Where will you and your husband work? The commutes around here are awful. I would suggest deciding based on which area has the better commute for you.

Anonymous wrote:What kind of cars are these people driving? Our car taxes are pretty nominal.

Our car taxes are, too. Our HHI is well over $1 million, and we drive older cars. So for us, Virginia makes more sense.

What kind of cars are these people driving? Our car taxes are pretty nominal.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I saw an analysis recently, and the only scenario where VA was significantly different was for reasonably high HHI types (250K or so) without cars, where VA was a couple grand cheaper. All of the rest of the scenarios were pretty close. As one of the previous posters mentioned I'd choose based on commute and lifestyle issues instead.

The school districts in both places are excellent. If your children are very smart and are interested in STEM Va might be a better choice because of TJ; the comparable magnets programs in MD are much smaller.

Can you point us to a recent analysis? The one I saw was older, but it showed more differences than you mentioned.

Here you go: http://greatergreaterwashington.org/post/9364/taxes-lowest-for-dc-residents-and-car-free-virginians/

My recollection was slightly off; it looks like renters who make 50K would pay generally 400 bucks or so more a year in MoCo, home owners making 100K is a wash between the two, and home owners making 200K would pay between 1-2K more in MoCo.

It would probably depend on the type and number of cars owned to really determine which was cheaper for most folks. Housing prices would also need to be taken into account.

Here's a blog post about a 2011 report (click through for the actual report), that suggests the difference between MoCo and Va is about $1000 a year for a married couple with 2 kids earning $200k.

http://greatergreaterwashington.org/post/9364/taxes-lowest-for-dc-residents-and-car-free-virginians/

Anonymous wrote:I saw an analysis recently, and the only scenario where VA was significantly different was for reasonably high HHI types (250K or so) without cars, where VA was a couple grand cheaper. All of the rest of the scenarios were pretty close. As one of the previous posters mentioned I'd choose based on commute and lifestyle issues instead.

The school districts in both places are excellent. If your children are very smart and are interested in STEM Va might be a better choice because of TJ; the comparable magnets programs in MD are much smaller.

Can you point us to a recent analysis? The one I saw was older, but it showed more differences than you mentioned.

I saw an analysis recently, and the only scenario where VA was significantly different was for reasonably high HHI types (250K or so) without cars, where VA was a couple grand cheaper. All of the rest of the scenarios were pretty close. As one of the previous posters mentioned I'd choose based on commute and lifestyle issues instead.

The school districts in both places are excellent. If your children are very smart and are interested in STEM Va might be a better choice because of TJ; the comparable magnets programs in MD are much smaller.

What about car taxes in Virginia? Or have they remained lower since Gilmore cut them? (you can tell I haven't lived in Virginia for awhile!)

Anonymous wrote:I am by no means any kind of expert (I live in VA), but I read online somewhere that MD has a local income tax (3.2% in MoCo), in addition to the regular state income tax. That seems fairly significant. Maybe someone else can confirm/refute?

Yes, each county has its own tax. Cities do as well.

I am by no means any kind of expert (I live in VA), but I read online somewhere that MD has a local income tax (3.2% in MoCo), in addition to the regular state income tax. That seems fairly significant. Maybe someone else can confirm/refute?

It's probably about a $10,000 state tax difference. Higher in MD.

Anonymous wrote:The thread is doomed, but in the meantime I will say that there may be a small difference in taxes, but it's not enough to greatly affect your lives-- things like commute, schools, etc. are much more important.

Honestly, especially if you haven't been back in a while, don't underestimate the fact that it can be hard to motivate to visit friends and family in VA from MD and vice versa.

Of course all that is JMHO and YMMV.

Thanks. I know it will probably get ugly so I appreciate you giving me your unbiased opinion. We are leaning toward going back to MD due to familiarity and friends/family being there.

The thread is doomed, but in the meantime I will say that there may be a small difference in taxes, but it's not enough to greatly affect your lives-- things like commute, schools, etc. are much more important.

Honestly, especially if you haven't been back in a while, don't underestimate the fact that it can be hard to motivate to visit friends and family in VA from MD and vice versa.

Of course all that is JMHO and YMMV.

Go to retirementliving.com. They have a section called taxes by state that will let you pull up MD and VA and any other state that you are interested in. It would seem that you come out ahead in VA, but not by a huge amount. Speaking as an estate attorney, it should also be noted that VA has no estate nor inheritance tax while MD does. At your level of HHI, you or your heirs will run into those estate and inheritance taxes in MD, which will take a bite out of the net worth of your estate. MD has also demonstrated an interest in raising taxes lately, albeit on those making $1 million or more, and approximately 3,000 of those people left MD for VA. If interested, I would be more than happy to talk with you about estate and inheritance tax issues.

Sincerely,
Anthony Carducci, Esq.
www.legalhelpmaryland.com
410-693-7323

Im hoping this thread won't turn into a steaming pile of you know what. I just want some good, clear facts about taxes in MD.
We are moving to the area, trying to decide between MD or VA - more specifically, MoCo (Bethesda) or Fairfax (Mclean). I grew up in MoCo, my whole family still lives there.
I keep hearing things about how much worse taxes are in MD vs. VA, yet everytime I do research they are pretty much equal - give or take. Is there a new tax hike I should be aware of that will greatly effect our lives?

About us:

HHI - $260K.
2 school-aged children in public school
will be purchasing a home in the next few months

Fire away!