Estimate your Maryland monthly payment
| Principal & interest | $3,287 |
| Property taxes | $650 |
| Homeowners insurance | $200 |
| Total estimated payment | $4,137 |
Loan amount: $520,000 · Down payment: $130,000 (20%)
Estimate only — not a quote, rate offer, or loan approval. Taxes and insurance vary by county, assessment, and policy; if you put down less than 20%, private mortgage insurance (PMI) may also apply and is not included here. This page asks for no personal information.
How Maryland property taxes work
Billed twice a year
Maryland property taxes are billed semiannually — two installments a year instead of one annual bill. If you escrow, your servicer collects roughly a twelfth of the expected annual tax with each monthly payment and pays each installment when it comes due, which is how the estimator above spreads taxes across the month.
Because there are two bills a year, the balance in your escrow account matters at closing: your initial escrow deposit is sized so the first semiannual bill can be paid in full.
The Homestead Tax Credit
The Homestead Tax Credit limits how fast the taxable assessment on your principal residence can rise from one year to the next, even when the market value jumps:
- State tax cap: 110% — the taxable assessment can increase at most 10% per year for the state property tax.
- County and municipal caps run from 100% to 110%, depending on where the home is.
- The credit is administered by SDAT (the State Department of Assessments and Taxation), and you must file an application to receive it — it is not automatic.
It does not transfer to a buyer. When a home sells, the new owner is assessed at the current value and starts accumulating cap protection fresh. A home whose longtime owner paid taxes on a capped, lower assessment can produce a noticeably higher first tax bill for the buyer — budget for taxes at full current value, not at the seller's bill.
Maryland closing costs: recordation & transfer taxes
Beyond your down payment and lender fees, Maryland purchases carry government taxes on the transaction itself. Two of them trip up buyers moving in from other states:
Recordation tax — set by each county
There is no state recordation tax rate in Maryland. Each county sets its own recordation tax, quoted as an amount per $500 of consideration, with the price rounded up to the nearest $500. The same purchase price can carry very different recordation taxes in different counties.
This page does not state a buyer/seller split for the recordation tax, because there isn't a universal one to state: the split is set by the contract. Confirm how yours is handled with your title company before closing.
State transfer tax — 0.5%
The Maryland state transfer tax is 0.5% of the purchase price, normally split 50/50 between buyer and seller.
First-time Maryland homebuyers buying a principal residence get a break: the buyer's half is waived, and the seller pays the 0.25% state share. On a $650,000 purchase, that waiver is worth $1,625.
Counties can add their own transfer tax on top of the state's — Montgomery County's is 1%, covered in the worked example below.
Conforming loan limits vary by county
Most of Maryland uses the baseline conforming loan limit of $832,750, but the high-cost counties around Washington, DC carry higher limits. Loans above your county's limit are jumbo loans, with different pricing and guidelines:
| County | Conforming limit |
|---|---|
| Montgomery, Prince George's, Frederick & Charles | $1,249,125 |
| Calvert | $1,209,750 |
| All other Maryland counties (baseline) | $832,750 |
Worked example: a $650,000 purchase in Montgomery County
Here is how the county recordation and transfer taxes stack up on a $650,000 owner-occupied purchase in Montgomery County, using the county's marginal recordation tiers (each tier's rate applies only to the slice of price inside that tier, per $500 of consideration):
| Recordation tax tier (per $500) | Rate | Tax |
|---|---|---|
| First $500,000 (1,000 units of $500) | $4.45 | $4,450 |
| Next $100,000 — to $600,000 (200 units) | $6.75 | $1,350 |
| Next $50,000 — to $650,000 (100 units) | $10.20 | $1,020 |
| Recordation tax, gross | $6,820 | |
| Less: first $100,000 exemption (owner-occupied principal residence, 200 units × $4.45) | −$890 | |
| Recordation tax, net | $5,930 |
| Tax | Amount |
|---|---|
| Montgomery County recordation tax (net, above) | $5,930 |
| Montgomery County transfer tax — 1% of $650,000 | $6,500 |
| Maryland state transfer tax — 0.5% of $650,000 | $3,250 |
| Combined recordation & transfer taxes | $15,680 |
First-time Maryland buyer? The combined total drops to $14,055. The $1,625 difference is exactly the waived buyer half of the state transfer tax (0.25% of $650,000). In Montgomery County the seller also pays the full 1% county transfer tax for a first-time Maryland buyer, unless the contract says otherwise — the county tax is normally split 50/50.
Who pays what still matters: the standard splits above are the usual starting point, but the recordation tax split is set by your contract, and any of these splits can be negotiated. Confirm the final allocation with your title company, and treat these figures as an illustration for this price and county — not tax advice.
Where Maryland buyers use this estimator
Adam works with buyers across Maryland, including the state's biggest metros and fastest-moving suburbs. Property taxes, recordation rates, and transfer taxes are set locally, so run the numbers for your county — and ask Adam how your county's rules change the picture:
Maryland mortgage questions
How are property taxes billed in Maryland?
Maryland property taxes are billed semiannually — in two installments rather than one annual bill. Your lender typically collects one-twelfth of the estimated annual tax with each monthly mortgage payment and pays the installments from your escrow account.
What is the Maryland Homestead Tax Credit?
The Homestead Tax Credit limits how fast the taxable assessment on your principal residence can rise each year. For the state property tax the cap is 110%, so the taxable assessment can grow at most 10% per year; county and municipal caps range from 100% to 110%. The credit is administered by SDAT (the State Department of Assessments and Taxation), and you must file an application to receive it.
Does the Homestead Tax Credit transfer when a home is sold?
No. The accumulated cap protection does not transfer to a buyer. A buyer is assessed at the home's current value and begins accumulating cap protection fresh from their own purchase, so a buyer's first tax bills can be noticeably higher than the seller's were on the same property.
Is there a state recordation tax in Maryland?
No. Maryland has no state recordation tax rate. Each county sets its own recordation tax, stated as an amount per $500 of consideration, with the price rounded up to the nearest $500. Who pays it — buyer, seller, or a split — is set by the contract, so confirm the split with your title company.
How much is the Maryland state transfer tax, and do first-time buyers pay it?
The Maryland state transfer tax is 0.5% of the purchase price, normally split 50/50 between buyer and seller. For a first-time Maryland homebuyer buying a principal residence, the buyer's half is waived and the seller pays the 0.25% state share instead. Counties may add their own transfer tax — Montgomery County's is 1%.
Want real numbers for your Maryland purchase?
This estimator is a starting point. Adam shops your loan across West Capital Lending's network of 175+ wholesale lenders and can walk through Maryland taxes, credits, and closing costs for the specific county you're buying in — no obligation, and no sensitive personal information needed to start the conversation.