Orange County Homestead Exemption: What New Orlando Homeowners Need to File
Bought a home in Orlando or elsewhere in Orange County? The homestead exemption is the single biggest property-tax break most owners will get, but only if you file for it yourself, on time, and keep the Property Appraiser up to date. Here's how the Orange County Property Appraiser handles applications, what papers to bring, which cities give seniors an extra break, and the mistakes that can lead to a lien.
AT A GLANCE
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Just bought? Don't rely on the seller's exemption
The Property Appraiser's FAQ has a warning for new owners. If you look up your home and see a homestead exemption already listed, it isn't yours. You've inherited the previous owner's exemption for the current tax year only. If the home is your primary residence, you have to file for your own by March 1.
The office says it mails new homeowners a letter about 6 to 8 weeks after the deed is recorded, with instructions for applying. If it doesn't come, call (407) 836-5044 to have one mailed, or download the application.
Who can file
According to the FAQ, as of January 1 you must:
Have legal or beneficial title recorded in Orange County's Official Records
Live on the property
Be a permanent resident of Florida
Be a U.S. citizen or hold a permanent residence (green) card
What it saves
The exemption can reduce your assessed value by as much as $50,000. The Property Appraiser estimates that's approximately $750 a year in taxes. Your actual saving depends on your tax rates. Under state rules, the first $25,000 applies to all taxes. The second piece applies only to value above $50,000 and not to school taxes.
The cap matters even more over time. The Property Appraiser's Save Our Homes page says that after the first year, assessed value can't go up by more than the lower of 3% or the change in the Consumer Price Index, however fast the market rises. Its own example assumes a home first valued at $110,000, market values climbing 15% a year and a tax rate of $20 per $1,000. In that example the cap saves $3,153.12 over five years.
The cap applies to assessed value, not taxable value. Your taxable value can still rise faster than 3% in a year if an exemption changes.
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What to bring
Apply online, by mail or in person. If you come in with your documents, staff will fill out the application for you. By mail, fill it out completely, sign it, and include copies of everything.
Who | What the Property Appraiser asks for |
|---|---|
Every owner living there and applying | A valid Florida driver license or ID card |
The same owners, plus one of these | Florida vehicle registration, Florida voter registration card, or a recorded Orange County Declaration of Domicile (from the Comptroller's office) |
Owners and their spouses | Social Security numbers, even if the spouse doesn't own or live in the home |
Non-citizens | Permanent residence card, front and back |
Homes held in a trust | A copy of the entire trust agreement, sent by U.S. mail or brought in person |
Mobile homes | Proof you own both the mobile home and the land, plus a "Real Property" application from Customer Service |
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Keeping your homestead
Exemptions renew automatically each January as long as the title doesn't change and you still live there. But the FAQ lists things that require a brand-new application by March 1, even if you've lived there for decades:
Recording a deed that adds a name to the property
Recording a deed that removes a name
Putting the home into a trust
Putting the home into a life estate
Heirs need to apply too. If you inherited a home with a homestead exemption, the title is now in your name, and you were living there by January 1, you must file your own application by March 1.
Moving? The exemption doesn't move with you. It stays on the old home for the rest of that year, and you file new at the new address. You may be able to bring your Save Our Homes savings with you. The Property Appraiser says to apply for homestead and portability at the same time on the new home, within three years of the last January 1 you had the old exemption. It also warns that the portability law is "complicated and narrow in scope," and some applicants are denied.
The lien risk
This is the part people miss. If you move out, change how the property is used, or start renting it, you must tell the Property Appraiser and ask for the exemption to be removed. If you don't, the office says a lien can be filed under Florida Statute 196.161. It carries a 50% penalty and 15% interest a year.
Two smaller traps:
Change your mailing address with the office. If your renewal receipt bounces back, your exemption may be denied.
Active-duty military owners who rent out the home must send the office their new address and military orders.
What homestead doesn't cover
The exemption only reduces ad valorem taxes, the ones based on value. You still owe non-ad valorem charges for services like garbage collection and street lights. That's true with any property tax exemption.
