What is Maine’s Law on Homestead Exemption
In Maine, “the just value of $10,000 of the homestead of a permanent resident of this State who has owned a homestead in this State for the preceding 12 months is exempt from taxation.” This is known as the homestead exemption. The exemption may not exceed $10,000 even if the title to the homestead is held jointly or in common with others, but it may be apportioned among the owners who reside on the property. See 36 MRS §683. 36 MRS §701-A defines just value as “only that value arising from presently possible land use alternatives to which the particular parcel of land being valued may be put.”
36 MRS §681 defines homestead as “any residential property, including cooperative property, in this State assessed as real property owned by an applicant or held in a revocable living trust for the benefit of the applicant and occupied by the applicant as the applicant’s permanent residence or owned by a cooperative housing corporation and occupied as a permanent residence by resident who is a qualifying shareholder. A ‘homestead’ does not include any real property used solely for commercial purposes.” Permanent residence is defined as “that place where an individual has a true, fixed and permanent home and principal establishment to which the individual, whenever absent, has the intention of returning.” 36 MRS §681 further states, “an individual may have only one permanent residence at a time.”
According to 36 MRS §682, the assessor determines if an applicant for a homestead exemption has a permanent residence in Maine. The assessor may consider formal declarations, informal statements, place of employment, previous permanent residence, voter registration, driver’s license, certificate of motor vehicle registration, income tax returns, motor vehicle excise tax and military residence.
For more information on homestead exemptions or an application, see the website at Maine Revenue Services or contact your municipal assessor’s office.
Return to What’s Maine’s Law on…
5/3/2023 A-Z List