# Family farm Question?



## FishDrown (Mar 31, 2013)

Are taxes less on a family farm then on a residential property in Michigan? If not are there any reasons to even bother getting the status of the property changed? Its just a homestead farm with no revenue coming in.


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## SheepGirl (Mar 31, 2013)

I know in Maryland (at least my county), if you are agriculturally zoned and you use it for agricultural purposes, you get a property tax break.


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## michickenwrangler (Mar 31, 2013)

I don't know.

My property is partly zoned residential, partly industrial (whenever the neighbors complain about the goats or roosters, we threaten to put in a power plant). I am also the widow of a war veteran (yes, that is a real break). I don't pay much 

You could always call your township or local zoning board. You would probably have to get rezoned for ag usage which may also entail more scrutiny with drainage and other issues. My friends in Prescott run a boarding stable and they had to fight to get it zoned agricultural instead of commercial. Luckily, they have a lot of oak on their property and managed to get themselves zoned as a log farm. This may be an option for you depending on if your land is wooded or not.

How many outbuildings and what size do you have? Are any of them considered non-permanent? Ie on skids or cinder blocks. How many acres is your property? What county are you in? Some are more ag friendly than others. For example, Saline WANTS to maintain a bucolic countryside so they  lessened the requirement for a horse boarding facility from 20 acres to 10 acres. 

Welcome, fellow Michiganiac!


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## kstaven (Apr 1, 2013)

In many areas you have to prove income to get farm status and the tax breaks that go with it.


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## ourflockof4 (Apr 1, 2013)

I don't know about Michigan, but in Ohio you need more then 10 acres to be abe to sign up for a CAUV reduction, or to show proof of $1,000 income per year if less then 10 acres.


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## fair weather chicken (Apr 1, 2013)

just looked on our tax bill, we have the homestead exemption, which gives us 100% on school operating millage. don't know if this  helps.


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