Austin Homeowners File Online 2020 Travis County Homestead Exemptions
If you purchased a home as your homestead between January 1, 2019 and December 31st, 2019, then it’s time to file your homestead exemption for 2020 taxes (because you should have already paid your 2019 taxes when you closed via title). I know, a bit confusing, but stick with me.
Last year, Travis County introduced a new online e-file system – YES! Since homestead exemptions must be filed between January 1st and April 30th of the year you plan to claim exemption, an e-file system does make it easier to fit inside the window. If you file your homestead outside of this window, it is often rejected.
EDITED: As of 2022, you can now file your homestead exemption online with Travis County any time of the year. Very exciting! This change makes it easier for you to file, and often will save you more money on your property taxes as the exemption will cover more of your ownership period. You *must* file by January 1 of the year you plan to claim, however, as the count assessor only pulls records on January 1. So do it early!
Items needed before you e-file:
Your Driver’s License must be up to date. If you moved after October 1st, chances are good you have forgotten to update the address on your driver’s license to your new home address. OOPS! But it’s not a huge deal if you are ahead of schedule. Go online and submit a change of address form here. You should get your new ID in the mail in a couple weeks.
Find your “Owner ID” and “PIN,” two numbers that are required in order to e-file your homestead exemption. These will be on your mailed (not emailed) property tax bill (Notice of Appraised Value) received spring before taxes are due. However, you can find it in other ways! First, you can try searching for your address on the Travis County Search Site. If that doesn’t work, I would recommend reaching out to the city at 512-854-9473 or email: TaxOffice@TravisCountyTX.gov.
Once you have these two items ready to go, e-filing is easy here: https://efile.traviscadonline.org/?goTo=OnlineApplications
Why do you want to file your 2020 homestead exemption in Austin?
The average Travis County taxable homestead value increased 7.12% from $305,173 last year to $326,894 this year. When you file your homestead exemption, Travis County offers a 20% tax reduction – this is the maximum amount allowed by law. If you are over 65-years-old or disabled, you can also claim an additional $85,500 exemption per year.
Here’s an example so you can see the math…
Julie moved from 1234 W Street to 3456 E Street on October 23, 2019 with her husband and three kids. Because she moved before January 1, 2020, Julie and her husband need to file a homestead exemption between January 1st and April 30th, 2020. Since she is married and filing taxes jointly, she only needs to submit one general homestead exemption for the property.
Julie receives a Notice of Appraised Value in the mail from the county; her new house on 3456 E Street is valued by the county at $400,000. Her homestead exemption will save her 20% of this value. 20% off a valuation of $400,000 is an exemption of $80,000 ($400,000 X .20 = $80,000 deduction). When it comes time to file Julie’s taxes in April 2020, her family’s effective taxable property value is only $320,000 ($400,000 – $80,000 = $320,000); therefore, the family will only pay property taxes on a value of $320,000.
If you have any questions about your 2019 taxes as you near April, reach out to the escrow officer and assistant who closed your home in 2019.
Filing your homestead exemption in one of Austin’s Metro Areas, like Bastrop County, Williamson County, etc? Check out my older posts for links to their filing requirements.
Please keep in mind that this information is accurate as of January 13, 2020 January 27, 2022. Over time, forms, contact information and county website addresses may have changed.