Who hears a Talbot County first-level assessment appeal?

The Maryland SDAT Supervisor of Assessments for Talbot County, through the Easton office.

Does Talbot's 0% homestead cap mean there is nothing to appeal?

The cap limits taxable growth for eligible homes; the appeal disputes the market value SDAT sets, which the cap does not change.

What did SDAT report for Talbot's Area 3 last cycle?

Group 3 residential full cash value rose 18.4% from 2021 to the January 1, 2024 reassessment.

Where does a Talbot appeal go after the Supervisor's level?

To the Talbot County Property Tax Assessment Appeal Board, within 30 days of the final notice.

What does a Talbot County appeal record hold?

It opens with the assessment notice, because the 45-day period starts on the notice date. Then come the SDAT worksheet and Area Sales Listing, the account number, the disputed market value, and the owner's proposed value. Owner-chosen sales, photographs, surveys, inspection reports, shoreline or bulkhead estimates, and Critical Area or flood records are labeled with source and date. The record also keeps the online confirmation or a copy of the mailed form, the hearing notice, and the final notice, since the board's 30 days count from the final notice. Where any date or form is unclear, the Easton office's current instructions control.

Property Tax Appeals in Talbot County, Maryland

For Talbot County homes, the Maryland Department of Assessments and Taxation (SDAT) sets the assessed value, and its Supervisor of Assessments in Easton hears the first appeal. SDAT's Talbot reassessment-area map shows Area 3 assessed effective January 1, 2024 and reassessed again January 1, 2027. SDAT's homeowner guide says owners learn of a changed assessment in late December; the appeal is due within 45 days of the notice date. Before the review, SDAT provides the property worksheet and an Area Sales Listing at no charge. FairPath can combine those official records, sales the owner picks, and condition the owner documents into an owner-guided packet. The owner approves what goes in, states the market value they dispute, and submits the appeal to SDAT.

Assessment context: Talbot's three reassessment areas rotate, so the January 1, 2027 reassessment covers Area 3 only. At Area 3's last reassessment, SDAT reported Talbot's Group 3 residential full cash value up 18.4% from the January 1, 2021 base, and 4,514 of 4,581 residential improved properties, 98.54%, increasing (Tables R-1 and R-2, December 2023). Increases phase in over three years. SDAT lists Talbot's county homestead assessment cap for July 1, 2026 at 0%. For an eligible owner-occupied home with the Homestead Tax Credit, that limits growth in the assessment used for county tax; it does not change the market value SDAT sets, which is what an appeal disputes. Easton in town, St. Michaels, Oxford, Tilghman Island, Trappe, and Cordova, and frontage on the Miles, Tred Avon, Wye, and Choptank, are separate markets.

Filing process: Talbot's SDAT office is at 29466 Pintail Drive, Suite 12, Easton. The appeal is filed within 45 days of the notice date, online with the control number on the notice or with the paper form mailed alongside it. The Supervisor's-level review can be by phone, video, in person, or in writing; SDAT allows one postponement and aims to finish reassessment appeals by June 1. After the final notice, there are 30 days to appeal to the Talbot County Property Tax Assessment Appeal Board, a board of local residents independent of SDAT. From the board's decision, there are 30 days to appeal to the Maryland Tax Court, which charges no filing fee. In the two years an account is not reassessed, a petition for review is due by the first working day after January 1, and a deed transferred between January 1 and June 30 allows a 60-day new-owner appeal.

Evidence to review: The SDAT worksheet sets out the land valuation, including the primary home-site rate and lower excess-land rates, plus living area, quality, condition, depreciation, and the Neighborhood Adjustment. Corrections to recorded features, acreage, or water frontage are often the most direct evidence. SDAT's Area Sales Listing can be supplemented with sales from SDAT's Real Property Search or other sources, and comparable worksheets cost a nominal fee. Talbot waterfront values depend heavily on water depth, pier rights, exposure, shoreline condition, and Critical Area limits, while in-town Easton homes trade on lot, age, and updates; comparables matched on those factors carry the most weight. Deferred maintenance, bulkhead or shoreline repair needs, and system failures are documented with dated photographs, inspections, or contractor estimates that the owner approves, each labeled by source.

Current deadline guidance: 45 days from the assessment notice date. A Talbot County owner files the first-level appeal with the Maryland SDAT Talbot County assessment office in Easton within 45 days of the date printed on the assessment notice. Petitions for review and new-owner appeals use separate rules and deadlines.

Talbot appeals go to the SDAT office at 29466 Pintail Drive, Suite 12, Easton.

Only Talbot's Area 3 accounts are reassessed for January 1, 2027.

SDAT lists Talbot's homestead assessment cap for July 1, 2026 at 0%; the cap limits taxable growth, not market value.

Waterfront parcels on the Miles, Tred Avon, Wye, and Choptank need sales matched on water access and shoreline.

Official filing authority: Maryland SDAT Talbot County Assessment Office. https://assessmentappeals.dat.maryland.gov/start.aspx

Source: Maryland Department of Assessments and Taxation, Homeowner's Guide to Property Tax, https://dat.maryland.gov/realproperty/pages/homeowners-guide.aspx. Reviewed 2026-11-04.

Source: Maryland Department of Assessments and Taxation, Assessment Appeal Process, https://dat.maryland.gov/realproperty/Pages/Assessment-Appeal-Process.aspx. Reviewed 2026-11-04.

Source: Maryland Department of Assessments and Taxation, Talbot County Reassessment Areas, https://dat.maryland.gov/realproperty/Pages/Talbot-County-Reassessment-Areas.aspx. Reviewed 2026-11-04.

Source: Maryland Department of Assessments and Taxation, Maryland Assessment Offices, https://dat.maryland.gov/realproperty/Pages/Maryland-Assessment-Offices.aspx. Reviewed 2026-11-04.

Source: Maryland Department of Assessments and Taxation, January 1, 2024 Reassessment Press Release and Report (Tables R-1 and R-2), https://dat.maryland.gov/Documents/Accessible%20Documents/Real%20Property%20Reports/Reassessment%20Reports/January%201%2c%202024%20Press%20Release%20and%20Report_0326-A.pdf. Reviewed 2026-11-04.

Source: Maryland Department of Assessments and Taxation, January 1, 2026 Reassessment Press Release and Report (July 1, 2026 county assessment caps), https://dat.maryland.gov/Documents/Accessible%20Documents/Real%20Property%20Reports/Reassessment%20Reports/January%201%2c%202026%20Press%20Release%20and%20Report_0326-A.pdf. Reviewed 2026-11-04.

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