Homestead Intro
The homestead credit has been enacted to allow a property tax credit for a taxpayer's primary residence. Read carefully the qualifying guidelines given:
Notice of Homestead Credit
IC 6-1.1-12-37
Definitions
"Dwelling" means residential real property improvements which an individual uses as his residence, including a house and garage.
"Homestead" means an individual's principal place of residence and is established as follows:
The individual (or an entity such as a corporation, in which the individual has a beneficial interest) either owns or is buying under a contract recorded in the County Recorder's office that provides that the individual (or the entity) is to pay the property taxes on the residence and that obligates the seller to convey title to the individual upon completion of all of the individual's contractual obligations; and consists of a dwelling and land not exceeding one acre, that immediately surrounds the dwelling.
Who May Qualify
As described in the definition of "homestead", the individual residence owner or contract buyer or the entity that owns the residence or is buying it under contract.
No portion of a residential dwelling that is income-producing is eligible for the homestead deduction, including, but not limited to, one-half of a duplex side or rented apartment that is part of the structure, a beauty shop or crafts shop in one or two rooms of the structure, a dry cleaners or electronics shop beneath an apartment, or an auto repair shop in the garage.
When to File
Deduction applications must be completed and dated by December 31 of the year prior to the first year the taxpayer wishes to claim the deduction and must be filed in Auditor's office or postmarked on or before January 5th of the year the taxpayer wishes to obtain the deduction.
How to File
Forms must be filed at the County Auditor's office in the county where the homestead is located. If an individual desire to have the receipt returned, he must provide a self-addressed, stamped envelope to the County Auditor's office.
Only one individual may receive a credit for a particular homestead in a particular year. The portion above the "Signature of the owner" must be completed in full before credit will be considered.
For additional filing information, please see IC 6-1.1-12-37
Disallowance of Multiple Claims
The County Auditor may not grant an individual or married couple a homestead deduction if:
- The individual or married couple, for the same year, claims the homestead deduction on two or more different deduction applications; and
- The applications claim the homestead deduction for a different property.
If a person moves from his Indiana principal place of residence (for which he is receiving a homestead deduction) after the assessment date to a new principal place of residence later that year, the homestead deduction on the first property will stay in place for that tax cycle and the person can apply for and potentially receive a homestead deduction on the new property for that same tax cycle. For the next assessment date, the homestead deduction would be removed from the first property. See IC 6-1.1-12-37(h).
Change of Use Penalty
An individual who changes the use of his real property and fails to file a certified statement with the auditor of the county notifying him of the change of use within sixty (60) days after the date of the change is liable for the amount of the credit he was allowed for that real property plus a civil penalty equal to ten % (10%) of the additional taxes due.
Amount of Credit
The amount of the credit is determined each year by the proper state office.
- Note: If you are married you must submit the last five digits of your Social Security number (SSN) for you and your spouse. If you do not have an SSN you must submit the last five digits of your Driver's License or State ID Card for you and your spouse.
- Note 2: If you are completing the Homestead deduction application for a Mobile Home, per IC 6-1.1-12-37(q), you must submit a copy of the owner's title to Auditor's office in order to receive the deduction. We cannot process the Homestead deduction application until we receive the title. The title may be submitted in person, by mail at 1 E Main Street Suite 102, Fort Wayne, Indiana 46802, by email at Auditor's Office, or by fax at 260-449-7679.
- If you are filing on Real Property, please click the LowTaxInfo link below. Once on this page, search for your homestead property.
- Upon receiving the search results, select your applicable property.
- Once you have your property selected you will see "Billing" below the Courthouse picture, please click it. Select the "File E-Forms" and then complete the prompts/information accordingly.
- You will need access to your personal email for the submission code. Upon submitting, you will receive a confirmation email and then sebsequent email with approval/denial.
View the Online Homestead Deduction Application.
Notice: You must click the "Submit" button after completing the Homestead Form! Failure to do so may result in no filing and consequently, no deduction! If you do not receive a confirmation of your filing by email within two business days, call the Auditor's Office to confirm receipt of your filing!
(If you have trouble opening the online form, you may need to download Mozilla Firefox or an updated version of Google Chrome. If you continue having problems with the application after downloading one of the browsers, please check and make sure cookies are enabled for your computer.)