Baltimore County property tax is charged at $1.10 per $100 of assessed value, with a separate Maryland state property tax of about $0.112 per $100 added to the same bill.1Baltimore County. Tax Rates For Baltimore County A home assessed at $300,000 therefore owes roughly $3,300 to the county and about $336 to the state before any credits are applied. Bills go out at the start of the fiscal year on July 1, and most owner-occupied homes are placed on a semi-annual payment schedule automatically.
What Shows Up on Your Bill
The county rate is set each year by the Baltimore County Council during its budget process and has held at $1.10 per $100 of assessed value. Your assessed value comes from the Maryland Department of Assessments and Taxation (SDAT), which reappraises every property in the state once every three years using sales comparisons, construction costs, and rental income for income-producing properties.2Maryland Department of Assessments and Taxation. Real Property When an appraisal raises your value, Maryland law phases the increase in over three years, so a $30,000 jump is added to your taxable assessment in $10,000 increments.3Maryland Department of Assessments and Taxation. A Homeowner’s Guide to Property Taxes and Assessments Decreases apply right away with no phase-in.
If your property is inside the Baltimore County metropolitan district and connects to public water and sewer, your July bill also carries benefit assessment charges that recover the cost of installing the mains. For a typical residential lot these run about $2.00 per front foot for sewer and $1.20 per front foot for water, spread over 40 years.4Baltimore County Government. Metropolitan District Rates Separate annual charges for water distribution (by meter size) and sewer service (by usage) ride along on the same statement. New owners are often surprised by these line items because they look like utility bills but arrive bundled with property tax.
Payment Deadlines and How to Pay
The tax year runs July 1 through June 30. Owner-occupied homes are billed in two installments:
- First installment: due July 1, payable without penalty through September 30.5Baltimore County Government. Payment Schedules
- Second installment: billed December 1, payable without penalty through December 31. Anything unpaid after December 31 is delinquent and starts accruing interest and penalties.
You can pay online through the county’s tax search and payment portal using electronic check for a $0.95 convenience fee, or by credit or debit card for a 2.39% convenience fee.6Baltimore County. Payment Options On a $3,300 bill, the card fee adds about $79, so e-check is substantially cheaper. Checks and money orders can be mailed to the Office of Budget and Finance, or you can pay in person at the Taxpayer Services Office in the Historic Courthouse, 400 Washington Avenue, Room 150, Towson, Maryland 21204, Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Online payments take two to five business days to post, so leave a cushion if you are paying close to a deadline.
If your mortgage lender escrows your taxes, pay attention: the county mails the bill to the owner on record, not to the lender. Forward the amounts and due dates to your mortgage company yourself. The county also will not send a second-installment bill when the first installment was paid from escrow, so confirm your lender has the December payment scheduled. Paying off a mortgage mid-year? Call Taxpayer Services for the second-installment details. If you want your lender to pay the full year at once rather than semi-annually, notify them at least 60 days before July 1.
Credits That Can Lower Your Bill
Homestead Tax Credit
The Homestead Tax Credit caps the annual increase in the taxable assessment on an owner-occupied primary residence at 4% in Baltimore County, no matter how much market value climbed.7Maryland General Assembly. Maryland Code Tax-Property 9-105 – Homestead Property Tax Credit The state default is 10%; the county has chosen the stricter 4% ceiling. The credit is not automatic. You file a one-time application with SDAT confirming the home is your principal residence, and once approved you stay enrolled until you sell or change use.8Maryland Department of Assessments and Taxation. Maryland Homestead Property Tax Credit Program If you never file, you never get it.
Homeowners’ Property Tax Credit
This credit is income-based and open to homeowners of any age whose tax bill is large relative to household income. The state formula limits the share of your gross household income (Social Security and pensions included) that should go to property taxes, and the credit covers the gap. You file Form HTC every year.9Maryland Department of Assessments and Taxation. Homeowners’ Property Tax Credit Program The final deadline for the 2026 application is October 1, but filing by April 15 gets the credit applied directly to your July bill instead of refunded later.10Maryland OneStop. Homeowners’ Property Tax Credit Application Form 2026
Disabled Veteran Relief
Maryland offers tiered property tax relief for disabled veterans, applied through SDAT with a discharge certificate and VA disability rating:
- Veterans with a permanent, 100% service-connected disability are fully exempt from property tax on the dwelling and surrounding yard under Maryland Tax-Property ยง7-208.11Maryland General Assembly. Maryland Code Tax-Property 7-208 – Dwelling House Owned by Disabled Veteran
- Veterans rated 75% or higher who do not qualify for the full exemption get a 50% credit on county and municipal property taxes.
- Veterans rated 50% to 74% get a 25% credit on county and municipal property taxes.12Department of Veterans and Military Families. Tax Exemptions
A surviving spouse of a qualifying veteran can continue to receive the exemption while unmarried and using the home as a principal residence.
If You Think the Assessment Is Too High
Your assessment notice from SDAT is the trigger for any challenge. You have 45 days from the date on the notice to file an appeal, and missing the window locks you into that value for the full three-year cycle.13Maryland Department of Assessments and Taxation. Assessment Appeal Process Most homeowners resolve things at the first stage, an informal supervisor’s hearing of roughly 15 minutes with a local assessor. Bring recent comparable sales, photos of damage, and anything else that supports a lower value. The hearing is free and no lawyer is needed. If you disagree with the outcome, you have 30 days to appeal to the Property Tax Assessment Appeal Board, and beyond that to the Maryland Tax Court, where evidence is formally exchanged and a decision issues in about a month.
If You Fall Behind
Interest and penalties begin running on any balance left after December 31. Partial payments are accepted through the end of February and will shrink the balance that interest is calculated on, though they do not stop interest from accruing.14Baltimore County Government. Late or Unpaid Taxes Partial payments must be made by mail or in person, not online, and the county sends a shortage bill after each one.
Homeowners facing genuine hardship can apply to the county’s Hardship Installment Payment Program by the end of February to keep their property out of the annual tax sale. Eligibility turns on your financial situation and ability to repay.
Unresolved delinquent balances go to the annual tax lien sale. Before the sale, the county mails a Final Tax Sale Notice giving you 30 days to pay, and the sale is advertised in the newspaper once a week for four consecutive weeks.15Baltimore County Government. Tax Sale An outside investor bids on the right to pay your delinquent taxes. You keep ownership at that point, but to redeem you have to pay the investor the delinquent amount plus interest and fees, and if you fail to redeem within the statutory period the investor can eventually foreclose.