Montgomery County, Maryland Property Records

Montgomery County Property Search

In Montgomery County, Maryland, property records are any legal documents (or "instruments") related to real property in the county. Property records include deeds, mortgages, liens, plats, powers of attorney, and leases. These records contain information about property ownership, transfer, property location, property value, and transactions within the county, including tax history and details.

The Land Records Department of Montgomery County's Circuit Court's Clerk Office is responsible for recording, indexing, storing, and maintaining property records. Individuals can take their documents to be recorded by the Land Records Recording Department. The records are then transferred to the Land Records Indexing Department, which indexes all property records by grantor/grantee name. Certain prerequisites must be met before an instrument can be recorded in Montgomery County. According to the Real Property Article § 3-104 stated in the Maryland General Statues:

A completed Intake sheet is needed to accompany any property document submitted for recording, with some exceptions. An intake sheet is a form typically filled out by an individual. The circuit court clerk's office uses it to expedite the accurate processing, recording, and indexing of property documents.
Submitted documents should be on 8.5 x 11 inches or 8.5 x 14 inches paper with black ink only and font size of minimum 8pts.
The first page must have a 2-inch top margin and a 1-inch margin on the sides and bottom. Subsequent pages must have 1-inch margins across.
A certification of preparation must accompany all deeds submitted for recording, which could be signed by the preparer of the document or a named party in the instrument.
Deeds must include the grantor's signature, which a notary public must acknowledge.
The Parcel ID number should be typed on the deed.
The legal description of the parcel's boundaries and the street address of the parcel, if any
The full name and address of each party involved and, the nature of their interest, the name of any title insurer must be included.

The Land Records Department makes these records accessible to the public via various media, from books to digitally scanned images. Individuals can search for these records electronically through online databases and provided computers at the Land Records Public Information Room or physically at the Circuit Court Clerk's Office. They can then request copies/certified copies to be made by the Land Records Duplication Department.

Are Montgomery County Property Records Public?

Yes. According to the Maryland Public Information Act (MPIA), Property Records are part of Montgomery County Public Records. The MPIA allows the public broad access rights while protecting individuals' privacy rights and legitimate government interests. The MPIA can be found in the General Provisions Article §§ 4-101 through 4-601.

Certain information may be restricted from public disclosure if it infringes on personal privacy or is regarded as confidential by the state. Examples of such exemptions include:

Unwarranted invasion of personal privacy such as social security number, medical information, financial account numbers, birth dates
Records that are part of ongoing law enforcement investigations will be undisclosed until the investigation has been completed.
Records that would substantially threaten national security would be regarded as confidential information.

What Do Montgomery County Property Records Contain?

The most common types of information that can be found in a Montgomery County property record typically include:

Property Identification: Details of the property that identifies or describes it legally include the parcel ID number, legal description, lot and block number, street address.
Ownership Information: Information about the property's past and current owners, including the owner's name and address (mailing address for tax statements), and co-owners with ownership percentage. Property transfer details and previous owners, deed number and date, grantor and grantee names, and property tax identification are also included.
Mortgage and Lien Information: This typically covers mortgage-related details like lender name, loan amount and payment history. Liens, encumbrances on the property, foreclosure information, including notices of default and foreclosure sales.
Tax Records: This section includes information on the property's tax value, tax bills, market value, tax assessment history, appraisal reports, tax payment history, tax liens, tax exemptions.
Building and zoning information: The building details (size, type, age of structure), construction or renovation permits, zoning designation, land use restrictions, and building code violations.
Sales and transaction history: Previous sales prices and dates, mortgage information, liens or claims, foreclosure history, transfer history (including between family and relations)
Legal information: Leases or rental agreements, past legal disputes, easements or covenants affecting the property
Maps and Surveys: Geographical presentation (property's boundaries, dimensions), plat maps, surveyor's reports
Miscellaneous Information: Appraisal reports, environmental reports, historic designations, property condition, utility easements.

Where to Perform a Montgomery County Property Lookup

Interested persons may look up property records using the following options:

Online: Inquirers can search for property records through databases like MDLandrec.net and SDAT, which have been made available for individuals across Maryland. The websites are currently free and can be assessed by the public anywhere through a computer.
Phone: Individuals can call the Land Records Public Information at (240) 777-9477.
In-Person: Individuals can visit the Land Records Department Public Information room at North Tower 2nd Floor, Room 2120 of the Clerk's Office at 50 Maryland Avenue, Room 212, Rockville, Maryland. They can use the computers provided to lookup and make copies of property records. The Public Information Room opening hours are from 8:30 am and 4:30 pm Mondays to Fridays.

How to Perform a Property Owner Lookup in Montgomery County

Inquirers can obtain information about a property's ownership typically by accessing the data through an online database search or by in-person and phone requests. Contacting the Land Records Department to request or visiting the Public Information Room to look up property ownership are sure options.

Individuals can also acquire this information by visiting the MDLandrec.net website, which has access to all verified property records in Montgomery County and Maryland as a whole. The Maryland State Archives developed the system in partnership with the county clerk offices across the state.

The Maryland State Department of Assessment and Taxation (SDAT) Real property data search tool can be used to look up a property owner. Users can assess the website and select to search in Montgomery County. They then proceed to search by the available methods, which will result in the property records, including the property ownership information being obtained.

