Some Montgomery County, Maryland residents will soon get property tax relief, but for that, they need to hurry up as the deadline is just days away. The Montgomery County Property Tax Relief program is for homeowners 65 and older, disabled homeowners and military veterans.
Montgomery County Property Tax Relief: who will get it?
Montgomery County’s Trustee Office manages the property tax relief program, is a state-funded tax relief and tax freeze program. The program helps homeowners 65 and older, disabled homeowners and military veterans pay property taxes.
The deadline to apply for the Montgomery County Property Tax Relief program is April 5, 2024. Applicants must also submit supporting documents prior to the deadline to qualify for the program.
To qualify for the relief, 65 and older applicants must have owned and lived in the home for at least 40 consecutive years, or is a disabled homeowner or a retired military veteran. The Montgomery County Property Tax Relief is available only if the dwelling has an assessment of $700,000 or less at the time of filing the application.
Further, to qualify for the Montgomery County Property Tax Relief program, the combined 2022 income of all the owners and married couples, even if their name is not on the deed, must not be more than $33,460.
As well, individual homeowners must be age 65 by Dec. 31, 2023, to qualify for the tax relief. The combined 2022 income for homeowners must not be more than $42,890. Veterans qualify for the program depending on their service-connected disability rating. It must be noted that there are no income requirements for veterans.
If a property has more than one owner, not all owners need to be over 65 and not all must have owned and lived in it for at least 40 consecutive years. Even if one owner meets the requirements, the property will qualify for the relief.
The application needs to be submitted only once. After the credit is approved, recipients don’t need to submit additional applications to receive the credit for an additional four years. Eligible recipients will receive a credit of 20% on County property taxes only.
Recent changes to the program
Montgomery County recently made changes to the program to extend the duration of the credit from five years to seven years for elderly individuals, disabled homeowners and retired military service members.
The County also made changes to allow Surviving Spouses of Military Retirees to receive the credit if the other spouse was eligible at the time of his or her death and the surviving spouse never remarried after the death of the Military Retiree.
So, it implies that the Military Retiree, at the time of his or her death, must have been at least 65 years old and must have retired from the Military (Army, Navy, Air Force, the National Guard, Coast Guard, Marines, or other similar services).
Visit the Montgomery County website for more information on the Montgomery County Property Tax Relief program.
