Blog · September 24, 2026 · Michigan
Grand Traverse County, Michigan GIS Parcel Map Guide
The Grand Traverse County parcel viewer is free. Use it for property lines and acreage from Old Mission to Interlochen, then get the county’s 2025 plat book or browse the free 1881, 1895 and 1908 atlases.
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Traverse City has become one of Michigan’s favorite places to live and vacation, and Grand Traverse County around it mixes bay shoreline, cherry orchards, vineyards, inland lakes, and state forest. The county’s official GIS parcel viewer is where you look up any of those properties before you get serious.
The county’s parcel viewer
Grand Traverse County publishes an ArcGIS Experience web map with parcel boundaries, aerial imagery, and property information. Search for a parcel or click the map, and you see its parcel number and details from the equalization and assessing records.
Platbookmapper keeps a dedicated Grand Traverse County directory page with the official link and our keyword guides, and you can find the county on the national map as well.
Search by address, owner or parcel number
- Open the Grand Traverse County GIS viewer.
- Search by address, owner, or parcel number.
- Click the parcel to see the parcel number, owner, acreage, and property class.
- Switch the basemap to aerial imagery to see shoreline, orchards, and woods.
- Check the township or city boundary so you know who handles zoning.
- Save the parcel number with a dated screenshot.
Grand Traverse County plat book: the 2025 edition and free 1881–1908 atlases
Grand Traverse County still publishes a printed plat book. The 2025 edition is sold by the County Treasurer’s office, in person or online. When we checked it was $40, or $44 shipped, and the county says it updates the book about every three years. Mapping Solutions published an earlier commercial edition in 2019. For history, the Traverse Area District Library’s local history collection has digitized county atlases from 1881, 1895 and 1908, and Michigan State University hosts the 1908 atlas as well. A Michigan Atlas & Gazetteer is the classic companion on two-tracks and forest roads.
Townships, zoning and the tax map
Michigan land is organized into cities, villages, and townships, and townships handle zoning in much of the state. Traverse City is the county seat and the only city; Kingsley and Fife Lake are villages. Everything else falls within townships such as Garfield, East Bay, Acme, Peninsula, Long Lake, Green Lake, Blair, Whitewater, and Paradise, among others. When you research a parcel, note the township, then look up its zoning ordinance and master plan. Our zoning overlays guide shows how to read zoning layers when they are available.
How to find property lines in Grand Traverse County
- Find the parcel in the viewer and note the parcel number, township and legal description.
- Pull the deed and any recorded plat or survey from the Register of Deeds.
- On lake lots, check how the plat describes the water line and any road-end or association frontage.
- Find the corner irons, or hire a Michigan licensed surveyor if they’re missing or disputed.
Bay shoreline and Old Mission Peninsula
Grand Traverse Bay’s two arms frame the region. Old Mission Peninsula, which divides the bay, is known for cherry orchards, vineyards, and wineries, and Peninsula Township has its own farmland-preservation efforts. Shoreline parcels are valuable, and details like frontage length, bluff height, and public road ends matter. Measure frontage from the map as an estimate, then confirm with a survey. Our guide on measuring lot size in a parcel viewer explains the limits of on-screen measurements.
Grand Traverse County acreage map: inland lakes, state forest and hunting land
South and west of Traverse City, the county is dotted with inland lakes — Long Lake, Green Lake, Duck Lake, Silver Lake, and more — and large areas of the Pere Marquette State Forest. Interlochen is home to the Interlochen Center for the Arts. Hunters, cabin buyers, and families looking for acreage use the map to find parcels next to state forest or on quieter lakes. Watch for private-road access and check whether a parcel borders public land that could open up recreation. Our vacant land guide has a checklist.
Deer hunters use the plat book or the viewer’s owner field to ask for permission on private land next to the state forest. Public hunting land on the Pere Marquette State Forest is mapped by the Michigan DNR.
Cherries, tourism, and a growing town
Traverse City calls itself the Cherry Capital of the World and hosts the National Cherry Festival every summer. Tart cherry orchards, wineries, tourism, healthcare, and a growing year-round population shape the land market. The Boardman River runs through town to the bay. Agricultural parcels on the peninsula and in the rural townships may carry farmland agreements or conservation easements, so check the recorded documents before assuming development potential.
Is the Grand Traverse County GIS map accurate?
For orientation, yes. For a boundary, no. Lakefront lots, old cottage plats and orchard land described by metes and bounds are where the viewer’s lines deserve the least trust. Deeds and plats are recorded with the Grand Traverse County Register of Deeds, and assessing is handled by each township and the city. A Michigan licensed professional surveyor sets boundaries. For the neighboring county to the north, see our Antrim County parcel map guide, and read the Michigan parcel map guide or browse the Michigan county GIS hub.
Tips, and quick fixes if the viewer won’t load
- Waterfront cottages sometimes sit on one parcel with a separate parcel for a garage or back lot across the road. Look up both.
- Michigan’s principal residence exemption appears on assessing records, and taxable value can change after a sale — ask the township assessor.
- For lake lots, check whether the frontage is on a private association or public road end.
The viewer is an ArcGIS Experience app. A blank white screen usually means an extension is blocking scripts. Try a private window or a different browser. The Grand Traverse County directory page always has the current link.
Who uses the viewer
Second-home buyers, retirees, Traverse City homebuyers, orchard and vineyard owners, builders, hunters, surveyors, and title examiners. Out-of-state heirs use it to confirm what a family cottage parcel actually includes.
Frequently asked questions
Where can I buy a Grand Traverse County plat book?
From the Grand Traverse County Treasurer’s office, in person, online or by mail. The current edition is 2025.
Is there a free Grand Traverse County plat book?
The current book is sold, but historic atlases from 1881, 1895 and 1908 are free online through the Traverse Area District Library. The parcel viewer is free for current ownership.
Who handles zoning in Grand Traverse County?
Townships and the City of Traverse City handle zoning in most of the county. Check which township a parcel is in.
Do property lines extend into the lake in Michigan?
Riparian rights and lakeshore boundaries depend on the deed, the plat and Michigan law. Ask a surveyor or real estate attorney about a specific lot.
Open the official Grand Traverse County GIS viewer Grand Traverse County in the Platbookmapper directory
Not a survey. County GIS and tax parcel maps are assessment and planning layers. They are not a substitute for a recorded plat, deed, or licensed survey — especially for fences, setbacks, or boundary disputes.