What Is a Texas Homestead Exemption?
A homestead exemption removes part of your home's value before property tax is charged. Every Texas school district takes $140,000 off the value of an owner's principal residence, and your city, county or other taxing entities may take off more. It applies only to the home you own and live in, and once approved it stays until you move.
Do I qualify?
| Question | If yes | If no |
|---|
| Do you own the home, alone or with someone? | Keep going. | The general exemption is for owners. Renters, and homes held by a company, do not qualify. |
| Is it the place you actually live, your principal residence? | Keep going. | Second homes and rentals do not qualify. |
| Are you claiming a homestead on any other home, in Texas or elsewhere? | You can have only one. The form asks for the old address so the district can end it there. | Keep going. |
| Does your Texas driver's license or ID show this address? | You are ready to file. | Update the license first. A mismatched address is the most common reason for a denial. There are exceptions, for example for military families. |
| Are you 65 or older, or disabled? | You get $60,000 more and a school tax ceiling. See the section for owners 65 or older. | The general $140,000 exemption applies. |
The appraisal district makes the final decision on eligibility.
Tell us about your home →How Much Does a Texas Homestead Exemption Save?
For school taxes, $140,000 comes off your home's taxable value. The saving is that amount times your school district's tax rate. The Texas Comptroller's example: a $300,000 home minus the $140,000 exemption leaves $160,000 to be taxed by the school district.
In Denton County, the median home was appraised at $420,000 on the 2026 roll. At a school tax rate of about $1.00 to $1.15 per $100, the $140,000 is worth about $1,400 to $1,610 a year, before any city or county exemptions.
Want your actual bill, every taxing entity included? Look up your property tax bill.
The 10% cap
A homestead also caps how fast the taxable value can grow: no more than 10% a year, however fast the market value rises. 30,893 Denton County homes hit that cap this year. The 10% cap applies only to a homestead.
About 78,396 of Denton County's 293,619 homes had no homestead exemption on the 2026 roll. If yours is one of them, the search box at the top is the fastest way to find out.
What Changed for 2026
- The school homestead exemption rose from $100,000 to $140,000, starting with the 2025 tax year, after voters approved it in November 2025.
- The extra exemption for owners 65 or older or disabled rose from $10,000 to $60,000.
- On a $400,000 home, that is $40,000 less taxable value for school taxes than before, about $400 a year at a typical school tax rate.
Texas Homestead Exemption Amounts by Owner
| Who | Amount | Notes |
|---|
| Every homeowner | $140,000 off school taxes | Plus up to 20% off from your city, county or other taxing entities, if they offer it. |
| Age 65 or older | $60,000 more off school taxes | And a ceiling: your school taxes stop rising above the amount for the year you qualified, except for new additions to the home. |
| Disabled person | $60,000 more off school taxes | Same school tax ceiling as 65 or older. If you qualify for both, you take one of the two. |
| Disabled veteran, 10% to 100% rating | $5,000 to $12,000 off one property | Set by the VA rating. |
| Disabled veteran, 100% or unemployable | The whole home, tax free | Applies to the residence homestead. |
| Surviving spouse, 55 or older | Keeps the 65-or-older ceiling | As long as the spouse lives in the same home. |
Why File With Bezit if Filing With the County Is Free?
The form is the easy part. Finding the right district, getting the details right and knowing it went through is the rest.
| File directly with the county | File with Bezit |
|---|
| Find where to file | Look up the right appraisal district and its portal or mailing address. | Bezit knows the district from your address. |
| Fill in the form | Form 50-114 or the district's online form. It assumes you know the rules. | Plain questions; Bezit fills the form from your answers. |
| Catch mistakes | Up to you. | Checks the ID address, the old homestead and the 65-or-older box before sending. |
| Submit and track | Submit, then check the property record yourself later. | Bezit submits and tells you when the district responds. A copy stays in your account. |
| Cost | Free | Free |
| Who decides | The appraisal district | The appraisal district |
Bezit is not a government agency and cannot guarantee approval or timing.
How to File Your Homestead Exemption Online With Bezit
1
Search your address and choose the home you live in.
2
Answer a few questions about ownership and when you moved in.
3
Upload a photo of your Texas driver's license or ID showing the home's address.
