Maryland · County property tax · ACS 2024
Dorchester County Property Taxes
The median homeowner in Dorchester County pays $2,456 a year, an effective rate of 0.94%, notably higher than the U.S. average.
- $2,456
- Median tax / yr · High bill
- 0.94%
- Effective rate · Above-median rate
- +23%
- vs U.S. average
- #8 of 24
- rank in MD
The verdict
Homeowners in Dorchester County pay a median $2,456 a year in property tax, an effective rate of 0.94%, more affordable than 40% of U.S. counties (Census ACS 2024).
- $2,456
- Median annual tax bill, 2024
- 0.94%
- Effective rate on median home
- #1882 of 3135
- U.S. counties by tax burden
- +23%
- vs the national average bill
Effective rate is the median property tax bill divided by the median home value ($262,400). U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-Year Estimates · 2024.
Census Bureau ACS property tax data for Maryland. Population: 32,754. Owner-occupied homes: 8,882.
The median annual property tax in Dorchester County is $2,456, which is 40% lower than the Maryland state average and 23% above the national average. The effective tax rate is 0.94% on a median home value of $262,400. Property taxes represent 4.0% of the median household income in this county.
Dorchester County's rate standing among U.S. counties
Primary signal
The effective rate sits near the national middle
Dorchester County's 0.94% effective rate sits near the middle of 3,135 tracked counties (more affordable than 40%).
Decision signal 2
The bill sits below the Maryland median
Homeowners in Dorchester County pay a median annual property tax of $2,456, notably higher than the national median and well below the Maryland state median. On a $262,400 median home, that works out to an effective rate of 0.94% once the local assessment base and millage are combined.
Decision signal 3
Near the middle of Maryland counties by effective rate
Dorchester County ranks #8 of 24 counties in Maryland by effective rate (67% of in-state counties pay a lower rate).
Decision signal 4
Income and the tax bill sit in the middle band
Property taxes in Dorchester County run within the commonly cited 2%-4% national benchmark, at about 4.0% of the $61,839 median household income.
Informational notice
Figures describe the median homeowner household in Dorchester County as reported to the Census Bureau; your parcel can differ. Not tax, legal, or financial advice: check the county assessor or a qualified professional before decisions that depend on these numbers.
A falling rate took the edge off
Dorchester County's effective rate fell 12.3% across the 4-year span while its median home value rose 40.1%, leaving the median bill 22.8% higher at $2,456. That rate move is larger than the one in 51% of counties, so a good deal of the market's rise never reached the bill.
Effective rate is the published median bill divided by the published median home value, so the two multiply back to the bill exactly; the rate's movement here is derived from those two figures rather than read from the rounded published rate. Both are ACS 5-year survey estimates for the median owner-occupied household, compared across non-overlapping releases. They describe what the Census published, not a local policy, assessment, or exemption change.
How to read this county's bill
Bills rose across 2020-2024, from $2,000 to $2,456, a gain of 23%. This is a comparison of published ACS medians, not an explanation of a particular property's assessment or tax bill.
The heaviest band is also the fullest one here: 2,926 of 8,882 owner-occupied homes (32.9%) report annual real-estate taxes above $3,000. That band has no upper edge in the source, so the county median understates the burden carried by the plurality rather than describing it.
Earnings are below the national midpoint while the rate is above it, and the median bill equals 4.0% of median household income. The gap between those two positions is the whole story on this page.
The share above is the median annual bill divided by median household income, a ratio of two county-level medians rather than a household-by-household figure.
What Dorchester County Homeowners Actually Pay
The single largest group of Dorchester County homeowners, 2,926 of 8,882 owner-occupied homes (32.9%), pays $3,000 or more a year. The median is one point in this spread, not a typical bill.
- Less than $800 5.0% (444)
- $800 to $1,499 16.3% (1,449)
- $1,500 to $1,999 13.9% (1,235)
- $2,000 to $2,999 26.1% (2,321)
- $3,000 or more 32.9% (2,926)
Census ACS 2024, table B25102. Bands and the no-tax share sum to 100%.
507 homes here (5.7%) report no real estate tax at all. Exemptions are set by state: how Maryland handles assessments and appeals.
With vs Without Mortgage
Mortgaged and non-mortgaged homeowners in Dorchester County pay about the same bill, a 5% gap.
Dorchester County's effective rate vs peers
Effective property tax rate (median tax ÷ median home value), ACS 2024.
Dorchester County's effective rate is higher than 67% of the 24 counties in Maryland - ranking #8 of 24.
Where Dorchester County sits among every U.S. county
Effective property tax rate (median tax ÷ median home value)
0.94% more affordable than 40% of 3,135 U.S. counties
Show national distribution
Each bar is a band; taller bars hold more U.S. counties. The dashed line + filled bar mark this entry. Hover or tap any bar for its full count, share, and where it sits relative to this entry.
Source U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-Year Estimates · 2024
Same rate as Maryland, a smaller bill
The effective rate here sits within 3% of the Maryland median, yet the median bill runs 40% below it. When the rate matches and the cheque does not, the difference is in what is being taxed, not how heavily: the same percentage applied to cheaper housing produces $2,456 here. That is why comparing counties on rate alone can invert the answer a homeowner actually cares about.
