Property tax rates in D.C. vs. Maryland vs. Virginia split three ways: the District charges a flat $0.85 per $100 of assessed value with nothing layered on top, Maryland stacks a $0.112 state rate on county rates that produce combined bills from about $0.79 to $1.33 per $100, and Northern Virginia localities set their own rates in the $1.05 to $1.14 range but add an annual personal property tax on cars that the other two jurisdictions don’t charge. On a $600,000 owner-occupied home with no special exemptions, the rough yearly real estate bill works out to about $4,318 in D.C. after the homestead deduction, $4,750 to $7,990 in the Maryland suburbs depending on the county, and roughly $6,300 to $6,810 in Northern Virginia before the vehicle tax enters the picture.
The District of Columbia: One Rate, One Bill
D.C. is both a city and a quasi-state, so a single taxing authority sets the rate and sends the bill. The D.C. Council establishes rates annually by property class under D.C. Code 47-812.1D.C. Law Library. District of Columbia Code 47-812 – Establishment of Rates Owner-occupied homes fall into Class 1, taxed at $0.85 per $100 of assessed value.2DC Office of the Chief Financial Officer. Tax Rates and Revenues, Property Taxes On a $600,000 assessment, that produces a $5,100 bill before any homestead deduction.
Because no county or municipal layer sits between the homeowner and the District, the posted rate is the full rate. That makes D.C. easy to compare but also means there is no local variation to shop for within the District itself.
Maryland: State Rate Plus County Rate
Maryland is the only jurisdiction in this comparison that imposes a state-level property tax on top of local levies. The Board of Public Works sets that state rate under Maryland Tax-Property Code Section 6-301,3Maryland General Assembly. Maryland Code Tax-Property 6-301 – State Tax and it has held steady at $0.112 per $100 of assessed value for years.4Maryland General Assembly. Fiscal and Policy Note for House Bill 652 Every Maryland homeowner pays that floor no matter where they live.
The county rate stacked on top is where the real variation lives. For fiscal year 2026, Montgomery County’s county rate sits at roughly $0.674 per $100, bringing the combined baseline to about $0.79 per $100.5Maryland Department of Assessments and Taxation. 2025-2026 Tax Rates and Homestead Credit Caps Prince George’s County runs significantly higher, with a combined residential rate of $1.332 per $100 for FY2026.6Prince George’s County, Maryland. Tax Rates Approved FY2026
On top of that, special taxing districts for fire protection, transportation, and recreation can push the effective rate higher depending on the specific location within a county. Municipalities like Bowie or Takoma Park sometimes add their own levy. Two identical homes a few miles apart can produce very different annual bills.
Northern Virginia: Local Rates Only
Virginia’s constitution reserves real estate taxation to local governments. The state collects nothing on real property.7Virginia Code Commission. Virginia Code 58.1-3200 – Real Estate Subject to Local Taxation That removes the stacking that drives Maryland’s wide range, but rates still swing from one locality to the next.
For 2026, Fairfax County’s real estate tax rate is $1.1225 per $100 of assessed value.8Fairfax County. Real Estate Tax Rates Arlington County recently raised its rate to $1.053 per $100. The City of Alexandria charges $1.135 per $100.9City of Alexandria, VA. Tax Rates On a $600,000 home, the difference between Arlington and Fairfax alone comes to about $415 per year. Loudoun County farther west tends to run slightly lower, though rapid development keeps pushing assessed values up and blurring the savings.
Virginia’s Vehicle Tax: The Hidden Line Item
The real estate rate isn’t the whole story in Virginia. Every year, the county or city where your car is garaged sends a tax bill based on the vehicle’s assessed value. Neither D.C. nor Maryland charges residents this way. D.C.’s personal property tax targets commercial equipment, not resident-owned cars. Maryland exempts standard registered passenger vehicles entirely.
Virginia’s vehicle rates are steep. Fairfax County charges $4.57 per $100 of assessed value on most vehicles.10Fairfax County. Vehicle Tax Rate Alexandria’s proposed FY2026 rate is $5.33 per $100. On a car assessed at $25,000, those rates produce bills of roughly $1,143 in Fairfax or $1,333 in Alexandria before any relief is applied.
The state softens the hit through the Personal Property Tax Relief Act, which distributes $950 million annually to localities to subsidize vehicle tax bills on qualifying cars, motorcycles, and pickup trucks used primarily for personal purposes.11Virginia Code Commission. Personal Property Tax Relief Each locality’s share has been frozen since 2006, so the effective discount varies. The relief typically covers a percentage of the tax on the first $20,000 of assessed value, with the exact percentage set by where you live.
