Homestead Exemptions

What is a Homestead Exemption, you ask?

In Texas, a homestead exemption is a legal provision that offers homeowners a reduction in the appraised value of their primary residence, thereby lowering property taxes. This exemption is designed to provide relief to homeowners and ensure that property taxes remain manageable, especially for those living on fixed incomes or facing financial challenges.

Benefits of Homestead Exemption:

  1. Property Tax Relief: By lowering the taxable value of your home, a homestead exemption can significantly reduce the amount of property taxes you owe each year.

  2. Protection from Creditors: The homestead exemption also offers some protection from creditors, making it harder for them to force the sale of your home to satisfy debts.

  3. Survivorship Rights: In the event of the homeowner's death, the homestead exemption can provide certain protections for surviving spouses and family members, safeguarding their right to remain in the home.

To qualify for the Homestead Exemption, you must meet the following eligibility criteria:

  1. Ownership: You must own and occupy the property as your primary residence. The property can be a house, condominium, manufactured home, or even a mobile home, as long as it serves as your principal place of residence.

  2. Occupancy and Legal Residence: You must use the property as your principal residence, meaning it is your primary dwelling where you live the majority of the time. Owning multiple properties does not disqualify you, as long as the property in question is your main residence. The property must be your legal residence for voting purposes and for filing income tax returns. You can only choose one property as your principal residence.

  3. Applicant Status: You must be an individual, not a business entity, applying for the homestead exemption. Business entities do not qualify for homestead exemptions.

  4. Texas Residency: You must be a legal resident of the state of Texas to qualify for the homestead exemption. You must have and provide a copy of a Texas Driver’s License or ID with your current address on it.

Filing your Homestead Exemption:

You will want to file your homestead exemption as soon as possible after closing on your home and after you have received your new or updated Texas Driver’s License or ID with your new address on it. While the “deadline” is April 30 for current year filings, they will accept late filings (officially) for one year plus one month, and unofficially I’ve seen certain counties back date them even further than that, if you ask nicely. You previously had to wait until after your first January 1st in the home to file, but this requirement was removed as of 2022.

To file your Homestead Exemption:

  1. First, you’ll need to get your Texas Drivers License or ID Card. This is required to be submitted with your form. There are often long waits for driver’s license appointments, so don’t delay.

  2. File a one-page form (Form 50-114, or your county may have their own form) with your county appraisal district. You will need to include a copy of your Texas ID or Driver’s license showing this as your current address. Certain people may be exempt (like law enforcement). Many counties allow you to submit this online, others may require that you mail it in or drop it off. There are additional requirements if you own a mobile/manufactured home.

  3. Depending on your county, this may be the same form used for some other exemptions, such as disabled, over-65, and disabled veterans, so check the extra boxes if any of those apply to you.

You may receive official-looking notices in the mail after closing asking you to pay a fee to file your homestead exemption - these are scams - throw these in the trash, it is always free to file, and isn't much work to do so.

Here are links for some counties:

In DFW:

In Austin:

In San Antonio:

In Houston: