Baltimore County closing costs
The county-specific transfer tax and deed recording fees for Baltimore County, Maryland - the local details that change your total beyond the statewide rate.
- Effective transfer tax
- 2%
- ≈ $8,000 on a $400,000 home
- Typical lender + 3rd-party fees
- $7,700
- median of 6,780 purchase loans · HMDA 2023
Baltimore County compared with Maryland counties
In the verified Maryland county records we have, Baltimore County's effective transfer-tax rate ranks #1 of 4 by highest rate. At $400,000, the county-specific transfer tax is $8,000, which is $6,000 above the state-level calculation before city surtaxes.
- County rank
- #1 of 4
- within verified Maryland county pages
- Tax at $400,000
- $8,000
- state baseline $2,000
- HMDA fee sample
- 6,780
- purchase loans in 2023
Baltimore County transfer-tax data: official source linked on this page, reviewed 2026-Q2.
Transfer tax in Baltimore County
Baltimore County levies its OWN transfer tax of 1.5% of consideration (separate from and on top of Maryland's 0.5% state transfer tax), confirmed on the official county budget/finance page. The first $22,000 of consideration is exempt from the county transfer tax for owner-occupied residential real property (Baltimore County Code Art. 11, Title 3). By local custom the seller typically pays the state and county transfer taxes while the buyer pays recordation tax on the new mortgage, but the contract can reallocate. First-time MD homebuyers get the state transfer tax reduced to 0.25% (paid by seller). Note: this is Baltimore COUNTY (FIPS 24005), distinct from the independent Baltimore City (FIPS 24510), which has its own 1.5% city transfer tax.
Recording fees in Baltimore County
Maryland Circuit Court (Land Records) statewide clerk fees apply: deed/instrument recording fee is $20 for documents 9 pages or fewer, $75 for documents 10 pages or more, plus a $40 surcharge per recorded instrument. Separately, the state recordation TAX administered for the county is $2.50 per $500 (or fraction) of consideration or debt secured (= 0.5% / $5.00 per $1,000). State transfer tax and recording are handled by the Circuit Court for Baltimore County Land Records Office (410-887-3088).
Official recorder: Baltimore County recorder ↗ — the authoritative source for the current recording fee schedule.
What lenders actually charge in Baltimore County
Across 6,780 home-purchase mortgages originated in Baltimore County in 2023, the median total loan costs — lender fees plus third-party services such as appraisal and title, excluding prepaids and escrow — were $7,700, of which about $3,353 was the lender’s own origination charges. That is reported loan-level data from every lender under the Home Mortgage Disclosure Act — not a national average — so it reflects what buyers in this county actually paid. Lender fees vary widely, so comparing a few rate quotes is the single biggest lever on your closing total.
Source: FFIEC HMDA Data Browser ↗ (2023 purchase originations, FIPS 24005, ODC-BY 1.0). Median total loan costs exclude prepaids and escrow.
Estimate your Baltimore County closing costs
Pre-set to Maryland. County-level taxes above may add to this estimate.
Current source data is loading. Until it finishes, the amount shown is a server-rendered static example and the controls are disabled.
Frequently asked questions
What is the transfer tax in Baltimore County?
Baltimore County (Maryland): the applicable real-estate transfer tax works out to about 2%. Baltimore County levies its OWN transfer tax of 1.5% of consideration (separate from and on top of Maryland's 0.5% state transfer tax), confirmed on the official county budget/finance page. The first $22,000 of consideration is exempt from the county transfer tax for owner-occupied residential real property (Baltimore County Code Art. 11, Title 3). By local custom the seller typically pays the state and county transfer taxes while the buyer pays recordation tax on the new mortgage, but the contract can reallocate. First-time MD homebuyers get the state transfer tax reduced to 0.25% (paid by seller). Note: this is Baltimore COUNTY (FIPS 24005), distinct from the independent Baltimore City (FIPS 24510), which has its own 1.5% city transfer tax.
What are recording fees in Baltimore County?
Maryland Circuit Court (Land Records) statewide clerk fees apply: deed/instrument recording fee is $20 for documents 9 pages or fewer, $75 for documents 10 pages or more, plus a $40 surcharge per recorded instrument. Separately, the state recordation TAX administered for the county is $2.50 per $500 (or fraction) of consideration or debt secured (= 0.5% / $5.00 per $1,000). State transfer tax and recording are handled by the Circuit Court for Baltimore County Land Records Office (410-887-3088).
How much are closing costs in Baltimore County?
Closing costs in Baltimore County follow Maryland's structure plus this county's specific transfer-tax and recording fees. Use the calculator below for an estimate; for the exact recording schedule, the county recorder is the authoritative source.
What do lenders charge in fees in Baltimore County?
In 2023, the median total loan costs — lender fees plus third-party services like appraisal and title, excluding prepaids and escrow — across 6,780 home-purchase mortgages in Baltimore County were about $7,700, of which roughly $3,353 was the lender's own origination charges. This is reported loan-level data under the Home Mortgage Disclosure Act; actual fees vary by lender, so comparing quotes matters.
Closest Maryland county comparisons
Sibling links are ordered by nearby verified effective transfer-tax rate, so each county page connects to genuinely comparable counties.