4
Bezit checks the application and submits it to your appraisal district.
5
You get an email when the district responds, and can see the status in your account.
Most people finish in about ten minutes. You can stop and come back; nothing is lost.
Start my free application →What Is Form 50-114?
Form 50-114, the Application for Residence Homestead Exemption, is the Texas Comptroller's form. It is filed with the appraisal district for the county where the home is, not with the Comptroller. Bezit fills it in from your answers.
Have ready: the property address, the date you moved in, the owners' names, and a Texas driver's license or ID showing the home's address. The district may ask for more in some cases, such as a home held in a trust.
Common Mistakes That Get Applications Denied
The ID still shows the old address
The district matches your driver's license to the home. An old address is the most common reason an application is denied. Update the license first, then file.
Leaving out the previous homestead
If you had an exemption on your last home, the form asks for that address so the district can end it there. Leave it blank and both files stall.
Waiting for January after you buy
You can apply as soon as you own and live in the home. The exemption applies for the part of the year after you move in; waiting costs you that part.
Giving up on a missed deadline
April 30 is the regular date, not the last chance. A late application is accepted for about two years, and the overpaid tax is refunded.
Skipping the 65-or-older or disability box
The extra $60,000 and the school tax ceiling are not automatic. If the box is not ticked, the district does not apply them.
Filing with the Comptroller
Form 50-114 is a state form, but it goes to your county's appraisal district, not to the Comptroller.
Paying someone to file
Letters offering to file for $50 to $300 are selling a free service. The appraisal district charges nothing, and neither does Bezit.
Missed April 30? You Can Still File
April 30 is the regular deadline. Texas accepts a late homestead application for up to two years after the date that year's taxes became delinquent, usually February 1 of the next year (Tax Code §11.431). For the 2025 tax year, that is until February 1, 2028.
If the district approves it, the tax you overpaid for those years is refunded or taken off your bill. Bezit files late applications in its four counties, free.
Check whether I can file late →Over 65 or Disabled? You Qualify for More
- Every school district adds $60,000 on top of the $140,000, so up to $200,000 comes off school taxes.
- Your school taxes get a ceiling: they do not rise above the amount for the year you qualified, unless you add on to the home.
- Owners 65 or older and disabled owners both get the $60,000 and the ceiling. If you qualify both ways, you take one.
- You can apply in the year you turn 65; the exemption covers that whole year.
- A surviving spouse aged 55 or older keeps the ceiling in the same home.
The district may ask for proof of age or disability.
Check my over-65 exemption →We File With the Right Appraisal District
Bezit files in Collin, Dallas, Denton and Tarrant counties, with the appraisal district for the county your home is in. Outside these counties, file directly with your county's appraisal district.
Collin County
Collin Central Appraisal District
Dallas County
Dallas Central Appraisal District
Denton County
Denton Central Appraisal District
Tarrant County
Tarrant Appraisal District
What Happens After I File?
1
Keep the confirmation. Bezit keeps a copy of what was sent, and when, in your account.
2
The appraisal district reviews the application. It often takes a few weeks to three months, and longer during April to July.
3
Once approved, the exemption shows on the district's property record for your home and on your next tax bill.
4
You do not reapply every year unless the district asks. If you move, you file again for the new home.
Homestead Exemption vs. Property Tax Protest
They are separate. The exemption lowers the taxable part of your home's value; a property tax protest challenges the value the district set. If you think the value is too high, a protest is the next step.
| Homestead exemption | Property tax protest |
|---|
| What it does | Takes $140,000 off the value your school taxes are based on | Argues that the district's market value for your home is too high |
| How often | Once. It stays on the home until you move | Each year the value looks wrong |
| Deadline | April 30, with late filing for about two years | May 15, or 30 days after your notice arrives |
| Cost with Bezit | Free | 10% of the tax saved; nothing if your tax bill does not drop |
Why Homeowners Use Bezit
Free, with no catch
No fee now or later, and no percentage of anything.
Filed online
Start on your phone, finish when you have your license in hand.
Sent to the right district
Collin, Dallas, Denton or Tarrant, matched from your address.
Licensed
Run by a Texas licensed property tax consultant, TDLR #12971.
(469) 353-3880
contact@bezit.co 