Do Seniors Get a Property Tax Break in Florida?

Seniors get a real property tax break in Florida, but nothing arrives automatically. Homeowners 65 or older whose household income stays at or below $38,686 for 2026 can claim an additional homestead exemption of up to $50,000, on top of the standard $50,000 homestead exemption every permanent resident already qualifies for. Long-term residents who meet stricter conditions can eliminate their county and city property taxes entirely. Each of these benefits has to be applied for with your county property appraiser, and the filing deadline is March 1.

Start With the Standard Homestead Exemption

Every senior benefit in Florida is built on top of the standard homestead exemption, so that’s the first application to file. The exemption reduces your home’s taxable value by up to $50,000 and is available to any permanent Florida resident who owns and lives in the property as of January 1 of the tax year.¹

You apply once, using Form DR-501, by March 1. After approval, the exemption renews automatically each year as long as you still live in the home, and the property appraiser mails a renewal receipt in late December.¹

The Additional Senior Exemption

Florida law lets counties and cities add another homestead exemption of up to $50,000 for seniors with limited incomes. Stack it on the standard exemption and a qualifying senior could see as much as $100,000 shaved off the property’s taxable value.²

Three conditions have to be met:

At least one owner is 65 or older as of January 1 of the tax year.
The property already has a standard homestead exemption.
The combined adjusted gross income of everyone living in the home is at or below the annual limit set by the Florida Department of Revenue. For the 2026 tax year, that limit is $38,686, based on 2025 income.³

Income counts for the entire household, not just the owner. Social Security, pensions, interest, and rental income all get added in.

Because this is a local-option exemption, not every county or city has adopted it, and some jurisdictions offer less than the full $50,000. Your property appraiser’s office can confirm what’s on the books where you live. Once you’re approved, you don’t refile every year, but you have to notify the property appraiser by May 1 if your household income rises above the current limit.⁴

The Long-Term Resident Exemption

A stronger version of the senior break exists for homeowners who have stayed put. Where the standard senior exemption reduces taxable value by up to $50,000, this one can wipe out your entire county and city property tax bill. School district taxes still apply.³

You need to meet the same age and income tests as the additional senior exemption (65 or older, household income at or below $38,686 for 2026), plus two more:

You’ve lived on the property as your permanent residence for at least 25 consecutive years.
The home’s market value is under $250,000. This threshold only has to be met the year you first qualify. If the home appreciates above $250,000 later, you keep the exemption.³

This is also a local option, so it exists only where the county or city has passed an ordinance adopting it.

Save Our Homes: The Cap That Grows With You

Once your home is homesteaded, Florida’s constitution caps annual increases in assessed value at 3% or the change in the Consumer Price Index, whichever is lower.⁵ For 2026, that cap is 2.7%.⁶

For a senior who has owned the same house for 15 or 20 years, the gap between assessed value and market value can be enormous. A property that would sell for $400,000 might sit on the tax roll at $250,000 because annual increases were capped year after year. That gap translates straight into lower taxes, and it compounds. In many cases the cap saves more than any exemption.

You don’t file anything for this. It attaches automatically to any homesteaded property.

Portability When You Downsize

Moving within Florida doesn’t have to erase years of Save Our Homes savings. You can transfer up to $500,000 of the difference between your old home’s assessed value and its market value to a new homestead.⁵ Move up in price and you transfer the full dollar amount of that gap, capped at $500,000. Move down, and you keep the same percentage reduction rather than the same dollar amount.

Portability has its own deadline. You have to establish the new homestead within three years of January 1 of the year you left the old one, and file Form DR-501T alongside your homestead application by March 1.⁷ Miss it and the transferable savings are gone.

Other Exemptions Seniors Often Qualify For

Several exemptions aren’t restricted by age but come up frequently for older homeowners.

Veteran Disability Discount

Veterans 65 or older with a permanent service-connected disability get a discount on their homesteaded property equal to their VA disability rating. A 70% rating produces a 70% reduction in assessed value. If the veteran dies, the discount passes to a surviving spouse who holds title, lives there permanently, and hasn’t remarried.⁸

Total and Permanent Disability Exemption

Homeowners who are quadriplegic are fully exempt from property tax on their homestead, with no income test. Homeowners who are paraplegic, hemiplegic, legally blind, or use a wheelchair for mobility get the same full exemption if combined household gross income stays below an annual cap: $37,712 for 2026.⁹ Qualifying requires certification from two Florida-licensed doctors or from the VA.¹⁰

Widow and Widower Exemption

Surviving spouses who haven’t remarried get an additional $5,000 reduction in taxable value on the homesteaded property.¹¹ It’s small, but there’s no income requirement, and it stacks on top of everything else.

How to Apply

Every exemption above is filed with your county property appraiser. The deadline is March 1 of the tax year.¹ First-time senior applicants submit Form DR-501SC (the income sworn statement) with the homestead application (Form DR-501). Both forms are on the county property appraiser’s website or available at the office.⁴

Bring:

Proof of age: a Florida driver’s license, state ID, or certified birth certificate.
Proof of residency: your Florida driver’s license showing the homestead address, a voter registration card, or utility bills.
Proof of income for every household member. Filers provide the most recent Form 1040 and W-2s. Non-filers provide a Social Security statement (Form SSA-1099) and an IRS transcript request (Form 4506-T).⁴

The property appraiser reviews everything and sends a decision. If you’re approved, the reduction shows up on the property tax bill mailed in November.

If You Miss the Deadline or Get Denied

Missing March 1 doesn’t automatically kill the exemption for the year. You can file a late petition with the Value Adjustment Board within 25 days of the property appraiser mailing the annual assessment (TRIM) notice, which usually goes out in August. There’s a $15 nonrefundable fee, and the board grants the exemption only if you can document extenuating circumstances such as serious illness, hospitalization, or a natural disaster.¹²

If you filed on time and the property appraiser denied the exemption, the denial notice must be mailed by July 1, and you have 30 days from the mailing date to petition the Value Adjustment Board. The filing fee runs up to $50 depending on the county.¹³ Ask for an informal conference with the property appraiser’s office first. Many disputes get resolved without a formal hearing.

1
Florida Department of Revenue. Property Tax Information for Homestead Exemption PT-113
2
Florida Senate. Florida Code Title XIV Chapter 196 – Section 196.075 Additional Homestead Exemption for Persons 65 and Older
3
Property Appraiser of Miami-Dade County. Senior Citizen Exemptions
4
Florida Department of Revenue. DR-501SC Adjusted Gross Household Income Sworn Statement
5
Florida Legislature. Florida Code 193 – Section 193.155 Homestead Assessments
6
Jacksonville.gov. Save Our Homes – Assessment Cap on Homesteaded Property
7
Florida Department of Revenue. Save Our Homes Brochure
8
Florida Department of Revenue. Veteran Benefit Brochure
9
Florida Department of Revenue. Total and Permanent Disability Income Limitations
10
Florida House of Representatives. Florida Code 196 – Section 196.101 Exemption for Totally and Permanently Disabled Persons
11
Palm Beach County Property Appraiser. Widow/Widower Exemption
12
Florida Legislature. Florida Code 196 – Section 196.011 Annual Application Required for Exemption
13
Florida Department of Revenue. Petitions to the Value Adjustment Board