Dorchester County vs Benchmarks
| Metric | Dorchester County | Maryland Avg | U.S. Avg |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median Annual Tax High bill | |||
| Effective Tax Rate Above-median rate | |||
| Median Home Value | |||
| Tax as % of income Heavy income burden | 4.0% | - | - |
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-Year Estimates. Tax-burden differences across rows reflect millage decisions, assessment-ratio practices, and the residential-vs-commercial mix of each tax base.
Dorchester County is UNDER · MID on ACS medians, still verify your parcel card before quoting the county figure. Estimate appeal savings · Maryland counties.
Dorchester County rate trail · UNDER
| Year | Median Tax (vs prior release) | Effective Rate |
|---|---|---|
| 2024 | $2,456 +2.4% | 0.94% |
| 2023 | $2,399 +6.0% | 0.95% |
| 2022 | $2,263 +9.1% | 1.00% |
| 2021 | $2,074 +3.7% | 1.09% |
| 2020 | $2,000 | 1.07% |
Each row is a separate ACS 5-year release, and consecutive releases share four of their five survey years. The percentage beside each bill is therefore movement in the published estimate against the previous release, not a single year's tax change. The two releases largely describe the same households. For change over time, compare releases that do not overlap.
Dorchester County: tax-to-income at 4.0%
Counties near Dorchester County's effective rate
On effective rate, Dorchester County sits nearest Spalding County (GA), Johnson County (GA), Appling County (GA).
On published median-tax change, the nearest matches are Linn County (IA), Harney County (OR), Kalamazoo County (MI).
How peers are chosen
These are the nearest cross-state matches in the published Census data, not neighboring counties or recommendations. Peers are rebuilt with each data release; see the calculation method.
Similar effective rates
Similar published median-tax changes, 2020–2024
Dorchester County: only 7% of returns show Schedule A real-estate tax
Tax year 2022: 1,180 of 16,060 returns from Dorchester County reported real estate taxes, averaging $4,084 - 32% of those reporters sat in the $100-200k AGI band.
What this IRS county file does not say
Amounts are reported before the SALT cap, not deducted; the share is of filers, not homeowners. Source: IRS SOI county data, tax year 2022.
Other Counties in Maryland
Dorchester County rate FAQs
- What is the tax affordability score for Dorchester County?
- Dorchester County, Maryland scores F (34/100) on PlainPropertyTax's tax affordability composite across 5 Census ACS dimensions (effective rate, bill size, income share, mortgage gap, and home-value/income). Its strongest scored dimension here is mortgage premium at B+ (+$112). The score compares published county medians to U.S. percentiles, it is not a personal bill and not advice to buy, sell, appeal, or relocate.
- What is the average property tax in Dorchester County, Maryland?
- The median annual property tax in Dorchester County is $2,456, an effective rate of 0.94% on a $262,400 median home (Census ACS, 2024).
- How does Dorchester County property tax compare to the national average?
- Property taxes in Dorchester County run notably higher than the national median of $1,993, an effective rate of 0.94% versus 0.92% nationally.
- Are property taxes increasing in Dorchester County?
- The ACS median property-tax bill for Dorchester County jumped 22.8% between the 2020 and 2024 5-year releases, from $2,000 to $2,456, a 4-year span. These are survey estimates covering five years each, so this compares the two releases furthest apart rather than consecutive ones, which overlap and would mostly measure the same households twice.
- What percentage of income goes to property taxes in Dorchester County?
- Property taxes in Dorchester County run within the commonly cited 2%-4% national benchmark, at about 4.0% of the $61,839 median household income.
What to do with Dorchester County's UNDER rate
Inside Maryland, Dorchester County's $2,456 median bill runs low versus the state median - check peer counties before assuming the lowest bill is the best move. Maryland overview →
Dorchester County ranks #8 of 24 Maryland counties by effective rate - on the higher-burden half of the state ACS set. Maryland overview →
Nationwide peers by effective rate (then bill)
Rate-first peers for Dorchester County's UNDER effective rate, then a disjoint out-of-state bill set so the two neighborhoods stay distinct.
Similar effective rate
Nearest out-of-state counties by ACS effective rate. This county: 0.94%.
Similar median bill
Nearest out-of-state counties by ACS median annual tax. This county: $2,456/yr. Rate peers are excluded so the two link sets stay distinct.
Read with Dorchester County
Nearest ABS(median_tax) ACS peers for Dorchester County (UNDER · MID), replacing the old fixed Keep exploring strip.
UNDER MID
Plymouth County, IA
ABS(median_tax) peer · $2,455/yr (near-tied bill ABS $1); rate 1.07% vs Dorchester County 0.94%.
Pennington County, MN
ABS(median_tax) peer · $2,458/yr (near-tied bill ABS $2); rate 1.26% vs Dorchester County 0.94%.
Rains County, TX
ABS(median_tax) peer · $2,458/yr (near-tied bill ABS $2); rate 1.02% vs Dorchester County 0.94%.
Jack County, TX
ABS(median_tax) peer · $2,453/yr (near-tied bill ABS $3); rate 0.98% vs Dorchester County 0.94%.
Maryland county set
State ACS overview for every published Maryland county rate and median bill.
Assessment cycle basics
Dorchester County stamps UNDER · MID - how assessed value and millage become the ACS median bill.
Data vintage and method
Data as of 2024. Source: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates.
Property tax data reflects median amounts paid by homeowners. Effective rates are calculated as median tax divided by median home value.
Source: U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates, county median real-estate taxes · 2024 Dorchester County (UNDER · MID) - ACS medians, not a parcel bill.