Fulton County voters recently approved an additional Homestead Exemption beginning in 2026 for those that are aged 65 – 69 and an even higher exemption for those aged 70 or more from the Fulton County Schools portion of your property taxes on your primary residence.
However, we recently learned that even if you already have a valid and ongoing Homestead Exemption on your primary residence property, you are still required to separately apply for this additional age-related Homestead Exemption. This application must submitted by April 1st of the tax year at issue. Applications submitted after the April 1st deadline will not be effective until the next tax year. For example, for the 2026 tax year, you must apply by April 1, 2026. If you apply after April 1, 2026, you will not qualify for this additional senior Homestead Exemption until 2027 (assuming you apply before April 1, 2027). You can submit the required application either online or in person.
This additional Fulton County Schools Senior Homestead Exemption on your primary residence is as follows:
Ages 65 – 69: 25% of the property’s assessed value
Ages 70 and over: 50% of the property’s assessed value
Interestingly, the Homestead Exemption on your primary residence has become a bigger and bigger deal in Fulton County, GA over the past several years. Traditionally, the Homestead Exemption was a simple reduction on your annual property taxes on your primary residence. It was not a huge benefit, but a nice to have. Additional exemptions also existed for seniors who met both age / disability and low-income requirements. But over the past several years, we have additional homestead related benefits. First, we have this new senior exemption for those age 65 and up without any income limitations beginning for tax year 2026. Second, the Homestead Exemption is being used as the mechanism to cap at least part of your property tax calculation in Fulton County so it cannot increase more than 3% in any one year. No Homestead Exemption, no 3% increase cap. For more information on the 3% increase cap, see our prior Newsletter: Don’t Forget This Important Step After Transferring Your Primary Residence to Your Revocable Living Trust!
For more information on the new senior Homestead Exemption, visit the Fulton County Board of Assessors page. For additional details, see the New Senior Homestead Exemptions for Fulton and Atlanta Public Schools and the Frequently Asked Questions document
If you would like to discuss this or other aspects of your estate plan in more detail, please call us at (678) 720-0750 or e-mail us at info@morgandisalvo.com to schedule a consultation. We look forward to meeting you.
