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Taxes
Property tax relief for seniors in Texas
Texas has 3 programs that can lower property taxes for older adults: Age 65 or Older Residence Homestead Exemption, School District Tax Ceiling (age 65 or older or disabled) and Tax Deferral for Age 65 or Older or Disabled Homeowners. Each one has its own rules and deadline.
Age 65 or Older Residence Homestead Exemption
In Texas, school districts must take an extra $60,000 off the taxable value of your home once you are 65, on top of the $140,000 school homestead exemption every homeowner gets. Cities, counties and other local taxing units may add their own over-65 exemption of at least $3,000. There is no income limit, and you apply once with your county appraisal district.
How to apply
- In person
- File Form 50-114, Application for Residence Homestead Exemption, with the appraisal district in the county where your home is.
Who may qualify
| Age | 65 or older. The exemption covers the whole tax year in which you turn 65. |
|---|---|
| Income limit | No income limit |
| Home | You may qualify if you have an ownership interest in the home, live in it as your principal residence, and don't claim a homestead exemption on any other home |
What you may get
| School district exemption for 65 or older (2026 Comptroller guide) | $60,000 off your home's value for school taxes, on top of the $140,000 general homestead exemption |
|---|---|
| Local option exemption | Cities, counties, school districts and special districts may add their own over-65 exemption of at least $3,000 |
| School tax ceiling | Getting this exemption also puts a ceiling on your school district taxes (see the tax ceiling entry) |
Dates, renewals and waiting lists
| Application deadline | Generally April 30. A late application may be filed up to two years after the deadline. |
|---|---|
| Renewal | You don't reapply unless the appraisal district asks. If you already have the homestead exemption and your birth date is on file, you don't need to apply when you turn 65. |
How Texas is different
Where Texas's rules differ from the federal rules for Property tax relief for seniors.
- No income limit
- A surviving spouse who was 55 or older when the owner died may keep it while living in the home
- Comes with a ceiling on school district taxes
Good to know
- Renters: homestead exemptions are only for people who own and live in the home.
- Disabled homeowners get the same $60,000 school exemption. Someone who is both 65 and disabled can get both, but not from the same taxing units.
- You can keep the exemption while living in a facility that provides care related to health, infirmity or aging, even for more than two years, if you intend to return and don't set up another principal residence.
School District Tax Ceiling (age 65 or older or disabled)
When you get the over-65 homestead exemption in Texas, your school district taxes on that home are held under a tax ceiling, often called a freeze. You can carry the same share of the ceiling to a new home you buy, and a surviving spouse 55 or older keeps it. Cities, counties and junior college districts may choose to offer a ceiling too.
How to apply
- In person
- There is no separate application: the ceiling applies to owners who receive the age 65 or older homestead exemption, which you file for with your county appraisal district.
Who may qualify
| Age | 65 or older (or disabled) and receiving the age 65 or older or disabled homestead exemption |
|---|---|
| Income limit | No income limit |
| Home | You may qualify if the home is your residence homestead and you get the over-65 exemption on it |
What you may get
| What it does | Puts a ceiling on the school district taxes on your home |
|---|---|
| If you move | You can transfer the same percentage of tax paid, based on your ceiling, to another home you buy and live in |
| City, county and junior college taxes | A county, city or junior college district may adopt a similar ceiling, by its own vote or by a citizen petition and election |
Dates, renewals and waiting lists
| Application deadline | No separate deadline. File for the over-65 homestead exemption, generally by April 30. |
|---|---|
| Renewal | It continues while you keep the over-65 homestead exemption |
How Texas is different
Where Texas's rules differ from the federal rules for Property tax relief for seniors.
- Not an exemption: it doesn't change your home's appraised or taxable value
- A surviving spouse 55 or older keeps the ceiling
Good to know
- Renters: the ceiling is only for homeowners who get the over-65 or disabled homestead exemption.
Tax Deferral for Age 65 or Older or Disabled Homeowners
Texas lets homeowners 65 or older put off paying property taxes on their home for as long as it stays their homestead. You file a sworn tax deferral affidavit with your county appraisal district. The unpaid taxes remain a lien on the home and grow at 5% a year interest.
How to apply
- In person
- Sign Form 50-126, Tax Deferral Affidavit, in front of a notary and file it with the appraisal district in your county. Don't send it to the Comptroller.
Who may qualify
| Age | 65 or older (or disabled, a qualifying disabled veteran, or certain surviving spouses) |
|---|---|
| Income limit | The state affidavit has no income test |
| Home | You may qualify if you own the home and live in it as your residence homestead |
What you may get
| What it does | Puts off collection of property taxes on your homestead until it stops being your residence homestead |
|---|---|
| Interest | 5% a year while the taxes are deferred. Penalties and interest owed from before you filed still apply. |
Dates, renewals and waiting lists
| Application deadline | The state form sets no filing deadline. File the affidavit with your county appraisal district. |
|---|---|
| Renewal | One affidavit lasts until the home stops being your homestead. A surviving spouse who was 55 or older when you died can file to continue it. |
How Texas is different
Where Texas's rules differ from the federal rules for Property tax relief for seniors.
- No income test on the state affidavit
- Deferred taxes grow at 5% a year interest
Good to know
- Renters: the deferral is only for homeowners.
- A deferral doesn't stop collection or foreclosure for other debts on the home, such as a mortgage.
- Ordinary late property taxes get a 6% penalty and 1% interest on February 1, rising to a 12% penalty by July 1, plus 1% interest a month.
Free help
Free help with this in Texas
Texas Health and Human Services Commission (HHSC)
Your local Area Agency on Aging can help with meals, rides, help at home, caregiver support and applying for benefits.
More help in Texas
Property tax relief in another state
- Alabama
- Alaska
- Arizona
- Arkansas
- California
- Colorado
- Connecticut
- Delaware
- District of Columbia
- Florida
- Georgia
- Hawaii
- Idaho
- Illinois
- Indiana
- Iowa
- Kansas
- Kentucky
- Louisiana
- Maine
- Maryland
- Massachusetts
- Michigan
- Minnesota
- Mississippi
- Missouri
- Montana
- Nebraska
- Nevada
- New Hampshire
- New Jersey
- New Mexico
- New York
- North Carolina
- North Dakota
- Ohio
- Oklahoma
- Oregon
- Pennsylvania
- Rhode Island
- South Carolina
- South Dakota
- Tennessee
- Utah
- Vermont
- Virginia
- Washington
- West Virginia
- Wisconsin
- Wyoming
Sources
- Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts, Property Tax Exemptions (official government site). Checked Oct 28, 2026.
- Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts, Residence Homestead Exemptions (flyer 98-1070, November 2025) (official government site). Checked Oct 28, 2026.
- Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts, 2026 Texas Property Tax Exemptions (publication 96-1740) (official government site). Checked Oct 28, 2026.
- Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts, Form 50-126, Tax Deferral Affidavit for Age 65 or Older or Disabled Homeowner (official government site). Checked Oct 28, 2026.
- Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts, Paying Your Property Taxes (official government site). Checked Oct 28, 2026.
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