Delaware Property Taxes: Rates, Exemptions, and Assessment Appeals

Delaware property taxes are among the lowest in the country, with an average effective rate around 0.53% against a national average near 0.91%. The state itself levies no property tax. Your bill comes from your county, your school district, often a vocational-technical school district, and sometimes a municipality, each setting its own rate and billing against the taxable value your county assigns to your home.

What Makes Up Your Bill

A Delaware property tax bill is several taxes stacked together. The county charges a rate for general government services. The local school district usually accounts for the largest share. A vo-tech district may add a separate line for career and technical education. If you live inside city or town limits, a municipal tax covers services like local police or trash pickup.

Each authority sets its own rate, expressed as a dollar amount per $100 of assessed value.¹ School districts draw their taxing authority from Title 14, which lets them levy on assessed real estate to fund local education beyond state appropriations.² Because every rate is applied to the same county-set taxable value, your assessment drives everything.

How Delaware Now Values Your Property

For decades, Delaware used a base-year system. Sussex County had not reassessed since 1974, New Castle County since 1983, and Kent County since 1987.³ Two homes with identical current market values could be taxed very differently depending on what each was worth 40 or 50 years ago.

That has changed. House Bill 62 amended Title 9, Section 8306 of the Delaware Code to require every county to reassess all real property at fair market value at least once every five years. The clock starts from the date each county’s board of assessment certifies completion of a general reassessment. All three counties have now begun or completed their first reassessments under the mandate, so current valuations are replacing the old base-year figures.

Once your appraised market value is set, the county applies an assessment ratio to arrive at your taxable value. If the county uses a 50 percent ratio, a home appraised at $300,000 has a taxable value of $150,000. Every tax rate on your bill is calculated against that taxable value, not the full market value.

Exemptions and Credits That Lower Your Bill

Senior School Property Tax Credit

Homeowners age 65 or older can receive a credit equal to 50 percent of their regular school property taxes, up to $500 per year, on a primary residence.⁴

Eligibility turns on when you established legal domicile in Delaware. If you became a Delaware resident on or after January 1, 2018, you need at least 10 consecutive years of domicile before you qualify. If you established domicile between January 1, 2013, and December 31, 2017, you need at least three consecutive years. Residents who established domicile before January 1, 2013, are eligible immediately. The credit amount is the same for everyone who qualifies.⁴

Disabled Veteran Exemption

Veterans with a 100 percent service-connected permanent and total disability rating from the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, or 100 percent disability compensation based on individual unemployability, can qualify for a full exemption on their primary residence. The home must be owned solely by the veteran or jointly with a spouse. You apply in writing to the local taxing district with a VA award letter confirming the rating.⁵

Farmland and Agricultural Use Assessment

Land actively used for agriculture, horticulture, or forestry for at least two consecutive years can be assessed at its value for that use rather than at fair market value, which usually produces a much lower bill. The land must have produced at least $1,000 in agricultural sales during the prior calendar year, or the owner must have filed a Schedule F with the IRS for that year.⁶ Contiguous parcels held by the same owner in the same form of title count as one unit for the acreage calculation. You have to apply; it is not automatic.

Deadlines and Late Penalties

Delaware property taxes are generally due by September 30, though counties occasionally adjust the deadline for a given year.⁷ New Castle County extended its 2025 deadline to December 31 because of the reassessment.⁸ Check your county’s website before assuming September 30 applies this year.

Penalties vary by county and add up quickly. In New Castle County, unpaid county property taxes take a 6 percent penalty in the first month, school tax line items take 1 percent that first month, and every unpaid item accrues an additional 1 percent each month after.⁸ Sussex County charges a flat 1.5 percent per month on the unpaid balance.⁹ Counties accept payments online, by mail, or in person.