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The extra exemption for seniors 65 and older
Orange County offers a Limited Income Senior Exemption for homeowners who:
Have or qualify for homestead
Are 65 or older as of January 1
Had 2025 total household adjusted gross income of no more than $38,686 (the 2026 limit, adjusted each year)
It depends on where you live
Florida lets each county and city decide whether to offer this exemption and how much, up to $50,000. According to the Property Appraiser:
Taxing authority | Extra senior exemption |
|---|---|
Orange County | Up to $50,000 |
Apopka, Belle Isle, Edgewood, Oakland, Ocoee, Orlando, Windermere, Winter Garden, Winter Park | Up to $50,000 |
Town of Eatonville | Up to $25,000 |
Maitland | Not adopted |
It never applies to school or water management district taxes. A city or county has to adopt its ordinance by December 1 for it to apply the next year.
Who counts as household
"Household" means everyone living together in the home as one housing unit, not boarders or renters. If adult children or other relatives live with you, their income counts. The Property Appraiser uses each person's adjusted gross income from Form 1040, which can include Social Security above IRS base amounts.
Papers and the June 1 rule
For 2026, the application had to be filed by March 2, 2026. You don't need your income papers when you apply. They're due by June 1 for every household member. They include:
Your 2025 federal tax returns (Form 1040) for anyone who files
2025 wage and income statements: W-2, SSA-1099, RRB-1099, 1099s and similar forms
Proof of age for each owner 65 or older: a Florida driver license or ID, an Orange County voter card, a birth certificate, or another official record
Senior Plus for long-time residents
The Limited Income Senior Plus Exemption is an extra layer for seniors who meet the same age and income test and have lived in the home for 25 years or more. The home's market value must be under $250,000. It applies to Orange County General Fund taxes. You must file a new Senior Plus application with income proof for everyone in the household.
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Other Orange County exemptions
Exemption | Who | Key paperwork |
|---|---|---|
$5,000 widow/widower | Permanent Florida residents who haven't remarried. Divorced before the death doesn't count. | Death certificate |
$5,000 disability | Permanent Florida residents with a disability | Licensed Florida physician's statement on form DR-416 |
$5,000 veterans | Service-connected disability of 10% to 100% (not total and permanent) | VA letter showing percentage, effective date and honorable discharge |
Total and permanent disability (non-service) | Quadriplegic, paraplegic, hemiplegic, legally blind, or wheelchair users. 2025 gross income no more than $37,712, but quadriplegics skip the income test | DR-501A, plus two DR-416 certifications from unrelated Florida doctors (or a VA letter and one doctor), and a notarized income statement |
Service-connected total and permanent disability | Veterans with a VA letter showing total and permanent disability | VA letter with official seal and effective date |
Combat-related discount | Veterans 65+ with a partly combat-related disability, honorably discharged | VA letter |
Fallen Hero | Unremarried surviving spouses of first responders who died in the line of duty | Employer certification and death certificate |
For the non-service disability exemption, gross income includes VA benefits and Social Security. That's different from the senior exemption.
A refund for some disabled veterans who move
If a veteran with the service-connected total and permanent disability exemption buys a new Orange County home between January 1 and November 1, they may get a prorated refund of that year's taxes on the new home. They must be approved for the exemption on it the next year and have paid the prior-year bill first. In the Property Appraiser's example, a veteran who bought on July 1 got 50% back.
The office also notes that this exemption doesn't automatically pass to a surviving spouse. The spouse must apply separately.
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Before you file
☐ Florida driver license or ID for each applying owner
☐ Florida vehicle registration, voter card or recorded Declaration of Domicile
☐ Social Security numbers for owners and spouses
☐ Green card (front and back), if you're not a citizen
☐ Full trust agreement, if the home is in a trust
☐ Seniors: proof of age now, and 2025 returns and income forms by June 1
☐ Veterans and disabled owners: VA letter or DR-416 forms
YOUR NEXT STEPS
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More help in Orlando
Official sources
Last checked: October 30, 2026. Eligibility, required documents, the senior exemption amounts by city, income limits, renewal rules and the lien warning come from the Orange County Property Appraiser. How the two $25,000 pieces apply comes from the Florida Department of Revenue.
This is general information, not tax or legal advice. The Property Appraiser decides who qualifies, and some pages on its site still show older dates. Confirm the current year's deadline and income limit at (407) 836-5044 before you apply.
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