Got a homestead verification letter? What SB 1801 requires

Why it showed up in your mailbox

Nothing has gone wrong. Under Tax Code 11.43(h-1) the chief appraiser has to confirm at least once every five years that each granted residence homestead still qualifies, and districts get through that by working the roll sector by sector. Your neighbor may get the same letter in a different year. There is no schedule you keep on your own: a homestead exemption is filed once, and you reapply only when the district asks you by mail.

What to send back

Return whatever the district asked for, by the date on the letter. That is usually the district form that came with it, or a fresh Form 50-114 with a copy of a Texas driver license or state issued personal identification certificate. Tax Code 11.43(j) generally expects the address on that identification to match the address of the property, so update the license first if it does not.

It is free, and only the district can ask

An appraisal district never charges to grant, keep, or verify a homestead exemption, and no third party needs to be paid to answer a verification letter. If a letter asks for a fee to keep your exemption, compare the return address against the address the appraisal district publishes on its own site before you send anything, and call the district if it does not match.

If the exemption was already removed

Not answering can remove the exemption, which puts the school taxable value of the home back up. That is recoverable. Tax Code 11.431 generally lets a late homestead application be accepted for up to two years after the delinquency date, and when a late application is approved the collector generally refunds tax already paid on the exempted amount within 60 days. File the application, then confirm the refund with the collector.

• Collin CAD on the SB 1801 homestead verification