How Do Homestead Laws Save Deed Holders Money?

You’ve just bought a home. At closing, a title representative tells you to request your homestead exemption.

Or maybe you bought your home and a homestead exemption form arrived (surprise!) in your mailbox.

You know you should file the document in your home’s county, but you might be baffled as to why.

A state’s law lets a deed holder designate a home (that is, a segment of its acreage or its value) as a homestead. Now, let’s talk about why it’s worth doing.

What’s the Point of the Homestead Designation?

Being a deed holder has its perks. Your ability to conserve home equity through available homestead laws is one of them.

When you acquire a deed, take note of the (likely skyrocketing) property value of the home you’re buying. Your assessed property value will be taxed, to help cover the financial needs of your local government. Back in 2019, your property taxes might have added up to a few hundred dollars a year. Now, taxes on a similar property could be in the thousands. But you could get the taxable value cut down. As long as you, the deed holder, stay current with your taxes and mortgage payments, homestead status can be a real money-saver. Under your state’s law, homestead status might:

• Lower your taxable property value. This can translate into a savings of hundreds of dollars each year. For some deed holders, savings add up to thousands a year.

• Limit the amount by which your property taxes can be hiked.

• Offer protection that keeps you from losing the home you live in. In some states, homestead exemptions shield a certain amount of people’s home equity from court judgments. (That doesn’t make the debt go away — but a court can’t make a deed holder turn over the home to resolve it.)

• Shield a home belonging to a veteran or a surviving spouse from court judgments. If the family is ever faced with a major lawsuit, at least a portion of the equity can be conserved.

Some states only do some of the above, not all. As you can tell, it’s well worth asking…

Does Your State Have Some Form of Homestead Exemption?

Homestead exemptions are crafted by the states. So, type your state’s name into your computer browser and run a search for “homestead exemption.” It should lead you to information published by your county assessor’s (property appraiser’s) office.

Once you get this information, you can figure out if you’re eligible for a homestead exemption. Then, check the deadline. Don’t be late.

If you acquire a deed in a state that offers homestead status, your state might send you the application or even apply the homestead designation for you. But you might need to affirmatively request a form from the local government. Either way, the form is simple to complete.

In some states, you have to live in the home a certain amount of time before your exemption is effective. And in other states, the homestead exemption is specifically for disabled residents, seniors, and/or people with modest incomes or deed holders anticipating foreclosures or bankruptcies.

So, filing and exemption rules are state-specific. But the tax breaks are handled by your local government. States assist their local governments when there are local shortfalls due to deed holders claiming exemptions.

And the exemptions do add up. Consider Philly, where, as of 2025, the exemption will be “worth about $1,399 to the average homeowner.”

How Long Does It Take to Get the Exemption—And Once You Get It, Does It Stick to a Home for Good?

In some states, the exemption kicks in during the calendar year you first file. Elsewhere, it kicks in with the tax cycle early in the year after filing. The exemption in some states (consider the Florida homestead exemption) can be “ported” between your residences when you move, sparing you a time lag.

Do you have to reapply for the homestead status annually? No. Once you get started, you’re on a roll. Typically, as long as your homestead is where you live, the status sticks throughout the whole time you hold your deed. So, in other words, homestead is typically self-renewing. Check your home’s state law for details.

Now the other side of the coin. Don’t let the status keep automatically renewing if a life change makes you ineligible. If you stop qualifying, remember to inform the office that issued your exemption. Otherwise you could face financial penalties.

When is a lapse in your eligibility likely to happen? If you start renting the home out, think about your homestead. Check the state time limit on renting. You could be able to rent your home a month out of of the year and stay exempt, for example.

What If I Decide to Declare Bankruptcy?

You might get a boost from your homestead status if you ever find yourself struggling to make mortgage payments. Whether or not you might need to declare bankruptcy, homestead status can stop at least some of your home equity from being pulled away from you.

Federal law keeps deed holders from applying a state’s homestead exemption if they declare bankruptcy withing the first 1,215 days after closing. That’s the homestead domicile requirement. But your state law may say federal law still allows you to have a homestead exemption.

It’s especially important, at this point, to remember that articles such as this one are general overviews and starting points for your own due diligence. A bankruptcy attorney in your state can apply the law to your unique situation, and guide you up to and through bankruptcy. Specifically, the lawyer can tell you your applicable homestead amount and determine whether you can keep your deed through and beyond a bankruptcy filing.

It’s best to consult with a bankruptcy attorney before you go into default. The debts you do and don’t pay will have an impact on the power of homestead status. An expert in the subject can offer you legally sound advice to suit your specific circumstances.  

Don’t Miss What You’ve Got Coming to You.

People who acquire deeds need to know that possible benefits await them through the homesteading designation — and that they might need to sign up for it.

Almost every state has it. So do check for a homestead law where you are. Call your local tax appraiser’s office with specific questions about how your exemption works. You are likely to find designating a homestead quick, easy, and free of charge. In many states, the benefits are robust.