Council approves homestead tax exemption

During its Feb. 6 meeting, Waxahachie City Council unanimously approved the establishment of a general homestead exemption of 1% of the homestead’s appraised value with a minimum exemption of $5,000 for the tax year beginning Jan. 1, 2023.

The exemption would be in addition to Waxahachie’s current exemptions: over 65, disabled person, tax ceiling, historical and disabled veteran. It also puts Waxahachie as the only city in the “comparable area” with every available tax exemption, according to city staff.

Senior director of finance Chad Tustison explained to the council how the residence homestead exemption would “remove part of the value of a homeowner’s residential property from taxation.”

For example, a home with an appraised value of $250,000 would see a $5,000 exemption, making its taxable value $245,000. With the current tax rate of 63 cents of $100, the homeowner would pay $1,544 with the exemption, a $31 tax reduction.

The addition of this exemption was initially brought up during budget discussions in the summer of 2022, said Tustison, who later presented and answered questions about the general homestead exemption at the city council work session Jan. 25.

“I don’t think any of us ever campaigned on directly addressing property tax,” council member Travis Smith said. “The fact that we’ve all continued to go in the same direction and have found a way through Chad and city staff to find a way to deliver property tax relief … I think it’s pretty incredible.”

Council member Billie Wallace encouraged residents to research the tax exemptions offered by Waxahachie.

“There are a lot of folks that are not taking advantage of the exemptions that the city of Waxahachie offers,” Wallace said. “I would encourage you to look at that and see if you fall in that category to take advantage of the exemptions. I’m really excited about this move tonight in the right direction to provide some relief to our homeowners.”

The estimated average savings for homeowners is $32, and the estimated loss of revenue is $168,000 to the General Fund and $92,000 to the Debt Service Fund, according to city staff. In the future, the city council could choose to raise the exemption up to 20%, but Tustison said they can never lower it.

Tustison said the exemption will be automatically applied for those who already have school and county homestead exemptions. For those who do not, applications for the exemption can be found online at https://comptroller.texas.gov, with April 30 being the last day for the application to be filed with the appraisal district.

For more information about residence homestead exemptions, visit https://comptroller.texas.gov/taxes/property-tax/exemptions/residence-faq.php. To apply for an exemption, visit https://comptroller.texas.gov/taxes/property-tax/forms/, click “Exemption Forms,” and choose 50-114.

Originally published February 15, 2023 - https://www.waxahachiesun.com/news/local/council-approves-homestead-tax-exemption/article_80d34142-ad86-11ed-b75e-f3473a2388dd.html