Chelsea property taxes & housing data
Chelsea is taxed at 47.0139 mills across 1 school district. That is 12.39 mills above the Washtenaw County median and 14.41 mills above the Southeast Michigan median — the 22nd lowest of 27 municipalities in the county, and 191 of 236 region-wide.
Rates by school district
| School district | Homestead | Non-homestead | $250,000 | $350,000 | $500,000 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chelsea School District | 47.0139 | 65.0139 | $5,877 | $8,227 | $11,753 |
Homestead (PRE) applies to your primary residence. Non-homestead applies to rentals and second homes. Dollar columns are the annual bill at the uncapped taxable value — half the purchase price — at the homestead rate.
How Chelsea compares in Washtenaw County
| Municipality | Lowest millage | Annual tax on $350,000 |
|---|---|---|
| Ann Arbor Township | 38.0586 | $6,660 |
| Pittsfield Township | 39.2007 | $6,860 |
| Ypsilanti Township | 45.1543 | $7,902 |
| Manchester | 46.2508 | $8,094 |
| Chelsea | 47.0139 | $8,227 |
| Saline | 48.5525 | $8,497 |
| Dexter | 48.9002 | $8,558 |
| Milan | 51.9861 | $9,098 |
| Ann Arbor | 52.6657 | $9,216 |
← Manchester (lower) · Saline (higher) →
For sale in Chelsea right now
21 active listings in Chelsea — the 6 newest below. Remember: every one of them uncaps the year after closing, so the bill you should budget is the uncapped one above, not the seller's.
$409,900
880 Machnik Drive · Chelsea
3 bd · 3 ba · 2,047 sqft
Listing courtesy of The Charles Reinhart Company
$650,000
633 Flanders Street · Chelsea
4 bd · 4 ba · 3,228 sqft
Listing courtesy of The Charles Reinhart Company
$455,365
631 Harvest WAY · Chelsea
3 bd · 3 ba · 2,603 sqft
Listing courtesy of M/I Homes of Michigan, LLC
$494,965
643 Harvest WAY · Chelsea
4 bd · 3 ba · 2,558 sqft
Listing courtesy of M/I Homes of Michigan, LLC
$415,000
920 Machnik DR · Chelsea
3 bd · 3 ba · 1,780 sqft
Listing courtesy of Higher Living Real Estate
$339,000
110 Village Place DR · Chelsea
3 bd · 3 ba · 1,740 sqft
Listing courtesy of Anthony Djon Luxury Real Estate
IDX provided courtesy of Realcomp II Ltd. via Match Realty LLC and Greater Metropolitan Association of REALTORS, Realcomp II Ltd, ©2026 Realcomp II Ltd. Shareholders. The accuracy of all information, regardless of source, is not guaranteed or warranted. All information should be independently verified. Listings refreshed 2026-11-02T23:11+00:00; refreshed at least twice daily.
Compare Chelsea with another community
Chelsea has 10 side-by-side comparisons, 6 of them with a community that shares a school district — same schools, different bill. Dollar columns are the annual homestead bill on a $350,000 home at the uncapped taxable value, and the last column is the difference against Chelsea.
| Comparison | Their lowest millage | Annual tax on $350,000 | vs Chelsea |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chelsea vs Sharon Township · same schools | 30.6024 | $5,355 | −$2,872 |
| Chelsea vs Freedom Township · same schools | 31.8786 | $5,579 | −$2,649 |
| Chelsea vs Lyndon Township · same schools | 34.1600 | $5,978 | −$2,249 |
| Chelsea vs Dexter Township · same schools | 34.4401 | $6,027 | −$2,200 |
| Chelsea vs Lima Township · same schools | 34.6260 | $6,060 | −$2,168 |
| Chelsea vs Sylvan Township · same schools | 34.7913 | $6,088 | −$2,139 |
| Chelsea vs Dexter | 48.9002 | $8,558 | +$330 |
| Chelsea vs Ypsilanti Township | 45.1543 | $7,902 | −$325 |
| Chelsea vs Saline | 48.5525 | $8,497 | +$269 |
| Chelsea vs Manchester | 46.2508 | $8,094 | −$134 |
Look up, pay and appeal your Chelsea taxes
Chelsea bills twice a year. The summer bill is issued July 1 and the winter bill December 1; most communities make them due September 14 and February 14, and anything still unpaid on March 1 moves to the county treasurer as delinquent, with interest added monthly. Both bills are collected by the Chelsea treasurer, so the balance on a specific parcel is on the city or township site first (most of Southeast Michigan uses BS&A Online for this) and on the county site once it is late.
