Milwaukee property taxes

Paying in installments

If your tax is $100 or more, you can pay it in 10 monthly installments with no interest. Pay the first by January 31, then by the last day of each month, February through October. A payment that’s more than the first installment but less than the full tax puts you on the plan automatically.

• Miss January 31 and the plan is gone. The whole tax becomes delinquent, with 1% interest and a 0.5% penalty each month from February 1.
• Miss or underpay a later installment once, and you can get back on the plan by paying 1% interest on the missed amount along with the next installment. The second time, the whole remaining tax becomes delinquent, with interest and penalty back to February 1.
• Using your bank’s auto-pay? Installments aren’t the same every month. January is usually the largest, and August through October are smaller. Banks mail paper checks, so have them sent to the Office of the City Treasurer, City Hall Room 103, 200 E Wells St, Milwaukee, WI 53202, postmarked by the last day of the month.
• Not sure whether your mortgage company pays? Call your lender. If an escrow check doesn’t cover the full tax, add the difference or make a partial payment so the account goes on the installment plan.
• Pay online from a bank account with no fee, or by card for a 2.75% fee. You can also pay by phone at 414-286-2240, in person, by mail, or at the drop box inside the Market Street entrance of City Hall.

Check your bill for the lottery and gaming credit

This credit lowers the tax on a home that an owner lived in as their primary residence on January 1. Look for it below the Total and First Dollar Credit lines on your bill. The state estimated the average credit on 2026 bills at about $205.

• It isn’t automatic. An application has to be on file with the City Treasurer.
• Bought your home after January 1? You can still claim it if, to the best of your knowledge, the previous owner lived there on January 1. If the home was vacant on January 1, there’s no credit that year.
• Missing from your bill? Ask the City Treasurer by January 31, and the bill will be recalculated. After that, file a late claim with the Wisconsin DOR by October 1. Only the previous year’s bill can be claimed late.
• Buying on a land contract or holding a life estate counts only if the document is notarized within 6 months after January 1.
• If a home stops being your primary residence, file Form LC-400 within 30 days. Renters don’t qualify for this credit, but may qualify for the homestead credit below.

Apply online with the Wisconsin DOR or call the City Treasurer at 414-286-2240 for a form.

Homestead credit, for owners and renters

Wisconsin’s homestead credit returns part of the property tax or rent paid by households with income under $24,680. The largest credit is $1,168. Renters qualify based on rent they paid.

• You must be 18 or older and a Wisconsin resident for the whole year, and have earned income, a disability, or be 62 or older.
• Some people can’t claim it, including anyone who can be claimed as someone else’s dependent (unless 62 or older) and people in tax-exempt housing all year. The DOR fact sheet has the full list.
• File it with a Wisconsin income tax return or on its own, on Schedule H or H-EZ.
• Free tax sites can prepare it for you. VITA and AARP Tax-Aide volunteers prepare the homestead credit, usually early February through April 15. Bring photo ID, Social Security cards for everyone on the return, and all W-2, 1099, and other tax forms, plus a copy of your property tax bill, or a rent certificate signed by your landlord. Call 211 or use the IRS site locator to find one.

You can file for past years

A claim is due April 15, five years after the tax year. For example, a 2025 claim is due April 15, 2030.

Challenging an assessment starts in spring

The City usually revalues property every year and mails assessment notices in spring. When the tax bill arrives in December, it’s too late to object, and paying under protest doesn’t count as an objection.

1. Talk to an appraiser during Open Book, usually late April through mid-May. Call 414-286-6565, or visit City Hall, 200 E Wells St, Room 507.
2. File a written objection by 4:45 p.m. on the third Monday in May, or mail it postmarked by that day. Not receiving your notice generally isn’t accepted as a reason to file late.
3. An appraiser reviews the objection and may inspect the property. Refusing an inspection doesn’t stop your appeal, but the Board may consider a refused exterior inspection.
4. The Board of Assessors mails its decision. If you disagree, tell the Commissioner of Assessments in writing within 15 days of the date on that notice that you want a Board of Review hearing. Otherwise, you’re treated as accepting the decision.
5. Confirm your Board of Review hearing at least 10 business days ahead at 414-286-3742 or BoardReview@milwaukee.gov, or the objection may be dismissed.
6. Bring evidence of the property’s market value as of January 1. The Board must start from the assumption that the assessment is correct.
7. You can appeal the Board’s decision to circuit court within 90 days.

Look up any property’s assessed value.

Behind on property taxes

Call the City Treasurer at 414-286-2240 early. The Treasurer can’t waive interest or penalties, so every month adds cost.

1. The Treasurer sends a series of collection letters.
2. Unpaid accounts go to the City’s collection law firm for 12 months. The firm can set up payment arrangements, and can also seek a court judgment, wage garnishment, or rent attachment. A property the City finds vacant or abandoned skips this step.
3. One year after taxes become delinquent, the property can be included in a foreclosure action. About 3 months before the City files, it mails a pre-foreclosure letter with the payment needed to stop it. Owners and lenders are then notified by certified mail when the case is filed.
4. For 8 weeks after the notice is published, paying the full delinquent balance stops the foreclosure. A 4-week answer period follows, with only three allowed defenses.
5. If the taxes stay unpaid and no valid defense is raised, the court grants the City a foreclosure judgment, and the City takes ownership of the property.

Free legal help: Legal Aid Society of Milwaukee and Marquette Volunteer Legal Clinics.

Other charges that can land on your tax bill

• Water and municipal-services charges 180 days overdue as of October 1 may be added to the tax bill, with a 10% fee.
• Building code reinspection fees still unpaid when the tax roll closes in October are added to the bill. Once there, they can’t be appealed.
• A voluntary lead service line replacement not paid within 45 days becomes a special assessment on the bill, repaid over 15 years with interest.

Who handles what

Common questions