Overview of Maine Taxes
Property tax rates in Maine are well above the U.S. average. The state’s average effective property tax rate is 1.17%, while the national average is currently around 0.90%. The typical Maine resident will pay $2,855 a year in property taxes.
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To calculate the exact amount of property tax you will owe requires your property's assessed value and the property tax rates based on your property's address. Please note that we can only estimate your property tax based on median property taxes in your area. There are typically multiple rates in a given area, because your state, county, local schools and emergency responders each receive funding partly through these taxes. In our calculator, we take your home value and multiply that by your county's effective property tax rate. This is equal to the median property tax paid as a percentage of the median home value in your county.
Maine Property Taxes
For the most part, municipalities administer real estate taxes in Maine. They typically use the money to pay for local services, such as public schools, libraries and law enforcement.
Rates vary significantly depending on where in Maine you live, however. For example, the average effective rate in Hancock County is 0.95%, lowest in the state. On the other hand, the average effective rate in Androscoggin County is 1.35%, highest in the state.
If you aren’t a Maine homeowner yet, but are considering becoming one, take a look at our Maine mortgage guide. It breaks down the important information you’ll want to understand before purchasing a home in the Pine Tree State.
A financial advisor can help you understand how homeownership fits into your overall financial goals. SmartAsset’s free tool matches you with up to three vetted financial advisors who serve your area, and you can interview your advisor matches at no cost to decide which one is right for you. If you’re ready to find an advisor who can help you achieve your financial goals, get started now.
How Property Taxes in Maine Work
In Maine, any person who owns real estate on April 1 of the year is responsible for paying taxes on that property. What's specifically owed depends on the just value, or market value, of the property and the local tax rate.
To determine the market value of property, local assessors use one of three methods. The most common is the sales comparison approach, which looks at the sale prices of similar nearby homes to determine what your home would likely get on the market. The other two methods are the cost approach, which calculates the cost to replace your property, and the income approach, which calculates the income your property could generate if it were rented or used for some other purpose.
There are two statewide rules that ensure local assessors value property in an equitable fashion. The first states that assessed values cannot be less than 70% of fair market value. The second is that two similar properties should never have an assessed value difference of more than 20%. Municipalities that fail to meet these standards are required to do a revaluation of all property in their district.
Maine also offers exemptions that residents can claim in order to decrease their property taxes. The homestead exemption allows Maine residents to decrease a property’s taxable value by $25,000. Senior veterans who are 62 or older may be eligible for an exemption of $6,000. An individual who is legally blind may also receive an exemption of $4,000.
Maine Property Tax Rates
The rates that appear on tax bills in Maine are generally denominated in millage rates. A mill is the tax per thousand dollars in assessed value. For example, a home with an assessed value of $150,000 and a mill rate of 20 ($20 of tax per $1,000 of assessed value) would pay $3,000 in annual property taxes.
Because assessment levels vary between municipalities in Maine, mill rates in one area cannot be directly compared to mill rates in another. For that reason, it is useful to look at average effective rates. An effective rate is the annual property tax payment as a percentage of the total home value. The table below shows average effective property tax rates for every county in Maine, along with median home values and median annual tax payments.
Want to learn more about your mortgage payments? Check out our monthly mortgage payment calculator.
Cumberland County
The most populous county in Maine, Cumberland County also has among the highest property tax rates. The county’s average effective rate is 1.17%. The median property tax payment residents make in Cumberland County annually is $4,372, highest in the state. That's over $1,300 higher than the national median.
Portland, the largest city in the county as well as the state, assesses property at 90% of market value.
If you have questions about how property taxes can affect your overall financial plans, a financial advisor in Portland can help you out.
York County
The typical homeowner in York County pays $3,574 annually in property taxes, which is well above the U.S. median. The average effective property tax rate in the state's southern-most county is 1.10%.
Penobscot County
Penobscot County is in central Maine and contains the state’s third-largest city, Bangor. Property tax rates in the county are reasonably close to the state median, as the average effective rate here is 1.32%.
Kennebec County
Kennebec County is home to Augusta, Maine's state capital. Kennebec residents pay a median property tax bill of $2,443. Kennebec's average effective property tax rate of 1.23%, however, comes in above Maine's 1.17% statewide average effective rate. Kennebec has a lower median home value ($198,300) than other more expensive counties in Maine.
Androscoggin County
Androscoggin County has the highest property tax rate in the state of Maine. The county’s average effective property tax rate is 1.35%. Androscoggin is also home to two of Maine’s most populous cities in Lewiston and Auburn.
Aroostook County
The northernmost county in Maine and the largest county by land area east of the Rockies, Aroostook County has property tax rates above the state average. In fact, the county's 1.25% average effective property tax rate is the second highest in Maine.
However, home values in the county are generally the lowest in Maine ($125,400). Thus, many homeowners in Aroostook County pay relatively low total tax payments compared to some of the pricier counties in the state. The median property tax payment in the county is just $1,562.
Oxford County
Oxford County is located in western Maine along the New Hampshire border. The county’s average effective property tax rate is 1.19%. At that rate, a homeowner whose home is worth $176,800 would pay $2,107 annually in property taxes.
Hancock County
Maine residents seeking low property tax rates might want to consider Hancock County. The county’s average effective property tax rate of 0.95% is the lowest in the state. Hancock County also has the longest coastline of any of Maine’s counties, so homeowners seeking beachfront property should find plenty of options.
Somerset County
Somerset County stretches from central Maine to the Canada border, and it is a largely rural place. The average effective property tax rate in the county is 1.22%, while the median property tax bill is $1,836.
Knox County
With a population of almost 40,000, Knox County is one of the smaller counties in Maine. The typical homeowner in Knox County pays $3,415 annually in property taxes on a median home value of $260,800. The county’s average effective property tax rate is 1.31%, slightly above the state average.
