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What Is a Homestead Exemption?
A homestead exemption takes a slice off the taxable value of the home you live in as your primary residence. Your tax bill is the taxable value times the local rate, so a lower taxable value means a lower bill. It is not automatic in most places. You usually have to apply, once, with your county.
We are a research tool, not attorneys or a tax firm. Amounts and dates change, so confirm yours with your county before you rely on them.
Florida
The Florida Department of Revenue says the homestead exemption may "decrease the property's taxable value by as much as $50,000," and that it "qualifies the home for the Save Our Homes assessment limitation" (Florida DOR).
Deadline. Florida Statute 196.011 requires you to file with the county property appraiser "on or before March 1 of each year." Missing it waives the exemption for that year unless a narrow exception applies, such as a documented postal error. There is also a late-filing path: within 25 days after the property appraiser mails the notices of proposed property taxes, with evidence of extenuating circumstances, and a $15 nonrefundable fee if you petition the value adjustment board (Fla. Stat. 196.011).
Assessment cap. Once you have the exemption, the yearly increase in your assessed value is limited to the lower of 3 percent or the change in the Consumer Price Index (Fla. Stat. 193.155). The state also lets a homeowner "port" part of that assessment difference to a new Florida homestead.
See if your own home is over-assessed
Enter your address — get your verdict, your dollar savings estimate, and your county's deadline in about two minutes. Free, sources shown, no account.
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Texas
Tax Code 11.13(b) requires school districts to give "a $140,000 exemption on a residence homestead." Owners 65 or older, or disabled, get an additional $60,000 school exemption. You apply with Form 50-114 at your county appraisal district, and the general deadline is "before May 1" (Texas Comptroller).
If you bought after January 1, you may still get the exemption for the rest of that year, but only if the previous owner did not receive it. Texas also caps homestead appraisal increases; see our Texas homestead exemption guide for the cap and late-claim details.
Cook County, Illinois
The Homeowner Exemption lowers your Equalized Assessed Value by $10,000. The Assessor's page is clear that this is not the amount your bill drops: your savings equal $10,000 times your local tax rate. You must own the home (or be responsible for its taxes) and live in it as your principal residence on January 1 of the tax year. Once approved, it renews automatically while your residency stays the same (Cook County Assessor).
The normal filing period for recent years has ended, but the Assessor says applications for earlier years are processed as Certificates of Error. See how to lower property taxes in Illinois.
Worked example (made-up numbers)
Say your taxable value is $300,000 and your combined local rate is 1.5 percent, so the bill is $4,500. A $50,000 exemption cuts taxable value to $250,000 and the bill to $3,750, a $750 saving every year you keep it. A $10,000 exemption at the same rate saves $150. The dollar savings depend on your local rate, not just the exemption amount.
How to check you have it
- Look at your bill or assessment notice. Exemptions are usually itemized.
- Search your county property appraiser, appraisal district or assessor site for your address and look for "homestead."
- Apply if it is missing, and ask what the deadline is for your county.
- Do not assume the seller's exemption carries over. A new owner usually has to apply.
An exemption is not the same as an appeal
An exemption lowers the taxable value by a fixed amount. An appeal challenges the assessed value itself. You can, and often should, have both. For senior programs see senior property tax freezes by state, and for veterans see disabled veteran exemptions by state.
Is your assessment too high?
Run the free check. It takes a couple of minutes, needs no account, and tells you straight when the numbers do not support an appeal. If they do, you file the appeal yourself with documents we help prepare.
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