Living in Harford County: towns, schools and homes

Living in Harford County

Harford County was created from eastern Baltimore County in 1773. It runs from the Chesapeake Bay and Aberdeen Proving Ground in the south to the Pennsylvania line in the north. Baltimore County lies to the west, with Little Gunpowder Falls forming part of that line. Cecil County lies across the Susquehanna River to the east. Voters adopted a charter in 1972, so a County Executive and a seven-member County Council now run the county in place of the commissioners who governed it for two centuries.

Only three places in the county have their own government: the Town of Bel Air, incorporated in 1874 and county seat since 1782; the City of Aberdeen, incorporated in 1892; and the City of Havre de Grace, incorporated in 1785. Everything else is unincorporated, so the county handles zoning, permits and code enforcement. That includes Abingdon, Edgewood, Fallston, Forest Hill, Jarrettsville and Joppatowne. Bel Air North and Bel Air South are census-designated places separate from the town.

Growth follows a line the county calls the Development Envelope, which runs along I-95 and US 40 in the south and up the MD 24 corridor to Bel Air. Public water and sewer mostly stay inside that envelope. North of it, the county keeps a large Priority Preservation Area of farms and woods on wells and septic. Deborah Green is a REALTOR with LPT Realty, licensed in Maryland since 2002, and works with buyers, sellers, investors and people relocating to Harford County.

Homes and property types in Harford County

The oldest housing sits in the three municipalities and a few old crossroads. Havre de Grace has a historic district on the National Register, listed in 1987, near the waterfront at the head of the Bay. Bel Air grew around its courthouse, and the Bel Air Courthouse Historic District is also on the National Register. Darlington, near Conowingo Dam, has its own historic district. Abingdon dates to 1779, when John Paca laid it out near the Bush River.

Much of the southern county is postwar suburban housing. Joppatowne began in 1961 as a planned unit development on land bought by the Panitz Brothers Company, beside the Gunpowder River and Little Gunpowder Falls. Edgewood, Abingdon, Riverside, Bel Air North and Bel Air South hold large areas of detached homes, townhomes and apartments built over the following decades. The 2024 Annual Growth Report counted more new townhouse permits than detached homes that year, and the three municipalities issued more than half of all new residential permits.

New construction is concentrated inside the Development Envelope. The county's 2024 report says about nine in ten new residential permits that year were inside it. In 2024 the county also allowed garden and mid-rise apartments in the B3 zone within the Chesapeake Science and Security Corridor along US 40. Outside the envelope, the county steers land toward preservation through its own Agricultural Land Preservation Program, the state's program and two Rural Legacy Areas, Manor and Deer Creek. More than a quarter of the county outside the towns is permanently preserved.

Age and location set the inspection list. Homes north of the Development Envelope usually have a private well and septic system, so test the water and inspect the septic; the Harford County Health Department handles wells, septic and percolation tests. Along the Bay, Bush River and Gunpowder shoreline, the Chesapeake Bay Critical Area limits clearing and lot coverage within 1,000 feet of tidal water. Check FEMA flood maps for lots near creeks or the shore.

Towns and communities in Harford County

Three places on this list are incorporated, with their own government, zoning and property tax on top of the county's. The rest are unincorporated, so Harford County runs zoning, permits and code enforcement there, and the Harford County Sheriff's Office provides police service. A Bel Air mailing address often sits outside the town limits in Bel Air North, Bel Air South or Forest Hill. Check SDAT records or ask Deborah which government an address falls under.

Bel Air

Incorporated town and county seat, ZIP 21014. Downtown around the courthouse historic district, older homes on side streets, and the Ma and Pa Heritage Trail through Heavenly Waters Park.

Bel Air North and Bel Air South

Unincorporated census-designated places around the town, ZIPs 21014 and 21015. Large subdivisions of detached homes and townhomes along MD 24, MD 924 and Tollgate Road.

Aberdeen

Incorporated city, ZIP 21001, with a council-manager government. Older homes near the MARC and Amtrak station on US 40, newer subdivisions toward MD 22, and Ripken Stadium.

Havre de Grace

Incorporated city at the mouth of the Susquehanna, ZIP 21078. A National Register historic district, a waterfront promenade, the Concord Point Lighthouse and its own city water and wastewater plants.

Abingdon

Unincorporated census-designated place between I-95 exits 77 and 80, ZIP 21009. Laid out in 1779; today mostly subdivisions of detached homes and townhomes near the Bush River.

Edgewood

Unincorporated census-designated place, ZIP 21040, on the northern edge of the Edgewood Area of Aberdeen Proving Ground. Has a MARC station and housing from several postwar decades.

