Montana Homestead Exemption: Reduced Tax Rate and How to Apply

Montana does not have a dollar-amount homestead exemption. Since tax year 2026, an owner's principal residence can instead be taxed at a lower, tiered "homestead reduced tax rate" under MCA 15-6-405 and 15-6-134(3)(b)(i), which the owner applies for through the Montana Department of Revenue. For tax year 2027, the Department's application period runs from May 4, 2026 to March 1, 2027. Montana also has income-based rate reductions for lower-income owners, 100 percent disabled veterans and disabled first responders, plus a refundable income tax credit for residents 62 and older. For other states, see our guide to homestead exemptions by state.

Information last verified on 2026-10-08. This article has not been reviewed by a licensed lawyer.

Jurisdiction scope: This article covers Montana's homestead reduced tax rate (MCA 15-6-402 to 15-6-418 and 15-6-134), the primary residence property tax assistance credit (MCA 15-6-701 to 15-6-705), the Property Tax Assistance Program (MCA 15-6-302 to 15-6-312), the Montana Disabled Veteran program (MCA 15-6-311), the Disabled First Responder program (MCA 15-6-314), the Elderly Homeowner/Renter Credit (MCA 15-30-2337 to 15-30-2341), the creditor homestead in Title 70, chapter 32, and a short note on the probate homestead allowance. It does not cover Land Value Property Tax Assistance, the long-term rental reduced rate, agricultural, forest or business property, local mill levies, or any other state's law.

Does Montana have a homestead exemption?

Not in the dollar-off-value sense most states use. Montana's homestead benefit is a lower tax rate on a principal residence. MCA 15-6-405 states: "There is a homestead reduced tax rate provided for in 15-6-134(3)(b)(i) for a principal residence as provided in this section."

The program took effect for tax year 2026. It was created by chapter 767 of the 2025 Montana Laws, which enacted MCA Title 15, chapter 6, part 4.

Two other things share the "homestead" name in Montana and do not lower your tax rate: the creditor homestead, which you select by recording a declaration with the county, and the probate homestead allowance for a surviving family. Both are covered in their own sections below.

How much the homestead reduced tax rate saves

The reduced rate is applied to your home's market value in tiers. The Montana Department of Revenue publishes these tax year 2026 figures:

The statute, MCA 15-6-134, does not fix these dollar breakpoints. It defines the tiers as multiples (one, two and four times) of the median residential value, which the Department recalculates every two years at reappraisal. Check the Department's figures for the tax year you are looking at.

The rate change then flows through every local mill levy on the home, so the dollar effect depends on your county, city and school district levies. This page does not estimate a dollar saving.

For a home on agricultural or forest land, the home and a one-acre homesite get the tiered rate when it is a principal residence; the land keeps its own rate.

Who is eligible for the homestead reduced tax rate

MCA 15-6-402 defines a principal residence as class four residential property "(i) that is a single-family dwelling unit, unit of a multiple-unit dwelling, trailer, manufactured home, or mobile home and the parcel on which the principal residence improvements are located but not including any contiguous or adjacent parcels;" and that meets the other conditions in the definition.

The main conditions are:

• Seven months of ownership and occupancy. The owner must be able to show "the owner owned and lived for at least 7 months of the year for which the homestead reduced tax rate for a principal residence is claimed."
• One home. It must be the only residence for which the owner claims the rate that year.
• Taxes paid. The owner must have paid the assessed Montana property taxes.

The definition of owner also covers a buyer under a contract for deed, the grantor under a trust indenture and the trustee of a revocable grantor trust. Property owned by an entity is not eligible, except a grantor revocable trust when the home is the grantor's principal residence.

If you changed principal residences during the year, seven consecutive months across the two homes can meet the occupancy test, as long as the taxes were paid.

How and when to apply

You apply once, through the Montana Department of Revenue. MCA 15-6-405 says the owner "shall apply electronically through the department's website or by mail on a form prescribed by the department between December 1 of the immediately preceding year and March 1."

