Approximately one-third of commercial property owners in Maryland should have received (or will receive shortly) Income and Expense Questionnaires from the Maryland State Department of Assessments and Taxation (SDAT). Compliance with these surveys is compulsory and used by SDAT to help determine real property tax assessments. Local Maryland jurisdictions assess realty on a triennial basis, with one-third of each county (or Baltimore city) assessed each year. Information is requested only once every three years for each property. Taxpayers currently receiving the questionnaires are in the final year of their current assessment “cycle,” and will next be assessed for the ensuing tax year 2026-2028 triennial.
Please note, the forms provide that the requested information must be submitted to the respective taxing local authority on or before May 15. However, a one-month grace period is allowed prior to penalty; therefore, taxpayers have until June 15 to submit the requested information. Timely compliance with the original deadline is generally recommended, with some exceptions.
Penalty for noncompliance only applies to property currently with an assessed value in excess of $5,000,000. Therefore, for properties assessed at less than $5,000,000, taxpayers may elect not to comply unless such compliance is deemed potentially beneficial. However, noncompliance for properties assessed in excess of $5,000,000 will result in “a penalty of $100 per day up to a maximum equal to 0.1% of the value of the property listed on the assessment roll.” As such, for these properties, compliance is strongly encouraged.
These forms are mailed to the address on record per SDAT, and taxpayers not in receipt of the requests are responsible regardless of nonreceipt.
If you own property in Maryland and have not received Income and Expense Questionnaires, we recommend follow-up. The Maryland tax experts at Ryan are available to assist owners and operators in reviewing the forms prior to submission to ensure accuracy and no superfluous information is being provided unnecessarily at the taxpayer’s expense. Additionally, this is your opportunity to embed any concerning or “bad” news into these questionnaires, which is vital to safeguard the lowest taxable assessment of your property.
TECHNICAL INFORMATION CONTACTS:
Shawn Eskow
Principal
Ryan
571.481.9427
shawn.eskow@ryan.com
Cutchin Powell
Principal
Ryan
202.470.3094
cutchin.powell@ryan.com
Grant Steinhauser
Principal
Ryan
202.470.3105
grant.steinhauser@ryan.com
The material presented in this communication is intended to provide general information only and should solely be seen as broad guidance and not directed to the particular facts or circumstances of any individual who may read this publication. No liability is accepted for acts or omissions taken in reliance upon the content of this piece. Before taking (or not taking) any action, readers should seek professional advice specific to their situation from Ryan, LLC or other tax professionals. For additional information about this topic, please contact us at info@ryan.com.