Joppatowne

Unincorporated census-designated place, ZIP 21085. A planned unit development begun in 1961 on the Gunpowder River, near the site of colonial Joppa, once the Baltimore County seat.

Fallston

Unincorporated census-designated place in western Harford, ZIP 21047, along MD 152. Farms mixed with suburban-style developments; Little Gunpowder Falls forms its southern edge and the county line.

Jarrettsville

Unincorporated census-designated place in northwestern Harford, ZIP 21084, at MD 23 and MD 165. The Census counts it as fully rural; homes here are mostly on wells and septic.

Schools and boundaries

Harford County Public Schools runs every public school in the county, including those inside Bel Air, Aberdeen and Havre de Grace. The system has ten high schools, two of them combined middle and high schools: Havre de Grace Middle/High and Patterson Mill Middle/High. It also runs countywide magnet programs that students apply to, so a student may attend a high school other than the one their address is zoned for.

Boundaries have changed recently. In February 2022 the Board of Education approved a boundary plan that moved several Bel Air neighborhoods for the 2022-23 school year, including Irwin's Choice, Village Green and Kelly Glen to C. Milton Wright High, and Blakes Legacy, Cedarwood and Harford Estates to Fallston High. The same plan tied elementary changes to a new elementary school on the Campus Hills site. Look up any address in the HCPS School and Bus Locator before you rely on a school assignment.

School capacity also shapes new building. Under the county's adequate public facilities rules, the 2024 Annual Growth Report said major subdivisions in the Havre de Grace and Hillsdale elementary attendance areas would go on a waiting list until there is room. Those limits do not apply inside the three municipalities.

Aberdeen High School

On Paradise Road in Aberdeen. Hosts the Science and Mathematics Academy, a countywide magnet that students apply to in the fall of eighth grade.

Bel Air High School

On Heighe Street in the Town of Bel Air. Several neighborhoods moved out of its boundary in the 2022 plan, so check any Bel Air address.

C. Milton Wright High School

On North Fountain Green Road with a Bel Air address. Gained Irwin's Choice, Village Green and Kelly Glen in the 2022-23 boundary change.

Edgewood High School

On Willoughby Beach Road in Edgewood. Hosts the county's International Baccalaureate magnet program and the Teacher Academy of Maryland.

Fallston High School

On Carrs Mill Road in Fallston. Took in Blakes Legacy, Cedarwood and Harford Estates from Bel Air in the 2022-23 boundary change.

Havre de Grace Middle/High School

A combined middle and high school on Lewis Lane in Havre de Grace. Hosts the Information Technology Oracle Academy magnet program.

Joppatowne High School

On Joppa Farm Road in Joppa. Hosts the Pathways in Technology Early College High School (P-TECH) magnet program.

North Harford High School

On Pylesville Road in Pylesville, serving much of the rural north. Hosts the Natural Resources and Agricultural Sciences magnet program.

Harford Technical High School

On Thomas Run Road with a Bel Air address. A countywide career and technology magnet school that students apply to.

What it costs to own here beyond the price

Every Harford County owner pays the state and county real property tax. Inside Bel Air, Aberdeen and Havre de Grace, the town adds its own tax, and SDAT's rate table shows the county charging a lower county rate inside those towns than outside them. The Homestead Tax Credit caps how much the taxable assessment on a principal residence can rise each year, and Harford County and each town set their own cap. You apply once through SDAT, online or by mail. New buyers should receive an application after the deed is recorded.

The Homeowners' Property Tax Credit is a separate state program based on household income, and it needs a new application every year. At closing, Maryland charges a state transfer tax and the county charges its own transfer tax and recordation tax. Harford County Revenue Collections in Bel Air stamps every deed before recording; in the three towns the municipality stamps it first. Half of the county transfer tax goes to farmland preservation and half to schools.

Water and sewer depend on location. Inside the Development Envelope, the Harford County Division of Water and Sewer serves most unincorporated homes, and a county account can carry annual capital assessments that vary by when and where the property connected. Inside the three towns, the county does not provide service. Maryland American Water supplies water in Bel Air, and Havre de Grace runs its own water and wastewater plants. North of the envelope, most homes rely on a private well and septic system.

BGE provides electricity in most of the county, and Delmarva Power serves a small part of northern Harford. Many newer subdivisions have an HOA whose covenants cover fences, sheds, decks and exterior changes. Waterfront and low-lying homes along the Bay, the Bush River and the Gunpowder may need flood insurance and must follow Chesapeake Bay Critical Area rules. Deborah can check an address for these items before you write an offer.