Searching from the methods listed allows users to obtain property ownership information from the results shown.

How to Find Montgomery County Property Records Online

Inquirers must complete a new account application for the MDLandrec.net website to obtain property records recorded and indexed by the Land Records Department of Montgomery County. They will receive a password via email within approximately 1 hour on a business day. They can then log on to the system to search by name, liber/folio, or tax account number. The results, which are typically accurate, contain the property ownership details, property address, legal description, and other relevant information.

The SDAT real property data search tool provides users with a search tool for all counties in Maryland. The database is managed by the State's Department of Assessment and Taxation. It allows inquirers to search Montgomery County by providing the street address, map/parcel, property account identifier, and sales. There are further requirements when each method is selected:

When inquirers select the street name method, they may provide the street number to accompany the street name.
When the property account identifier is selected, users must provide the district as well as the account identifier.
With the map/parcel method, users are required to input the map number, parcel number and town code.
The property sales method allows users to search with sales date, land use, district, map number, subdivision, sales type, street name and number, neighbourhood and quality.

The plats.net system offers all plats that County Land Record Departments and Circuit Courts in Maryland, including Montgomery County, have recorded. Individuals can search count land surveys, subdivisions and condominium plats for property records. The system provides a search tool that allows searching by date, description book or plat number, page number and right of way plat number. The results offer the property address, property owner, property type etc.

Several third-party options online are not affiliated with the government but provide the public access to search for property records. They offer online databases that contain property appraisals, ownership information, unclaimed property, tax records, titles, deeds and liens. Most of these services offer free searches but cannot guarantee up-to-date records. Some require individuals to pay a monthly or annual subscription or per search.

How to Find Property Owner by Address for Free

Individuals can use the SDAT real property data search tool and search for a property by providing the street address. This search will obtain results that include the property owner.

Inquirers can also find the property owner using the Property Tax search tool provided by the Department of Finance. The tool can be accessed through the Montgomery County official website. Users will obtain search results that include the property owner, address, tax assessment and value, etc.

Montgomery County Property Tax Lookup

In Montgomery County, property tax information can be obtained in the followings ways:

Montgomery County website: A person can view property tax records by searching for their bill using keywords like account number, bill number, etc
Department of Finance: On the Department of Finance's website, tax information such as how to pay property taxes and how property tax rates are calculated. Also, information on how to appeal your property tax assessment can be found. For more specific information, a person can use the "Property Tax Account Information" tool on the website to find the property tax information. This information can include the tax balance, payment history, and assessed value of the property.
SDAT: The property search tool of the State Department of Assessments and Taxation (SDAT) allows a person to obtain information about a particular property, including its tax information.

Some situations that would necessitate a tax look-up include:

To know the tax history of a property before buying or renting it
To calculate the amount of tax owed as a property owner
For accuracy when budgeting to purchase or rent a property
For research purposed to identify real estate market trends.

How to Find Montgomery County Property Appraiser

Some of the ways a person can find property appraisers in Montgomery County include:

Montgomery County Government website: On the website, one can navigate to the finance department and then the treasury division. On the division of treasury page, one can find the county's contact information of property appraisers.
Maryland Department of Assessments and Taxation: As assessments are run through this state department, information on appraisers can be found on its website. On the "county map information" page of the website, one can find all counties under Maryland and select the county where they reside. The assessor's contact information in charge of the county will be displayed for the inquirer upon clicking.
Online directories: Online directories like either the National Association of County Collectors or Treasurers and Finance Officers allow individuals to search their databases using relevant keywords for property appraisers.

The services offered by a property appraiser in Montgomery County include Property assessment, property tax appeals, granting credit and exemption, and providing property information. The Maryland State Department of Assessments and Taxation (SDAT) offers most services.

Montgomery County Property Assessor

For the purpose of fair taxation of property and catering to property owners, Montgomery County property assessors offer the following services:

Property Assessment: The Real Property Valuation Division of the State of Maryland values all properties within the state of Maryland. The Division certifies these values to the local government for use in the treasury division's assessment and collection of property tax. The property appraiser uses this value from the state to calculate property taxes. The assessment considers factors such as the location, size, condition, and sale of similar properties in the area to ensure a fair assessment.
Appeals: Property owners who believe their property's assessed value is too high can file an appeal. Montgomery County's appeal is made through the Maryland State Department of Assessments and Taxation (SDAT).
Credit and exemption: Maryland's Homeowner's Property Tax Credit (HOTC) program and its Montgomery County supplement are administered by the State Department of Assessments and Taxation (SDAT). The program is offered to eligible property owners regardless of their age. They also offer senior tax credits to property owners over 65 years and Homestead property tax credits.
Property Information: Property owners with questions about their real, personal, or business property assessment or tax credit can contact the department. The department serves as the county's assessor (State Department of Assessments and Taxation) for information. Information about a particular property can be obtained using the property search tool of the SDAT.

The contact information of the SDAT assessor in charge of Montgomery County can be found below:

Supervisor of Assessments
30 W. Gude Drive, Suite 400
Rockville, MD 20850
Hours: 8:00 to 4:30
(240) 314-4510
Commercial (240) 314-4530
Fax: (301) 424-3864
Email: sdat.mont@maryland.gov