What Happens If You Don’t Pay

Delaware collects delinquent property taxes through a process called monition, and it can end with the loss of your home faster than most owners realize. Once taxes are delinquent, the taxing authority files a monition with the Prothonotary’s office. The Prothonotary issues a writ of monition and the Sheriff posts it on the property. You then have 20 days to pay the overdue taxes and costs.¹⁰

Miss that window and the county can obtain a writ of venditioni exponas authorizing the Sheriff to sell the property at public auction. There is one last chance after the sale: a 60-day redemption period during which you can reclaim the property by paying the purchaser the full purchase price plus a 15 percent premium and all court costs.¹⁰ After those 60 days, the sale is final.

How to Appeal Your Assessment

Deadlines Differ by County

If your assessed value looks too high, you can appeal to your county’s Board of Assessment. The deadline is strict and has nothing to do with when you received your notice. Kent County appeals are due by the last working day in January.¹¹ Sussex County’s 2026 filing window runs January 12 through March 15.¹² New Castle County has recently set its deadline around mid-March.¹³ Postmarks are generally not accepted. Your form must be physically received by the deadline.

Evidence That Actually Works

The strongest residential evidence is comparable sales data showing that similar homes nearby sold for less than your assessed value. Comparables should match on size, location, lot size, condition, and features. Foreclosures, bank-owned sales, and family transfers are not arm’s-length transactions and will not be accepted. Free online estimates from Zillow or Redfin do not count either.

You do not need to hire a professional appraiser for a residential appeal, though a formal appraisal makes a strong supporting document if you choose to get one.¹⁴ Photographs of damage, deferred maintenance, or other value-reducing conditions help. Each property needs its own application with its own documentation.

The Hearing and the Next Step

After you file, the assessment office reviews your evidence. In some counties, an assessor may reach out to discuss an adjustment before any formal hearing. If staff review does not resolve it, the Board of Assessment Review holds a hearing where you present your case to a panel, and the board issues a written decision.

If you disagree with the board, you can appeal to the Delaware Superior Court. Court appeals involve more formal procedure and stronger evidentiary requirements, so most owners at that stage retain an attorney or a property tax consultant. The cost only makes sense when the disputed amount is large enough to justify it.

The One-Time Tax When You Buy or Sell

Beyond the annual bill, Delaware imposes a realty transfer tax whenever property changes hands. The combined state and local rate is typically 4 percent of the sale price, split evenly between buyer and seller. The state portion is normally 2.5 percent and the local portion 1.5 percent, with the exact split depending on what the local jurisdiction levies.¹⁵

First-time buyers get a break. If you have never held any direct legal interest in residential real estate and intend to live in the home as your principal residence within 90 days of closing, your share of the state realty transfer tax is reduced by 0.5 percent on the first $400,000 of value, worth up to $2,000. The closing attorney applies the reduced rate once you qualify.¹⁶

1
Delaware Code Online. Delaware Code Title 9 Chapter 80 – County Tax Levy
2
Delaware Code Online. Delaware Code Title 14 Chapter 19 – Local School Taxes
3
Delaware Senate Democrats. Senate Approves Bill Requiring Countywide Property Tax Reassessments Every 5 Years
4
Department of Finance – State of Delaware. Senior School Property Tax Relief
5
Delaware General Assembly. House Bill 265 – Delaware Code Title 9 Section 8157
6
Delaware Code Online. Delaware Code Title 9 Chapter 83 – Valuation of Agricultural, Horticultural and Forest Land Use
7
Sussex County. Due Dates for Property Taxes
8
New Castle County, DE – Official Website. Tax Information and Forms
9
Sussex County. Tax Frequently Asked Questions
10
Delaware Code Online. Delaware Code Title 9 Chapter 87 – Monition Method of Collection of Delinquent Taxes
11
Kent County. Kent County Board of Assessment – Property Assessment Appeal Procedures
12
Sussex County. Guidelines for Filing an Appeal
13
New Castle County, DE – Official Website. Board of Assessment Review
14
New Castle County, DE – Official Website. Formal Appeals – Frequent Questions
15
Delaware Code Online. Delaware Code Title 30 Chapter 54 – Realty Transfer Tax
16
Delaware Division of Revenue. First-Time Home Buyer Tax Credit