Even after the subsidy, a two-car Northern Virginia household can easily owe $1,000 or more a year in vehicle tax alone. That cost simply doesn’t exist across the river in D.C. or across the border in Maryland, and it narrows or erases Virginia’s rate advantage over the Maryland suburbs on paper.
Homeowner Relief That Changes the Effective Rate
Posted rates are applied after exemptions and deductions, and each jurisdiction structures that relief differently enough to shift the comparison.
D.C. Homestead Deduction
If you own and occupy your home as a primary residence in D.C., the Homestead Deduction shaves $91,950 off your assessed value before the tax rate is applied for tax year 2026.12DC Office of Tax and Revenue. Real Property Tax Reliefs, Credits, and Deductions The statute sets a base amount that rises each year with a cost-of-living adjustment.13D.C. Law Library. District of Columbia Code 47-850 – Residential Property Tax Relief, Homestead Deduction On a $600,000 home, that saves about $782 annually and brings the effective bill down to roughly $4,318. You apply once, and the deduction renews automatically as long as you stay in the home.
Maryland Homestead Tax Credit
Maryland’s version doesn’t reduce the assessed value. Instead, it caps how much your taxable assessment can increase in any single year. Every county and municipality must limit that annual increase to 10% or less,14Maryland Department of Assessments and Taxation. Maryland Homestead Property Tax Credit Program and many localities set their cap lower. In a hot market, if your home’s value jumps 30% in a reassessment cycle, the taxable value only climbs by the capped percentage each year until it catches up. The credit applies automatically to owner-occupied primary residences, though an initial application is required.
Virginia Local Programs
Virginia handles relief at the local level. State law authorizes every city and county to create property tax exemption or deferral programs for residents who are at least 65 years old or permanently and totally disabled.15Virginia Code Commission. Virginia Code Article 2 – Exemptions for Elderly and Handicapped Income and net worth ceilings vary by locality. Veterans rated by the Department of Veterans Affairs as having a 100% service-connected, permanent, and total disability qualify for a full exemption on their primary residence under state law, with no income or net worth test.16Virginia Code Commission. Virginia Code 58.1-3219.5 – Exemption From Taxes on Property for Disabled Veterans There is no general homestead program equivalent to D.C.’s deduction or Maryland’s assessment cap, so a typical Virginia homeowner pays on the full assessed value.
How Fast the Bill Reacts to the Market
Reassessment frequency determines how quickly a rising market shows up on your tax bill. The rate matters, but so does how fresh the number it’s multiplied by.
D.C. reassesses every property annually, with the Office of Tax and Revenue setting values as of January 1 each year.17Office of Tax and Revenue. Real Property Tax Administration The bill tracks the market closely in either direction.
Maryland uses a triennial cycle. The Department of Assessments and Taxation reappraises each property once every three years, with roughly one-third of accounts reassessed each year.18Maryland Department of Assessments and Taxation. A Homeowner’s Guide to Property Taxes and Assessments Between reassessment years, any increase phases in gradually rather than hitting all at once. Combined with the Homestead Tax Credit, this phasing can delay the full impact of a hot market by several years.
Virginia localities have discretion. State law provides a default cycle of every two years for cities and every four years for counties, but any jurisdiction with a qualified assessor can adopt annual or biennial assessments by local ordinance.19Virginia Code Commission. Virginia Code Article 5 – Reassessment Fairfax, Arlington, and Alexandria all reassess annually. All three aim for 100% of fair market value, so the assessed value on your notice should roughly match a reasonable sale price.
Which Jurisdiction Actually Costs Less
Raw rate comparisons are useful but incomplete. A lower rate applied to a higher assessed value can produce a bigger bill than a higher rate on a more modestly valued home, and Virginia’s vehicle tax quietly reshuffles the ranking for most households.
Running the same $600,000 owner-occupied home through all three systems: D.C. produces about $4,318 after the homestead deduction, Maryland produces $4,750 to $7,990 depending on the county, and Northern Virginia produces roughly $6,300 to $6,810 before vehicle taxes. Add a single $25,000 car in Virginia and the gap between Virginia and D.C. widens by another $700 to $1,000 or more. For a two-car household, Virginia’s effective total pulls close to Prince George’s County even though its posted real estate rate is lower than Montgomery County’s.
The cleanest approach is to estimate total annual cost (real estate plus any vehicle tax) for a specific property and household rather than relying on headline rate comparisons alone. Those differences compound over a 30-year mortgage.