- Washtenaw County current tax search — parcel and tax search for Washtenaw County addresses.
- Washtenaw County Treasurer — where a bill goes once it is delinquent: balances, payment plans and the hardship deferral.
- Estimate a bill before you look one up — the figure on the current owner's statement is capped; this gives you the uncapped one.
Appealing the assessment
Assessment notices go out in late February. If the assessed value is more than half of what the house would actually sell for, the appeal runs in two steps and the first one cannot be skipped: the March Board of Review in Chelsea (dates and the petition form are on the assessor's notice), then, if the board does not move, a petition to the Michigan Tax Tribunal by July 31 for residential property. The July and December boards do not re-value: they correct qualified errors (clerical mistakes, mutual mistakes of fact, a wrong principal residence exemption) and hear poverty exemptions. A successful appeal lowers the assessed value, not the millage — the 47.0139 mills above apply to whatever value stands after it.
A home bought this year is a special case: the taxable value uncaps to the assessed value next year regardless of the appeal, so the number to check on the first notice after closing is the assessed value against the price you paid.
What it's like to own in Chelsea
Beyond the tax rate, three things shape what owning in Chelsea actually costs: the age of the homes, what the water utility reports at the tap, and what local air testing has turned up. Each figure below carries the date of the survey it came from.
Housing stock
1956
average year built · 1,739 sqft average across 1,495 single-family homes
SEMCOG Buildings_2024
Lead in drinking water
0 ppb
90th percentile for Chelsea · below Michigan's 12 ppb action level. Standard sampling — not comparable to systems that sample at the fifth liter.
EGLE / MDHHS water-system monitoring, periods ending 2025-12-31
Radon
4.84 pCi/L
average across 529 home tests · 48% above the EPA 4 pCi/L action level — elevated. ZIP 48118.
MDHHS indoor radon test results by ZIP
Lead is measured at the water system, not the house — it cannot tell you whether a specific property has a lead service line. Radon is a ZIP-level test distribution, not a prediction for any one home; the EPA recommends testing every home regardless. Screening information only.
Common questions
What is the property tax rate in Chelsea, Michigan?
Chelsea is taxed at 47.0139 mills for a homestead (principal residence) under the official 2025 Michigan Department of Treasury millage report. On a $350,000 home at the uncapped taxable value that is about $8,227 a year.
Does the tax rate change by address within Chelsea?
No. All of Chelsea sits in Chelsea School District, so the millage is 47.0139 at every address in the municipality. Your bill still changes after you buy, because it is recalculated on the uncapped taxable value rather than the seller's capped one.
How much are property taxes on a $350,000 home in Chelsea?
About $8,227 a year at the homestead rate. Michigan taxes the taxable value, not the sale price, and after a sale that value uncaps to roughly half what you paid — so $350,000 is taxed on about $175,000.
Why is the tax bill on a Chelsea listing lower than what I would pay?
Because the figure on the listing is the seller's. Michigan caps annual taxable-value growth while an owner keeps the property, and that cap is removed the year after it sells. The longer the seller owned it, the further their bill sits below yours.
How does Chelsea compare with the rest of Washtenaw County?
It is the 22 lowest of 27 municipalities in Washtenaw County and 191 of 236 across the eight-county region — 12.39 mills above the county median.
How do I look up or pay my Chelsea property tax bill?
Summer and winter bills are collected by the Chelsea treasurer, so the balance on a parcel is on the municipality's own site (usually BS&A Online). Once a bill is delinquent — March 1 — it moves to the Washtenaw County Treasurer, whose parcel search covers every address in the county.
How do I appeal my Chelsea property tax assessment?
Petition the Chelsea March Board of Review first — the dates are on the assessment notice mailed in late February — and, if that fails, the Michigan Tax Tribunal by July 31 for residential property. The board step is mandatory; the Tribunal will not hear a residential appeal that skipped it. An appeal changes the assessed value, not the millage (47.0139 mills).
What your Chelsea taxes become after you buy
Michigan taxable value uncaps the year after a sale and resets to roughly half the purchase price. The calculator below is already set to Chelsea — enter a price and the seller's current taxable value.
Uncapping calculator
When a Michigan home changes hands, its taxable value uncaps the following year and resets to roughly half the sale price. Buyers routinely get blindsided by a bill that's thousands higher than the listing showed. Here's your actual number.
What will your tax bill be after closing?
Your taxable value uncaps the year after closing and resets to roughly half the purchase price — so a $350,000 home is taxed on about $175,000, whatever the seller was paying. Enter the price and the current taxable value below.