Property tax in Somerset County, Maryland
In Somerset County, the property tax bill comes from the Somerset County Finance Department, Tax Collection Office. The Tax year July 1, 2026 to June 30, 2027 bill is paid in 2 installments, and the next one is due December 31, 2026. You can look up and pay the bill on the county's own payment page. Taken from Somerset County's own pages, checked September 23, 2026.
The median property tax bill in Somerset County, Maryland is $1,591 a year, which is about 0.92% of the county's median home value of $173,200. That effective rate is higher than the typical Maryland county (0.9%) and higher than the national median (0.81%). These are American Community Survey 5-year estimates (2024); your own bill depends on your home's assessed value and any exemptions.
Who sends the property tax bill in Somerset County, and how do you pay it?
The bill comes from the Somerset County Finance Department, Tax Collection Office. The value it is based on is set by a state agency, the Maryland State Department of Assessments and Taxation (SDAT), Somerset County assessment office, which is who to ask if the value looks wrong. For how to look up and pay the bill, go to the county's own payment information.
Maryland's SDAT, not the county, values every property and hears the first appeal; the county's Tax Collection Office in Princess Anne sends the county bill and collects it. The Town of Princess Anne sends its own town property tax bill, released July 1 and due September 30 and December 31. If you live in Crisfield, check with the city whether it bills its own tax separately. The county's online bill lookup and payment is run by Edmunds, an outside processor, linked from the county's tax collections page. Homeowners behind on their taxes can ask the state's Tax Sale Ombudsman about the Homeowner Protection Program before the June tax sale.
When are property taxes due in Somerset County?
For the Tax year July 1, 2026 to June 30, 2027 bill, Somerset County splits the bill into 2 payments, the first due September 30, 2026 and the last December 31, 2026. The next one due is the second semi-annual installment, on December 31, 2026. Under state law, an annual bill or first installment unpaid after September 30, or a second installment unpaid after December 31, is overdue. State law sets the interest on overdue Somerset County taxes at 1% for each month or part of a month until paid. Liens on delinquent properties are sold at the county's annual tax sale, held June 11, 2026 outside the county office complex in Princess Anne.
| Payment | Due | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Annual bill, or first semi-annual installment | September 30, 2026 (passed) | These are the dates Maryland law sets for every county; Somerset County's own pages do not print them, so check the dates on your bill. An owner-occupied home is billed in two installments by default, and the owner may still pay the whole year by September 30. Escrowed owners who want to pay annually must tell their lender in writing. |
| Second semi-annual installment | December 31, 2026 | Applies only to bills on the semi-annual schedule. Any service charge for paying in two installments is added to the second installment, must be printed on the bill, and does not apply if both installments are paid by September 30. |
From Somerset County's published schedule, checked September 23, 2026. The county had not posted a calendar labeled for this cycle when we checked, so these dates come from state law and the county's standing schedule; the date on your bill is the one that binds you.
Estimate the property tax on a home in Somerset County
Enter a home's market value for a ballpark at Somerset County's average effective rate of 0.92% (Census). The real bill depends on the home's assessed value, the millage where it sits and any exemptions.
Estimated property tax: $1,593 / year
Property tax in Somerset County at a glance
| Measure | Value |
|---|---|
| Median annual property tax | $1,591 |
| Median home value | $173,200 |
| Effective tax rate | 0.92% |
| Typical Maryland county rate | 0.9% |
| National median county rate | 0.81% |
Effective rate = median real estate taxes paid divided by median home value. Source: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-year estimates.
How does Somerset County compare in Maryland?
Among Maryland's 24 counties, Somerset County has the 9th highest effective property-tax rate: 8 rank higher and 15 rank lower. That is on the higher side for Maryland. Nationally, it ranks 1301st of 3135 US counties by effective rate. See every Maryland county ranked.
How much do homeowners in Somerset County actually pay?