Buying your first home in Harford County

Maryland gives first-time buyers a break on the state transfer tax. Under state law, a first-time Maryland home buyer is someone who has never owned a Maryland home as a principal residence. For that buyer, the state transfer tax is reduced and paid entirely by the seller, as long as the buyer will live in the home. The deed must carry the exemption code or the Clerk charges the full tax. The county's transfer tax page lists no first-time buyer exemption, so ask before you budget.

Harford County runs its own Settlement Expense Loan Program for down payment and settlement costs through Housing and Community Development. The county's page says no funds are available right now, so check before counting on it. The Maryland Mortgage Program offers state-backed loans and down payment help through approved lenders. Deborah runs free seminars for first-time buyers that walk through these programs and the steps from preapproval to settlement.

Maryland Mortgage Program 1st Time Advantage

The state's first-time buyer loan line, offered through the Maryland Department of Housing and Community Development and approved lenders. Borrowers must finish homebuyer education before approval.

Maryland Mortgage Program down payment assistance

Paired with MMP loans through participating lenders. Partner Match adds state money to help from employers and other partner organizations.

Harford County Settlement Expense Loan Program

Run by Harford County Housing and Community Development for first-time buyers who complete homebuyer counseling. Homes in a flood zone do not qualify, and the Southern County Task Force area gets more help.

Maryland first-time buyer transfer tax rule

State law reduces the state transfer tax for a first-time Maryland buyer who will occupy the home and places that tax on the seller. The deed must cite the exemption code.

Parks, trails and things to do

The north of the county is stream valley and farmland. Deer Creek runs through Rocks State Park, and the Susquehanna River forms the eastern edge, with Susquehanna State Park on its bank above Havre de Grace. The south is shoreline: the Bush River, the Gunpowder River and the head of the Bay at Havre de Grace, where the city keeps a waterfront promenade, Tydings Memorial Park and a yacht basin.

Bel Air's downtown is a state arts and entertainment district, and the Ma and Pa Heritage Trail links Bel Air and Forest Hill on the old Maryland and Pennsylvania Railroad line. In Aberdeen, the IronBirds play minor league baseball at Ripken Stadium on MD 22. Up north, Ladew Topiary Gardens opens each spring on Jarrettsville Pike.

Rocks State Park

855 acres in northern Harford along Deer Creek. King and Queen Seat is a 190-foot rock outcrop over the creek, protected since the state bought the land in 1949.

Kilgore Falls

At the Falling Branch area of Rocks State Park. Weekend and holiday visits from Memorial Day through Labor Day need a reservation through the state's park day-use site.

Susquehanna State Park

On Wilkinson Road near Havre de Grace. The Rock Run Historic Area has a working gristmill, the Carter-Archer Mansion and the Jersey Toll House; the park also has a campground and mountain bike trails.

Ma and Pa Heritage Trail

About eight miles in sections through Bel Air and Forest Hill on the former railroad corridor, from Edgeley Grove Park toward Friends Park, with the final link planned for 2026.

Concord Point Lighthouse

On the Havre de Grace waterfront at the mouth of the Susquehanna. The Friends of Concord Point Lighthouse care for the light and the Keeper's House.

Havre de Grace Decoy Museum

Tells the story of decoy carving and duck hunting on the Susquehanna Flats, a trade the city was known for in the 1800s.

Ladew Topiary Gardens

22 acres of gardens on Jarrettsville Pike with a Monkton address, begun by Harvey Ladew in the 1930s and on the National Register since 1976.

Getting around: DC, Baltimore and BWI

I-95 crosses the southern county with five exits: 74 for MD 152 at Joppatowne and Fallston, 77 for MD 24 toward Edgewood and Bel Air, 80 for MD 543 at Riverside, 85 for MD 22 at Aberdeen, and 89 for MD 155 at Havre de Grace. Northbound drivers pay a toll after the Millard E. Tydings Memorial Bridge at Perryville. US 40 runs parallel and crosses the Susquehanna on the Thomas J. Hatem Memorial Bridge. US 1 runs north through Bel Air to Conowingo Dam.

The MARC Penn Line stops at Edgewood and Aberdeen on weekdays and runs through Baltimore Penn Station and the BWI Marshall rail station to Washington Union Station. Aberdeen is also an Amtrak Northeast Regional stop and connects to MTA Commuter Bus Route 420. Harford Transit, run by the county, links Bel Air, Abingdon, Edgewood, Aberdeen and Havre de Grace and meets trains at both stations. In a straight line, Bel Air is about 22 miles from downtown Baltimore, about 30 from BWI and about 57 from downtown Washington.

Aberdeen Proving Ground is the county's largest employer, with its Aberdeen and Edgewood areas reached from MD 22 and MD 24. The county promotes the US 40 corridor near the base as the Chesapeake Science and Security Corridor, and its Southern County Taskforce focuses road, park and business work along the same stretch of US 40.