City of Marietta Property Tax: Rates, Exemptions, and Appeals

Marietta property tax is billed by two separate authorities — the City of Marietta and the Marietta City Schools system — and is calculated on 40 percent of your home’s fair market value. The city bill is due October 31 each year, and missing that date triggers a 5 percent penalty plus monthly interest.¹² Cobb County sends you a separate bill for county services, due October 15.³

How Your Bill Is Calculated

The Cobb County Board of Tax Assessors sets the fair market value of every parcel inside Marietta city limits.⁴ Georgia law then fixes your taxable assessed value at exactly 40 percent of that number.⁵

The math is simple. A home with a fair market value of $400,000 has an assessed value of $160,000. Multiply that assessed value by the combined city and school millage rate, subtract any exemptions you qualify for, and you have your tax bill. A mill equals one dollar of tax for every $1,000 of assessed value.

Millage Rates

Both the Marietta City Council and the Marietta City Schools Board of Education adopt their own millage rates each year, typically finalized in late summer before bills go out. The school district’s rate was 17.97 mills as of the most recently published figure.⁶ When a proposed rate would push collections above the rollback rate — the rate that would produce the same revenue as the prior year on the existing digest — state law requires at least three public hearings before the rate can be adopted.⁷ Rates can change each budget cycle, so check your current tax bill or the City of Marietta Tax Division page for the exact figures that apply to your bill.

Homestead and Other Exemptions

Exemptions reduce the assessed value that gets taxed, and many Marietta homeowners never apply. To qualify for any homestead exemption, you must own and occupy the property as your primary residence on January 1 of the tax year.⁸ A Georgia driver’s license showing the property address is standard proof of residency.⁹

Standard Homestead

The basic Marietta homestead exemption takes $4,000 off your assessed value regardless of age or income.¹⁰ Depending on the millage rate, that saves roughly $100 to $200. There is no reason to skip it.

Senior Exemption

Homeowners who are 62 or older, or totally disabled, can claim an additional $2,000 off their assessed value if the total household income of everyone living in the home does not exceed $5,000 per year, excluding certain income as allowed by law.¹⁰ Separately, residents 62 and older may qualify for a Cobb County school tax exemption, which does not carry the same income threshold.⁹ Bring proof of age when you apply.

Disabled Veteran Exemption

Veterans rated at 100 percent disability, or compensated at the 100 percent level, by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs can apply for a separate exemption. You will need a letter from the VA confirming the qualifying disability, or discharge papers from military records. The exemption passes to the un-remarried surviving spouse or minor children as long as they continue living in the home.¹¹

When to File

The traditional Georgia deadline to file a homestead exemption application is April 1. You can also now apply during the 45-day window after receiving your annual assessment notice.⁸ If you bought your home mid-year, you will not qualify until January 1 of the following year. Application forms are available through the City of Marietta’s Exemptions page and at the Tax Division on the first floor of City Hall.¹¹

How to Pay

City property taxes are due October 31.¹ The city offers three payment methods:

Online through the City of Marietta’s payment portal. E-checks are free; credit cards carry a 2.65 percent service fee, which adds about $80 to a $3,000 bill.¹²
By mail, with a check or money order sent to the City of Marietta Tax Division. Include the payment stub so the payment is credited to the right parcel.
In person at the Tax Division on the first floor of Marietta City Hall during regular business hours.¹

Citing reports of mail theft in the area, the city recommends paying online by e-check when possible.¹ Your parcel ID is printed on your tax bill and your assessment notice, and you can also look it up by address through the city’s online portal.

If Your Mortgage Includes Escrow

If your lender collects taxes through an escrow account, the lender pays the city directly. Review your annual escrow analysis statement to confirm the estimated amount was accurate. A jump in your assessed value can leave your escrow short, which means either a lump-sum shortage payment or a higher monthly mortgage payment the following year. The tax bill is still your legal responsibility, so confirm each year that it was actually paid.

