Maine Mortgage Calculator
Every Maine town and city sets its own property tax rate, and a $25,000 homestead exemption can shave hundreds off your bill — pick your county below to see your real payment.
Loan & Property Details
Auto-fills from the county’s largest city as a benchmark; edit if you know your exact town’s mill rate, since Maine sets rates town by town, not by county.
Your Estimated Monthly Payment
Choose a county and enter your details to see a plain-language read on your payment.
What If You Paid Extra Toward Principal?
Slide to test an extra monthly payment and see how many years and how much interest it saves.
What If Your Rate Changes?
Your 5-Year Equity Snapshot
Good to Know: Maine’s Transfer Tax Is Split Between Buyer and Seller
Unlike most states in this calculator series, this one is a real, if modest, closing cost for you too.
| Combined Real Estate Transfer Tax | $2.20 per $500 of sale price (about 0.44%) |
| Buyer’s share | $1.10 per $500 (about 0.22%) |
| Seller’s share | $1.10 per $500 (about 0.22%) |
| Example on a $387,100 sale, buyer’s portion | $387,100 ÷ $500 × $1.10 ≈ $852 |
Why a “Maine Property Tax by County” Number Only Tells Half the Story
Search “Maine property tax by county” and you’ll find plenty of rankings, this calculator included, but here’s the detail most of them bury: Maine doesn’t actually set property tax rates at the county level at all. Every one of Maine’s roughly 480 towns, cities, and plantations sets and collects its own rate, called a mill rate, based on its own local budget divided by its own total assessed value. Counties are a useful way to compare, and that’s how this calculator organizes itself, but your actual bill depends entirely on which specific town line your home sits inside, not which county. Two towns ten minutes apart in the same county can carry meaningfully different rates.
Cumberland, York, Penobscot, and Kennebec: how the four biggest counties compare
Cumberland County, home to Portland, posts the highest median property tax bill in the state, a combination of a comparatively high rate and the state’s highest median home value. York County, Maine’s southernmost coastal county, runs a somewhat lower effective rate but still produces one of the state’s largest dollar bills thanks to strong coastal and tourism-driven home values. Penobscot County, centered on Bangor, and Kennebec County, home to the state capital of Augusta, both run rates close to or above the statewide average on considerably lower home values, keeping their dollar bills more moderate than the southern coastal counties. Switching counties above resets both price and rate defaults to the county’s largest city as a starting benchmark; always check your specific town’s actual mill rate.
| Home assessed value | $387,100 |
| Maine Homestead Exemption | – $25,000 |
| Taxable value | $362,100 |
| Cumberland benchmark effective rate | 1.04% |
| Estimated annual tax | $362,100 × 1.04% ≈ $3,766 |
Without the homestead exemption, that same home would owe roughly $4,026 a year, about $260 more, right in line with the $275–$430 typical annual savings cited for this exemption across Maine’s range of mill rates.
The $25,000 Homestead Exemption, and who actually qualifies
Maine’s Homestead Exemption excludes $25,000 of assessed value from taxation for a permanent primary residence, available to owners who have held that status for at least twelve months as of April 1. It’s not automatic on a new purchase; you file an application with your town assessor, and once approved, it renews automatically as long as you remain eligible. Because it’s a flat dollar amount rather than a percentage, it’s proportionally more valuable in Maine’s lower-value inland counties like Penobscot and Kennebec than in high-value Cumberland or York.
Veteran and senior relief most eligible Mainers overlook
Maine offers a $6,000 assessed-value exemption for qualifying veterans, rising to as much as $50,000 for paraplegic veterans, on top of the standard homestead exemption. Separately, the Property Tax Fairness Credit is a refundable Maine income tax credit, not a reduction on the property tax bill itself, worth up to $1,000 for most income-qualified households or up to $1,500 for those 65 and older, based on how your property tax compares to your household income. Because it’s claimed when you file your Maine income tax return rather than applied at billing time, it’s easy for eligible homeowners to simply forget about it.
Maine’s transfer tax: one of the few split evenly between buyer and seller
Maine’s Real Estate Transfer Tax runs $2.20 per $500 of sale price, about 0.44% combined, and unlike most states in this calculator series where the seller customarily covers the whole amount, Maine splits it evenly: each side pays $1.10 per $500, about 0.22%. It’s a real, if modest, buyer-side closing cost here, not just a future seller concern.
Common Mistakes Maine Buyers Make With the Numbers
- Assuming a “county rate” applies to a specific town. Maine sets property tax entirely at the municipal level; the county figure is only a benchmark.
