FAQs

Michigan levies two transfer taxes on the sale or other transfer of real estate. A county transfer tax of $1.10 per $1,000 has been levied for many years. A state transfer tax of $7.50 per $1,000 was levied starting in 1995. There are numerous exemptions from these taxes, most relating to sales where no monetary value is attributed to the transaction or where the transaction is between family members or current co-owners of the property.

Michigan has fairly strict requirements for recording documents at the Register of Deeds Office. The principal requirements are:Documents must be at least 8 1/2″ by 11″ and no larger than 8 1/2″ by 14″There must be a 2 1/2″ margin at the top and a 1/2″ margin at the sidesThe document must be black ink on white paper (signatures can be in blue ink in Washtenaw County but nothing else!)The minimum paper weight must be 20lbs. (No thermal fax paper!)The [...]

Deeds are recorded to provide notice to the world that you own your property. Recording a deed at the Register of Deeds imparts “constructive notice” to the world that you own your property-everyone in the world is deemed by law to know of your interest. If you fail to record your Deed, only those people who have actual notice of your interest in the property know of your ownership. The deed is merely evidence of your ownership of the property- [...]

This is a tough question and the answer varies from case to case, as the “earnest money” serves several purposes: Showing the buyer is serious A lever to make the Buyer perform A form of liquidated damages to compensate the Seller should the Buyer fail to perform In the Ann Arbor area, earnest money deposits range from 1% to 4% of the sale price. The deposit is either held by the Buyer’s Realtor or the title company. Interest is [...]

Escrow is one of those phrases the professionals use to mystify consumers. It is a fluid term with several meanings. The most common are: A generic term for the entire closing process An agreement to hold funds/documents until certain events have occurred (e.g. we will hold funds “in escrow” until the Seller removes the junk car from the backyard.) an agreement to hold deposit for a specific use (e.g. we will “escrow” $150/month for payment of future taxes.) Don’t [...]