What is the Homestead Exemption?

The Homestead Exemption allows senior citizens and permanently and totally disabled Ohioans to reduce their property tax burden by shielding some of the market value of their home from taxation.

The exemption, which takes the form of a credit on property tax bills, allows qualifying homeowners to exempt $25,000 of the market value of their home from all local property taxes. For example, through the Homestead Exemption, a home with a market value of $100,000 would be billed as if it is worth $75,000.

The exact amount of savings will vary from location to location. But overall, across Ohio, qualified homeowners should save an average of about $400 per year.

How has the Homestead Exemption changed?
On July 2, 2007, the Homestead Exemption became available to all Ohio homeowners, regardless of income, who are either age 65 or older or permanently and totally disabled. These changes are the result of House Bill 119, which was signed into law by Gov. Ted Strickland on June 30, 2007.

Previously, eligibility for the Homestead Exemption was restricted through income tests that disqualified most senior citizens.

Another important change: All households who qualify for the Homestead Exemption will now receive a flat $25,000 property tax exemption on the market value of their home. Previously, benefits were tiered according to homeowners’ income and usually not as valuable.

Because of these changes, the number of households eligible for the Homestead Exemption is expected to grow from 220,000 to an estimated 750,000. The average size of tax relief available to qualifying homeowners is expected to grow by about 25 percent per household.

When did the new Homestead Exemption start?
The new Homestead Exemption started with tax bills payable in 2008. For real property, bills paid in 2008 cover the 2007 tax year. For manufactured or mobile homes, bills paid in 2008 cover the 2008 tax year.

Who qualifies for Homestead Exemption?
Any Ohio resident homeowner who:

• Is 65 or turning 65 years old the year they file for Homestead.
• Is totally and permanently disabled as of January 1, in the year of application as
  certified by a licensed physician or psychologist, or a state or federal agency; or
• Is the surviving spouse of a person who was receiving the previous Homestead Exemption at the time of death and where the surviving spouse was at least 59 years old on the date of death.

To qualify, an Ohio resident also must own and occupy a home as their principal place of residence as of Jan. 1st , for real property or Jan. 1st of the current year for manufactured home property. For individuals who own more than one home, the principal place of residence is the home where the person is registered to vote and the person’s place of residence for income tax purposes.

What’s the deadline to apply?
Applications for the Homestead Exemption opens the first Monday in January, and must be received by your county auditor’s office no later than the first Monday in June.

Note: Applications postmarked after the first Monday in June will be denied for missing the deadline.

I already receive the Homestead Exemption. Do I have to reapply to receive benefits under the new program?

No, but we do recommend that surviving spouses file a new application in order to ensure they are considered for the Homestead Exemption Program.

If the county auditor denies your application, you will receive a notice on or before Nov. 1st. informing you of and explaining the reason for the denial.

If you believe your application was improperly denied, you may appeal the auditor’s decision to the county Board of Revision by filing form DTE 106-B, Homestead Exemption and 2.5% Reduction Complaint, on or before the deadline for paying the first-half taxes (in most counties, the due date is in January or February). Owners of manufactured or mobile homes may also appeal the denial of a Homestead Exemption application, but their compliant forms must be filed no later than January 31st of the current year.

The complaint form is available from the county auditor or at the Ohio Department of Taxation’s Web site at tax.ohio.gov.

What documentation do I need to provide to prove my disability?
If you are claiming a physical disability, you must have the Certificate of Disability for the Homestead Exemption (FORM 105E) signed by a physician licensed to practice medicine in Ohio. If you are claiming a mental disability, you must have the certificate signed by a physician or psychologist licensed to practice in Ohio. You may also submit a certificate from any state or federal agency that classifies you as permanently and totally disabled.

The certificate is a separate application form, DTE 105-A Homestead Exemption Application Form for Senior Citizens, Disabled Persons, and Surviving Spouses. The form is available from your county auditor or at the Ohio Department of Taxation’s Web site at tax.ohio.gov.

• You created the trust to be effective during your lifetime (an inter vivos trust).
  
• You provided the assets for the trust (you are the settlor).
  
• You can terminate the trust at any time (it is a revocable trust).
  
• The trust agreement contains a provision that says you have complete possession of the property.
  

Most of the other common forms of property ownership (such as survivorship deeds) also qualify for the exemption. If you have questions about what constitutes eligible home ownership for the Homestead Exemption, consult your county auditor.

In January the county auditor will mail you a copy of the continuing application form (DTE 105B, Continuing Homestead Exemption Application Form for Senior Citizens, Disabled Persons, and Surviving Spouses). Please return this form to the auditor only if you no longer own the home, no longer occupy it as your primary place of residence, or if your disability status has changed.

What if I received a larger tax credit under the old version of the Homestead Exemption? Will I lose out?
Taxpayers will automatically receive whichever credit is larger, and the amount of the credit received in the future cannot be decreased below the amount of savings credited on tax bills paid during 2007.

I’ll save quite a bit of money through the Homestead Exemption. Will this hurt my local schools?
The State of Ohio reimburses school districts and local governments for the amount of revenue taxpayers save through the Homestead Exemption. Local governments and schools do not lose out.