Homestead Exemption for Senior Citizens, Disabled Persons and Surviving Spouses
Your home is taxed as if it were worth $29,000 less (tax year 2026 amount). Example from Franklin County: a home appraised at $100,000 is billed as if it were worth $71,000. The dollar savings depend on your local tax rate. The $29,000 is raised for inflation each year.
For people with disabilities: You own and live in the home as your main residence on January 1, and you are 65 or older by December 31 of the year you apply, OR you are permanently and totally disabled on January 1, OR you are the surviving spouse (59 or older when the spouse died) of someone who was receiving this exemption.
- Who qualifies
- You own and live in the home as your main residence on January 1, and you are 65 or older by December 31 of the year you apply, OR you are permanently and totally disabled on January 1, OR you are the surviving spouse (59 or older when the spouse died) of someone who was receiving this exemption. Your and your spouse's total income (Ohio modified adjusted gross income) must be $41,000 or less for 2025 to qualify for the 2026 application. People who already had the exemption in tax year 2013 are 'grandfathered' and have no income limit.
- Income limit
- $41,000 Ohio modified adjusted gross income (applicant plus spouse) for 2025, for applications filed in 2026; adjusted for inflation each year. No limit for owners grandfathered from 2013.
- How to apply
- File Form DTE 105A with your county auditor (online in many counties, by mail or in person). Bring proof of age (Ohio driver's license or state ID, passport or birth certificate). If disabled and under 65, add Form DTE 105E signed by a physician or psychologist, or a disability certificate from a state or federal agency such as Social Security. If you did not file an Ohio return, include your federal return; if you filed neither, add Form DTE 105H. Grandfathered owners who move add Form DTE 105G.
- Form
- DTE 105A Homestead Exemption Application for Senior Citizens, Disabled Persons and Surviving Spouses
- Deadline
- December 31 of the year you want the exemption (for real property). You may also file a late application for the previous year together with your current one and get a refund (ORC 323.153(B)).
- Renewal
- One-time. Each January the auditor mails a continuing application; return it only if your income, ownership, occupancy or disability status changed. If you move, you must apply again at the new home.
- Law
- Ohio Revised Code 323.151, 323.152(A)(1), 323.153
Source: official page