Genesee County residents may qualify for lower property taxes through HOPE program

GENESEE COUNTY, Mich.— In an effort to help residents remain in their homes, the Genesee County Treasurer's Office and the Genesee County Land Bank are working to connect people with the Homeowners Property Exemption program, commonly called HOPE.

Carma Lewis, community relations manager for the Genesee County Land Bank, said the agency would rather help keep families housed than see more vacant properties.

Lewis said many residents have trouble keeping up with property tax bills, but often do not ask for help.

“Pride gets in the way of people asking for assistance from family. They tend for people to not be in their business,” Lewis said.

Those who meet HOPE requirements may see their property taxes reduced.

Mid-Michigan NOW also spoke with Genesee County Treasurer Sam Muma for more details about the program.

Muma said eligibility requires household income to be at or below 200% of the federal poverty guidelines.

He added that the income standards can vary depending on the township, village or city.

“Take responsibility and do it, because we want the houses to have people living in them, that are paying taxes. If we don’t our services get affected. If the house goes vacant the crime goes up,” Muma said.

Muma said the program addresses current tax burdens, and his office will also try to help if someone owes back property taxes.

“If you get early on this., we can set you up a payment plan to take that money down so they can become qualified,” Muma said.

Applications for the HOPE program must be submitted by December 11.

For more information, click here.