Who Qualifies, How to File, and What It Actually Saves
Every year I sit down with a homeowner who has been in their house for two or three years and has never filed a homestead exemption. Missing an available exemption can materially increase a tax bill. The application itself is free, but eligibility, savings, processing time, and required documentation vary by property and applicant. Here is how it works, what it is worth locally, and how to get it done.
What the homestead exemption actually is
A residence homestead exemption removes a fixed amount of your home’s appraised value from the value that gets taxed. It is not a rebate and there is no check in the mail. It is a subtraction that happens before your tax bill is ever calculated.
It applies only to your principal residence. You cannot claim it on a rental, a second home, or a lot you are holding for later, and you may only claim one homestead exemption at a time, in Texas or anywhere else.
What it is worth in Bastrop County right now
Two things changed in your favor recently.
In November 2025, Texas voters approved Proposition 13, which raised the school district homestead exemption from $100,000 to $140,000 of appraised value for tax years beginning January 1, 2025. Voters also approved Proposition 11, which raised the additional exemption for homeowners who are 65 or older or disabled from $10,000 to $60,000. A qualifying senior homeowner can now shelter up to $200,000 of value from school district taxes.
School taxes are the largest line on most Bastrop County tax bills, so that $140,000 does real work. Using the 2025 adopted rates published by Bastrop Central Appraisal District, the school portion of the exemption is worth roughly:
- Bastrop ISD at $1.0679 per $100 of value: about $1,495 a year
- Elgin ISD at $1.2234: about $1,713 a year
- Smithville ISD at $0.9425: about $1,320 a year
- McDade ISD at $0.9555: about $1,338 a year
Treat those as estimates. They use last year’s adopted rates, and each taxing entity sets its current-year rate in August and September. Your county, city, and emergency services district taxes are calculated separately, and each of those entities may offer its own local option exemption of up to 20 percent of value. The combination that applies to your property is printed on your appraisal notice.
The part that matters more over time: the 10 percent cap
The dollar savings get the attention, but the cap is what protects you in a rising market.
The residence homestead appraisal limitation generally starts January 1 of the tax year after you first qualify for the exemption. The capped appraised value is the lesser of the property’s market value or the prior year’s appraised value plus 10 percent and the market value of new improvements. New improvements can increase the value above the 10 percent limit; ordinary maintenance is not treated as a new improvement. The limitation caps appraised value, not the tax bill. Tax rates, exemptions and other changes can still affect what you owe.
Filing in a flat market still matters. Ask Bastrop Central Appraisal District to confirm when your exemption and appraisal limitation take effect.
Who qualifies
You qualify if all three of these are true:
- You own the property and it is your principal residence.
- The address on your Texas driver’s license or state ID matches the property address.
- You are not claiming a homestead exemption on any other property.
The land counts as well, up to 20 acres, as long as it is used for residential purposes. If you own more than that, and plenty of people here do, the balance is handled separately, often through an agricultural or wildlife valuation. That is worth sorting out before you close on land or acreage in Bastrop County, not after.
How to file with Bastrop CAD
- Fix your driver’s license first if the address does not match the property. A mismatch is the most common reason an application gets kicked back.
- Get Form 50-114, the Application for Residence Homestead Exemption, from the Texas Comptroller or follow Bastrop CAD’s current filing instructions.
- File online through the Bastrop CAD taxpayer portal at portal.bastropcad.org, which accepts homestead applications. You can also mail the form to P.O. Drawer 578, Bastrop, TX 78602, or bring it to the office at 212 Jackson Street.
- Confirm it posted. Check your account on the portal a few weeks later.
The exemptions department can be reached at (512) 303-1930 or exemptions@bastropcad.org, and the office is open Monday through Friday from 7:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.
You do not reapply every year. Once it is granted, it stays in place until something changes.
The deadline, and the thing almost nobody knows
The standard filing window is January 1 through April 30 of the tax year.
Here is the part that surprises people. Since January 1, 2022, Texas law has allowed a new owner to claim a prorated general homestead exemption in the year of purchase, beginning the date the home became their principal residence. You no longer have to own the property on January 1. If you closed in June, you can file now. The one catch is that if the seller already carried a homestead exemption on that property for the same year, you file for the following year instead.
And if you missed it altogether, the money is not gone. Texas allows a late homestead application up to two years after the date the taxes became delinquent. If you have owned your home a couple of years and never filed, handle it this week. Bastrop CAD can determine whether a late application, correction, or refund is available for the specific years and facts.
This is one of the first things I cover with my first-time buyers in Bastrop, because it is money that quietly walks out the door while everyone is busy unpacking.
If you are 65 or older, disabled, or a veteran
Homeowners who are 65 or older or who are disabled receive the additional $60,000 school exemption plus a school tax ceiling. The ceiling freezes the school portion of the bill at the amount paid in the first full year of qualifying, and it transfers to a new Texas home as a percentage of savings rather than a flat dollar amount. Form 50-114 covers both.
Veterans have their own track. A VA disability rating brings a partial exemption of $5,000 to $12,000 depending on the rating, and a veteran rated 100 percent disabled or determined individually unemployable is exempt from taxation on the full appraised value of their residence homestead. A surviving spouse who has not remarried may keep that benefit. As an Army veteran, this is the one I make sure never gets missed, and I cover it further on my page for veteran and VA buyers in Bastrop.
Three ways people lose an exemption they already had
They move and assume it follows them. It does not. The exemption belongs to the property, so you file again on the new house.
They ignore the verification letter. Since September 2023, Texas appraisal districts have been required to verify each homestead exemption at least once every five years. If Bastrop CAD mails you a verification request and it ends up in the recycling, the exemption can come off. Open the mail from them.
They keep an old exemption on a home that became a rental. Once it is not your principal residence, it does not qualify, and the district can go back and collect.
About the letters in your mailbox
You will eventually get an official-looking letter offering to file a “designation of homestead” for a fee. The Texas Attorney General has issued a consumer alert about these. Filing with Bastrop CAD costs nothing. Do not pay anyone for a free ten-minute form.
What this means when you are buying or selling
If you are buying, the exemption is not just a tax matter. It changes your escrow and therefore your actual monthly payment, and the tax estimate shown on a listing may reflect the seller’s exemptions rather than the ones you will qualify for. Run the real numbers with my Bastrop mortgage calculator before you set your budget, not after.
If you are selling, understand that the buyer’s tax picture may look different from yours, particularly if you have carried a senior ceiling or a long-standing 10 percent cap. That is better on the table early than at the appraisal.
Either way, this is one of the easiest wins in Texas homeownership, and it is entirely in your control.
Last reviewed August 6, 2026. This article is general information, not tax, legal, lending, appraisal, or financial advice. Exemption amounts, rates, deadlines, forms, and rules change, and qualification is determined by the appraisal district under applicable law. Verify current details with Bastrop Central Appraisal District and the Texas Comptroller, and consult qualified tax or legal professionals about your circumstances. Equal Housing Opportunity.
Let’s talk about your next move
If you are buying in Bastrop County and want the tax and payment math done honestly before you fall in love with a house, let’s talk. You can book a homebuyer consultation directly on my calendar, or download my free Home Buyer’s Guide for the full step-by-step. If you are thinking about selling, book a listing appointment and we will look at what your home is worth in today’s market. You can also start with a free home value estimate.
Bre Meador, REALTOR® · All City Real Estate
Disciplined Guidance. Clear Communication. Proven Results.
489 Agnes Street, Suite 112, Bastrop, TX 78602
(512) 993-8488 · forsale@bremeador.com