Late Penalties and Non-Payment

Missing the October 31 city deadline is expensive. Georgia law imposes a 5 percent penalty on the unpaid balance, plus interest for each month it remains outstanding. If the balance is still unpaid after 120 days, another 5 percent penalty is added, and the cycle repeats every 120 days until total penalties reach a cap of 20 percent of the original tax. Interest keeps running on top of that cap.² A $3,000 bill left unpaid for a year can easily grow past $3,800.

For Cobb County taxes that go unpaid, the Tax Commissioner can levy the property and sell the tax deed at auction. The opening bid is the amount of tax owed plus penalties and costs. Cobb County sells the deed itself rather than a tax lien, so the buyer acquires a legal claim to the property.¹³ If you are struggling to pay, contact the Tax Division before the deadline. Partial payments are accepted, though any balance remaining after the due date still triggers penalties.

Appealing an Assessment You Think Is Too High

If your assessed value looks wrong, you have 45 days from the date the Cobb County Board of Tax Assessors mails your annual notice to file a written appeal.¹⁴ The deadline is strict. Miss it, and the assessed value stands for the whole tax year.

In your initial written appeal, you have to select how you want the dispute resolved:¹⁵

Board of equalization, a panel that hears appeals on value, taxability, and uniformity. This is the usual route for homeowners.
Arbitration, in which an arbitrator decides value only.
Hearing officer, available only for non-homestead real property valued above $500,000.

If you pick the board of equalization, the board must schedule a hearing within 15 days of receiving your appeal and hold it 20 to 30 days after notifying you of the date.¹⁵ You can appear yourself, send a representative, or both. Bring recent comparable sales showing your home is overvalued. The board announces its decision at the end of the hearing.

File with the Cobb County Board of Tax Assessors, not the Georgia Department of Revenue and not the City of Marietta. If the board accepts electronic submissions you can email the appeal; otherwise, mail or hand-deliver it.¹⁴

Federal Deduction for Property Taxes

You can deduct Marietta property taxes on your federal return only if you itemize instead of taking the standard deduction.¹⁶ For the 2026 tax year, the standard deduction is $16,100 for single filers and $32,200 for married couples filing jointly.¹⁷ Itemizing is worth it only when your combined deductible expenses — property taxes, mortgage interest, state income taxes — exceed that amount.

Property tax falls under the federal state and local tax (SALT) deduction, which has been capped since 2018. Legislation passed in 2025 raised that cap for the 2026 tax year, and most Marietta homeowners will find their combined property and state income tax deductions fall within the available limit. Keep your tax bill and payment records; you will need them to document the deduction.¹⁶

1
City of Marietta. Tax Division
2
Justia. Georgia Code 48-2-44 – Penalty and Interest on Failure to Pay
3
Cobb County Tax Commissioner. Property FAQ – Cobb Taxes
4
Cobb County Georgia. Tax Assessors Office
5
FindLaw. Georgia Code Title 48 Revenue and Taxation 48-5-7
6
City of Marietta. Property Tax
7
Justia. Georgia Code 48-5-32.1 – Certification of Assessed Taxable Value of Property and Method of Computation
8
Georgia Department of Revenue. Property Tax Homestead Exemptions
9
Cobb County Tax Commissioner. Exemptions – Property Taxes
10
City of Marietta. Deadline to File Homestead Exemption
11
City of Marietta. Exemptions
12
City of Marietta. Property Tax Search Pay Bill
13
Cobb County Tax Commissioner. Tax Sales – Cobb Property
14
Georgia Department of Revenue. PT-311A Appeal of Assessment Form
15
Justia. Georgia Code 48-5-311 – Creation of County Boards of Equalization
16
Internal Revenue Service. New and Enhanced Deductions for Individuals
17
Internal Revenue Service. IRS Releases Tax Inflation Adjustments for Tax Year 2026