Read the record
as evidence, not as an answer.
For a buyer reading the public record on a DC row house before an offer, and for an owner checking what the city says about theirs.
Is the year built on a DC listing accurate?
Often it is a placeholder. One in nine fee simple row houses that sold in DC in the last two years carries a year built of exactly 1900, the year the assessor enters when it does not know the true one. Read 1900 as "1900 or earlier". The deed history, the building permits and the house itself settle it.
Is the DC tax assessment what a house will sell for?
No. Over the last twelve months the typical fee simple row house sold 1% above its assessment, and 47% sold below it. The middle half sold between 89% and 114% of it. On a house assessed at $1M, that is $890,000 to $1,140,000. The assessment against the sales, by price.
What will my property tax be on a DC row house?
DC taxes a residential property at $0.85 per $100 of assessed value, so a $1M assessment costs $8,500 a year. The homestead deduction takes $91,950 off the assessment for tax year 2026, a saving of $781.58, and you apply for it once you live there.
Will my tax bill match the seller's?
Not for long. A homesteaded house is taxed on no more than a 10% rise in its assessment each year, through the Assessment Cap Credit. A buyer keeps the seller's credit only for the half-year of the purchase. After that, the bill follows the full assessment.
What can the property record not tell me?
Three things. Whether a basement unit is legal: that is the certificate of occupancy, a separate record (see the English basement). Whether a transfer was a sale: a refinance, a trust or a spouse added to the deed shows as a transfer, and the city marks those "Buyer = Seller". And the condition: two houses with the same record can be a gut renovation apart.
Where do I look up a DC property record?
The assessment, the tax and the homestead status are in the Office of Tax and Revenue's real property search on MyTax.DC.gov. The certificate of occupancy is in the Department of Buildings eRecords. The deed is at the Recorder of Deeds. The record is where the questions start.
Read next: the English basement and fee simple or condo.
Every closed sale on your block for 24 months, in two sections. No charge, no obligation.
Send me every sale on my blockSources. DC Office of Tax and Revenue, Real Property Tax Reliefs, Credits and Deductions (homestead deduction for tax year 2026; Assessment Cap Credit). Also Real Property Tax Rates (Class 1). BrightMLS closed sales (year built, assessment, sale price), fee simple row houses, to October 24, 2026. DC open data, ITSPE (sale acceptance codes).
This page explains rules and practice; it is not legal or tax advice. For a specific house, talk with a DC real estate attorney or a tax professional.