. After the foreclosure judgment, the county sells the property at public auction.

Mortgage Foreclosure

When a homeowner misses a mortgage payment, the lender can initiate mortgage foreclosure after the pre-foreclosure window passes and after the Notice of Sale is published. Per MCL 600.3240, the homeowner has 6 months from the date of the sheriff’s sale to reclaim the property by making the required payments. Note that Michigan does not sell tax-lien certificates to investors.

Costs to Access Property Records

Delta County charges certain fees to cover the cost of accessing property records, such as copy fees or recording fees.

MCL 600.2567 outlines the recording fees, while the transfer tax follows the state rate under MCL 207.525 and the county rate under MCL 207.504. You can confirm the exact fees by contacting the Register of Deeds.

How to Record a Document

To record documents in Delta County under the Michigan Recording Act, follow these steps:

1. Prepare the documents you wish to record, ensuring they comply with Michigan’s recording requirements and include required information, such as notary acknowledgment and grantee addresses. The document must be legible and typed/written in black ink.

2. Determine the recording fees by contacting the Register of Deeds or checking the fee schedule. Recording instruments cost $30 each, and a transfer tax of $8.60 per $1,000 of sale price applies to the grantor.

3. Submit the documents to the Register of Deeds in person, by mail, or through approved e-recording vendors. You must also obtain a tax certificate from the county Treasurer’s office to record a warranty deed, land contract, covenant deed, assignment of land contract, or personal representative deed.

4. Retrieve the recorded document if required. If submitted by mail, original documents are sent back to the return address, while recorded documents are accessible online through the county’s land records search portal.

FAQs

Quick Reference: Your Delta County Property Records Checklist

Key Contacts and Official Portals