Every home covered by Columbia Association covenants pays an annual charge on top of Howard County property tax, and most listings show the seller's figure. The Columbia Association, or CA, limits how fast a homeowner's charge can rise, but the limit doesn't carry over to the buyer. In the first year after a purchase, the bill is calculated on a fresh number that CA says "may be higher than the previous owner's last value."
The county property tax bill works the same way. Once you see that both bills reset when the deed changes hands, the seller's numbers start to read like a record of how long they owned the house, and that's a useful thing to understand before you compare Columbia with the rest of Howard County.
The rule that matters at settlement
The charge itself is simple. CA takes the value set by the Maryland State Department of Assessments and Taxation, cuts it in half, and charges 68 cents for every $100 of that half. The rate hasn't changed since 2004, and the maximum allowed is 75 cents. Using CA's own example, a home the state assesses at $400,000 is charged on $200,000, for an annual bill of $1,360.
CA also limits growth in the assessed value it bills on to 3.5% a year, and CA's FAQ says that cap has stood since 2016. Here's how the annual charge FAQ describes what happens after a sale:
"The cap is not applied to property the first year following a purchase. Instead, the state's phase-in value is used that year to calculate the annual charge, and that value may be higher than the previous owner's last value."
Elsewhere, CA says assessed value can't grow faster than the cap "unless there are significant improvements made to the property and/or the ownership of the property changes during a given year." CA even answers the question "Why is my neighbor's fee less than mine?" It points to home size and timing, noting that a neighbor who has owned for several years starts from a different phase-in value, which can mean a lower bill.
So two identical houses on the same cul-de-sac, using the same pathways and lakes, can get different CA bills simply because one changed hands more recently.
How the gap builds while a seller owns the home
Right now, the cap and the state's assessments are growing at different speeds. Maryland reassesses each property once every three years. In the 2026 "Group 2" reassessment, mailed December 30, 2025, residential full cash value in Howard County's Group 2 properties rose 16.8% between January 1, 2023 and January 1, 2026. That was higher than the 13.2% statewide residential average for the same group. SDAT phases increases in evenly over three years.
A one-third share of 16.8% adds about 5.6% of the base value each year, which is faster than the 3.5% the cap allows. The table below works through it with CA's $400,000 example home. It assumes the county average applies and that the seller's capped value matched the state value at the start. Your home's real figures come from its own SDAT record, and not every Columbia property is in Group 2.
| Tax year | State phase-in value | Charge on phase-in value | Charge at 3.5% cap | Gap |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| July 2026 to June 2027 | $422,400 | $1,436 | $1,408 | $28 |
| July 2027 to June 2028 | $444,800 | $1,512 | $1,457 | $55 |
| July 2028 to June 2029 | $467,200 | $1,588 | $1,508 | $81 |
The first row matches CA's own math. In its example of a 10% value increase, the cap keeps the billed value at $207,000 instead of $220,000, so the bill is $1,408 instead of $1,496.
A gap of $28 to $81 is small, but it gets bigger every year the cap holds. A seller who owned through several reassessment cycles has been carrying that gap for years, and CA notes that the state has raised some Columbia assessments by 45 to 50% in past cycles. After that kind of jump, the cap takes "quite a few years to catch up." The longer the seller has owned, the less their charge tells you about yours.
Howard County's homestead credit resets the same way
The CA charge is the smaller of the two bills, and the same reset applies to the larger one. Howard County's Homestead Tax Credit limits yearly increases in the taxable assessment of an owner's principal residence. For the tax year starting July 1, 2026, the cap is 5% on the county portion and 10% on the state portion.
According to SDAT's Homestead Tax Credit page, the credit requires the home to be the owner's principal residence, and it's granted only if ownership didn't transfer during the previous tax year. New buyers are mailed an application after their deed is recorded. Howard County's tax credits page describes it as a one-time application filed with SDAT.