The median is only the middle bill. Across Somerset County's 6,104 owner-occupied homes, 15.6% pay $3,000 or more a year in property tax, 32.7% pay at least $2,000, and 13.3% pay under $800. Another 5% report paying no property tax at all, which usually means an exemption covers the whole bill.
| Annual bill | Homes | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Under $800 | 813 | 13.3% |
| $800 to $1,499 | 1,884 | 30.9% |
| $1,500 to $1,999 | 1,105 | 18.1% |
| $2,000 to $2,999 | 1,044 | 17.1% |
| $3,000 or more | 952 | 15.6% |
| No property tax paid | 306 | 5% |
Owners with a mortgage pay a median of $1,762 and owners without one pay $1,372. Owners who have paid off a home have usually held it longer, and in states that cap how fast an existing owner's assessment can rise, long-held homes carry lower assessed values. Census table B25103.
How does the Somerset County property tax bill compare with local incomes?
The median property tax bill of $1,591 is about 2.2% of the median income of Somerset County homeowner households, $73,710 a year. That compares two middles, so a retiree in a long-held home can pay a far larger share. 73.1% of Somerset County's occupied homes are lived in by their owners; renters pay property tax too, just folded into rent.
Have property taxes gone up in Somerset County?
The survey cannot tell. The median bill was $1,557 in 2015-2019 and $1,591 in 2020-2024, but that $34 difference is inside the Census's own margin of error for a county this size, so it could be sampling noise rather than a real change.
Two Census ACS 5-year periods with no survey years in common, in each period's own dollars. A change counts only if it exceeds the combined 90% margin of error.
Property tax in counties next to Somerset County
Somerset County borders 6 counties, 2 of them across the state line.
| County | Effective rate | Median bill | Median home value |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dorchester County, MD | 0.94% | $2,456 | $262,400 |
| Somerset County, MD (this county) | 0.92% | $1,591 | $173,200 |
| Wicomico County, MD | 0.85% | $2,171 | $254,700 |
| St. Mary's County, MD | 0.84% | $3,424 | $407,600 |
| Worcester County, MD | 0.73% | $2,738 | $374,700 |
| Accomack County, VA | 0.48% | $985 | $204,300 |
| Northumberland County, VA | 0.47% | $1,645 | $346,800 |
How is a home assessed in Somerset County?
Maryland assesses homes at 100% of market value in every county, Somerset County included. How Maryland assesses and reappraises homes.
Is there a homestead exemption in Somerset County?
Not as an exemption. Maryland's Homestead Tax Credit caps how much your taxable assessment can rise each year: 10% for the state portion, and a cap each county and municipality sets between 0% and 10% for its own. That is the Maryland rule, and it applies in Somerset County. Maryland's exemptions and relief programs in full.
Somerset County does not add relief programs of its own beyond the Maryland ones (checked September 23, 2026).
How to appeal your Somerset County property assessment
In Somerset County you appeal to the Maryland SDAT, Supervisor of Assessments for Somerset County (the Supervisor's level hearing). The deadline: Within 45 days of the date on the assessment notice. A buyer whose purchase transferred after January 1 and before July 1 may appeal within 60 days of the transfer. In a year with no new notice, an owner may file a petition for review by the first working day after January 1. How to file. Checked September 23, 2026 against the official appeal rules.
How Maryland's appeal process works, including the next level if the first one turns you down.
Maryland rules from primary state sources, reviewed September 7, 2026; sources on the Maryland page.
Work out your own numbers
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How much house can I afford?
Your income, debts and down payment against the 28/36 rule lenders actually use, with Somerset County's tax rate to hand.
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Mortgage calculator
Monthly payment with principal, interest, tax and insurance, plus what an extra payment saves you.
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Maryland income tax
Brackets, standard deduction and what Maryland actually taxes.
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Sales tax in Somerset County
The other local tax: combined state and local rate for this county.
Sources
- Median real estate taxes paid and median home value for Somerset County, Maryland: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-year estimates (2020-2024), tables B25103, B25077, B25102, B25119 and B25003; the five-year comparison uses the 2015-2019 estimates. Neighboring counties: Census county adjacency file.