Senior Property Tax Exemption in Florida: The Additional Homestead for Owners Over 65
The senior property tax exemption Florida counties and cities offer adds up to $50,000 of exemption for homestead owners 65 and older under an income limit. Some add a full exemption for long-time low-income owners. File annually.
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The senior property tax exemption Florida counties and cities may adopt adds up to $50,000 of additional homestead exemption for owners 65 and older whose household income falls under a state-set limit.
Some jurisdictions add a full exemption for long-time residents of modest homes. It must be filed, and in many counties renewed annually. Our guide to the Florida homestead exemption covers the base exemption it stacks on.
The two senior exemptions
An additional exemption up to $50,000 for owners 65 and over under the income limit, adopted by county and city separately.
A full exemption on homes valued under a threshold for owners 65 and over who have lived there 25 years, where adopted.
The Florida Department of Revenue exemptions page lists both.
Not every jurisdiction adopts either.
Ask the property appraiser.
The income limit
Adjusted gross household income under a figure the state adjusts annually for inflation.
Household means everyone living in the home.
Social Security is included in the calculation.
See our guide to mortgages with Social Security income in Florida.
A sworn statement of income each year.
Who qualifies
At least one owner 65 or older on January 1.
The home is the permanent residence with homestead already granted.
Household income under the limit.
Filed by March 1.
Renewed annually in most counties with the income statement.
What it is worth
Up to $50,000 off the taxable value for county and, separately, city millage where each adopted it.
Not applied to school millage.
On a modest home it can remove a meaningful share of the bill.
The full exemption removes the county or city portion entirely.
See our guide to what PITI is in Florida for where the saving lands.
The 25-year exemption
For owners 65 and over who have held the homestead 25 years, on homes below a value threshold, where the county or city adopted it.
Removes the adopting jurisdiction's tax entirely.
The value threshold and the income limit both apply.
Rare and valuable.
Ask whether your county adopted it.
Stacking with other exemptions
Homestead, widow or widower, disability and veteran exemptions all stack.
See our guide to the VA disability property tax exemption in Florida.
Total exemptions cannot exceed taxable value.
File every one you qualify for.
The appraiser applies them in order.
Effect on the mortgage
A lower tax bill lowers the escrow payment.
See our guide to escrow accounts in Florida.
Lenders use the actual bill after exemptions once it is issued.
For a purchase, tell the lender you will qualify; some will estimate with it.
On a fixed income the saving matters.
Reverse mortgages
The financial assessment tests whether you can pay taxes and insurance.
See our guide to reverse mortgage requirements in Florida.
A senior exemption lowers the tax obligation the assessment measures.
It can reduce or avoid a set-aside.
File before applying.
Filing
The property appraiser's office, online in most counties.
Proof of age, the homestead already in place, and the income statement.
By March 1 for the current year.
Renewal cards mailed annually in many counties.
Return them.
Income documentation
A sworn statement and, on request, the prior year's tax return.
Those who do not file returns provide Social Security statements and other income proof.
See our guide to mortgages with pension income in Florida.
Household income includes non-owner residents.
An adult child living at home can push a household over.
Moving and the exemption
The exemption does not port; refile at the new homestead.
See our guide to homestead portability in Florida.
Portability of the cap is separate and does transfer.
The 25-year clock restarts.
Consider it before downsizing.
Death of the qualifying owner
A surviving spouse under 65 loses the senior exemption until they reach 65.
See our guide to the mortgage after the death of a spouse in Florida.
The base homestead continues.
A widow or widower exemption applies.
Refile at 65.
Jurisdictions that adopted it
Most South Florida counties adopted the additional exemption; cities vary.
The full 25-year exemption is less common.
The property appraiser's site lists what applies to each address.
A home just inside a city line may qualify for both county and city exemptions.
Check the address, not the county.
Buying near retirement
Buyers turning 65 soon should plan the filing.
See our guide to buying a home near retirement in Florida.
The exemption starts the year after you qualify and file.
It lowers the fixed-income payment from then on.
Budget without it in year one.
Common mistakes
Assuming it is automatic.
Missing the annual renewal.
Counting only the owner's income when a relative lives there.
Not asking whether the city adopted it separately.
See our guide to TRIM notices in Florida for checking it was applied.
A worked example
A retired couple on Social Security and a small pension in a county and city that both adopted the additional exemption.
Household income under the limit.
Up to $50,000 removed from taxable value for each jurisdiction's millage.
The escrow payment drops the year after filing.
The reverse mortgage assessment later shows no set-aside needed.
Widow, widower and disability stack
Small additional exemptions for surviving spouses and for disability.
Larger exemptions for total and permanent disability and for certain veterans.
Each has its own form and proof.
File all that apply in one visit.
The appraiser's staff will walk through the list.
Where to start
Check the property appraiser's site for which senior exemptions your county and city adopted.
File by March 1 with proof of age and the income statement.
Then start a conversation and we will put the lower bill into any refinance or reverse mortgage estimate.