The two bills are also connected directly. CA asks homeowners with senior, homeowner's or veteran's tax credits to send in their new Howard County tax bill each year, because CA uses that information to calculate an adjusted CA invoice. In Columbia, a seller's property tax and CA charge both reflect years of protection that end at closing. Our Howard County cost of living breakdown covers the wider budget these two bills fit into.
What transfers with the deed
The charge is tied to both the property and whoever owns it. CA's recorded declaration creates a continuing lien for annual charges on the property. It also makes an owner personally liable for the charge in any year they held title, even for part of that year. CA bills a single year running July 1 through June 30. Invoices go out by July 1, payment is due within 30 days, and interest accrues at 0.5% a month after that.
Here's what buyers ask about during a Columbia purchase:
- A charge-status certificate. The declaration lets an owner request a written certificate showing whether charges are paid or how much is due as of a given date. CA can charge a reasonable fee for it, and the certificate binds CA as to bona fide purchasers and lenders.
- The SDAT phase-in value. This number is your first-year CA base. It's also what the county uses before your homestead credit kicks in.
- Your lender's escrow setup. CA says many lenders escrow the annual charge along with taxes and insurance, but not all of them do.
- The village covenants. Each Columbia village is its own community association, with deed-recorded covenants that set exterior-alteration standards and a village association that enforces them. CA's Architectural Resource Committee reviews properties alleged to violate those covenants.
There's also a timing quirk. CA gets ownership updates from SDAT monthly, and the state needs time to record transfers, so sellers sometimes still receive an invoice after closing. Buyers may see the same lag in reverse.
The charge pays for the system, and memberships are separate
When you compare budgets, it helps to treat the charge more like a tax than a gym fee. CA says it pays to maintain nearly 3,600 acres of open space, 95 miles of pathways, lakes, ponds, tot lots and athletic courts, plus free events and programs. Pools, fitness clubs, tennis and golf are on that maintenance list too.
Using those pools and clubs costs extra. CA says regular membership requires separate dues, and residents pay lower rates than nonresidents. The current membership pricing page lists Play, 1Fit, Fit&Play and golf plans. If a family plans to use the pools every week, those dues are a separate line in the budget. If you're weighing Columbia against other Howard County communities, count both.
The rate gets set in public, and the FY2028 process is underway
CA's Board of Directors sets the rate and the cap through its yearly budget. At its December 11, 2025 meeting, the Board voted 6–3 to approve the FY2027 rate and cap. The FY2027 budget covers May 1, 2026 through April 30, 2027. It keeps the rate at $0.68 and the cap at 3.5%, and its transmittal letter, dated January 16, 2026, says economic uncertainty and inflation argued against a change. Even at those unchanged settings, the budget projects total annual-charge revenue up 2.9% over FY2026. That's organization-wide growth driven by assessments, not a per-household increase.
FY2028 is next. CA's financial reports page lists Resident Speakout dates of October 22, November 12 and December 10, and a town hall on January 28. The first Speakout falls on the day this post goes live. If you're buying this winter, any decision on the rate or cap will apply to your first bills, not the seller's.
Quick answers
Is the CA charge the same as an HOA fee? It's based on assessed value, like a tax, and it's secured by a lien in CA's recorded declaration. Village associations are separate and handle architectural covenants.
Does the 3.5% cap ever come back for a buyer? CA says the cap is skipped only in the first year after a purchase, when the state's phase-in value is used.
Where do I find a specific home's assessment? Look up the property's record with SDAT, which sets the value both CA and Howard County bill on.
This post is general information, not legal, tax or financial advice. Confirm how these rules apply to your purchase with your settlement attorney, title company or tax professional.
If you're comparing Columbia homes and want to estimate your own first-year CA charge and county tax instead of relying on the seller's figures, Shari Arciaga can pull the SDAT values with you and walk through both numbers before you write an offer. You can also download the Ultimate Moving to Maryland Guide to keep these costs alongside the rest of your relocation budget.