- Forgetting to file the Homestead Exemption. It requires an application with the town assessor and isn’t automatic on a new purchase.
- Treating the Property Tax Fairness Credit as an automatic bill reduction. It’s a separate income tax credit claimed on your Maine tax return, not something that shows up on the property tax bill itself.
- Reading an unusually high mill rate as an unusually high tax burden. Some towns haven’t revalued recently, so a high rate applied to stale, below-market assessed values can land close to a neighboring town’s real burden.
- Forgetting the buyer’s share of the transfer tax. Maine is one of the few states in this calculator series where the buyer genuinely owes a piece of it.
Tips for Lowering Your Maine Mortgage Payment
- File the Homestead Exemption with your town assessor as soon as you close and confirm the 12-month qualifying period.
- If a veteran is on title, check eligibility for Maine’s veteran assessed-value exemption in addition to the homestead exemption.
- Check Property Tax Fairness Credit eligibility every year when you file your Maine income tax return; it’s easy to miss since it’s not on the property tax bill.
- Compare actual town mill rates, not just county averages, before settling on a specific neighborhood, especially within Cumberland and York counties.
- Use the extra-payment scenario above; even a modest additional principal payment compounds meaningfully over a 30-year Maine loan.
Frequently Asked Questions
How much is property tax in Maine?
Maine’s statewide effective property tax rate runs above the national average, with Cumberland and York counties posting the largest dollar bills due to high coastal home values, and inland counties like Penobscot and Kennebec running closer to or above the state average rate on lower values.
Does Maine set property tax by county or by town?
By town. Each of Maine’s roughly 480 municipalities sets its own mill rate; counties are used for comparison and reporting but don’t set rates themselves.
What is Maine’s Homestead Exemption?
An exemption of $25,000 of assessed value for a permanent primary residence held at least 12 months, filed with the town assessor and not automatic on a new purchase.
What is the Maine Property Tax Fairness Credit?
A refundable Maine income tax credit, up to $1,000 for most income-qualified households or $1,500 for those 65 and older, based on property tax paid relative to household income. It’s claimed on your state income tax return, not applied directly to the property tax bill.
Do veterans get a property tax break in Maine?
Yes, qualifying veterans receive a $6,000 assessed-value exemption, and paraplegic veterans can receive up to $50,000, in addition to the standard homestead exemption.
Does Maine have a real estate transfer tax?
Yes, a combined $2.20 per $500 of sale price, about 0.44%, split evenly between buyer and seller at about 0.22% each.
Which Maine county has the lowest property tax rate?
Among the state’s larger counties, York generally runs a lower effective rate than Cumberland, Penobscot, or Kennebec, though several rural northern counties post lower rates and bills statewide.
What down payment do I need to buy a home in Maine?
Conventional loans often start around 5% down, FHA loans typically require 3.5%, and VA loans can allow 0% down for eligible veterans.
When can I remove PMI on a Maine home loan?
Federal law allows requesting PMI removal at 20% equity, with automatic lender cancellation at 22% equity based on the original amortization schedule.
Does this calculator include closing costs?
No, this tool estimates the ongoing monthly payment only. Maine closing costs, including your share of the real estate transfer tax, typically add a small percentage of the purchase price.
References
- Maine Revenue Services, Property Tax Division, Homestead Exemption and Property Tax Fairness Credit guidance – maine.gov/revenue
- Cumberland, York, Penobscot, and Kennebec County municipal assessor offices, current town mill rates – town government sites
- 36 M.R.S. Chapter 105 (property tax) and Chapter 907 (Real Estate Transfer Tax)
- Freddie Mac Primary Mortgage Market Survey, weekly national rate averages – freddiemac.com/pmms
Related DexoCalc Tools
This Maine mortgage calculator is part of the Mortgage Calculators cluster I am building out on DexoCalc. Start with the national Mortgage Calculator to compare Maine against any other state, see another New England state that taxes entirely at the local level in the Connecticut Mortgage Calculator, compare another state that splits its transfer tax between buyer and seller in the Delaware Mortgage Calculator, or check a state at the opposite tax extreme in the New Jersey Mortgage Calculator. Browse every state-specific tool as new ones publish on the full Mortgage Calculators hub.
This calculator provides estimates for educational purposes only and is not a loan offer, pre-approval, or substitute for advice from a licensed Maine mortgage professional or tax advisor. Property tax, exemption, credit, and transfer tax figures are approximations that vary by town and individual circumstances; confirm exact figures with your town assessor. Sources: Maine Revenue Services, town assessor offices, Freddie Mac.