• Online: the Department's enrollment portal at Homestead.mt.gov, linked from its homesteads and long-term rentals page.
• By mail: on the Department's form. For the 2027 tax year, the Department's FAQ names it the "2027 Montana Application for a Reduced Property Tax Rate on a Principal Residence (Homestead)" and says it must be submitted "by March 1, 2027, to receive the reduced rate for 2027."
• What the application asks for: a declaration under penalty of perjury, the property's geocode and the applicant's Social Security number. You can find your geocode on the county parcel record; our guide to Montana property records explains where to look.

The Department notifies the owner whether the application is approved or denied.

Deadlines by tax year. The Department states: "The application period for the Homestead and Long-term rental reduced tax rate for the 2027 tax year is May 4, 2026 - March 1, 2027." For tax year 2026, enrollment closed on March 20, 2026, which was later than the March 1 date in the statute. Because the Department has used a different date than the statute, confirm the window with the Department for any later tax year. An application approved after the deadline applies to the following tax year.

Automatic enrollment for 2026 only. Owners who received the 2025 property tax rebate and still owned and lived in the same home for at least 7 months of 2026 were enrolled for 2026 automatically. The Department's FAQ adds: "You will also need to enroll if you did not get a property tax rebate in 2025 or you recently bought or built a new home."

If you missed the deadline. MCA 15-6-407 allows a refund for one year: "To claim a refund under this section, a property owner shall file an informal appeal with the department of revenue by May 31 of the year after the property owner did not receive the homestead reduced tax rate. The refund may only be claimed for 1 year." The refund is the tax paid minus the tax that would have been due at the homestead rate. The Department's FAQ also says a buyer of a home that had not been approved for the rate may be eligible for a partial refund.

Questions go to the Department's call center at 406-444-6900 or a local Department of Revenue office.

Does the reduced rate renew every year?

No annual renewal is required. Under MCA 15-6-405, "Once approved, the homestead reduced tax rate remains effective until the end of the tax year in which any of the following events occur: (i) there is a change in ownership of the property;" and the other listed events, which are that the owner stops using the home as a principal residence or applies for the rate on a different principal residence.

There is no portability. When you sell, the rate ends at the end of that year and the buyers must enroll the home themselves for the following year. If you move, you apply again for the new home.

Penalties for an improper or false claim

MCA 15-6-415 sets out two consequences:

• Improper approval. If the Department finds the reduced rate was improperly approved, it revises the assessment for each affected year, reaching back up to 10 years from the end of the year of the application.
• False or fraudulent application. A person who files a false or fraudulent application can be prosecuted under MCA 45-7-202 and owes a penalty based on the base penalty, which is the difference between the tax at the non-homestead rate in 15-6-134(3)(a) and the tax actually paid. The statute states: "The penalty is equal to three times the base penalty amount calculated under subsection (3)(b) plus interest at the rate provided in 15-16-102 calculated from the original due date of the taxes, until paid." The penalty can be assessed even if the person no longer owns the property.

Primary residence property tax assistance credit (depends on funding)

Chapter 775 of the 2025 Montana Laws created a second, separate benefit in MCA 15-6-701 to 15-6-705. It is a credit listed on the county property tax bill for each certified primary residence, paid from a state property tax assistance account.

There is no fixed dollar amount. Under MCA 15-6-702, "At the end of each fiscal year, if the balance in the account exceeds $50 million, the department shall determine the amount of property tax assistance per primary residence by subtracting the amounts listed in subsection (2)(c) and dividing the remainder by the total number of primary residences certified pursuant to 15-6-703." The deducted amounts are set-asides for administration and appeals, and money is distributed to counties by August 31.

To be certified under MCA 15-6-703, the home must be a dwelling the owner owned and lived in for at least 7 months, the owner's only primary residence, valued "$1 million or less," with the Montana property taxes paid. The owner applies "electronically or by mail on a form prescribed by the department and postmarked by March 1," and certification continues until the home is sold, stops being the primary residence, or the owner claims a different one.

We did not find a Department announcement that any amount has been paid under this credit, and we did not confirm a separate Department form for it. Ask the Department of Revenue whether the credit is being funded and how to apply.

Property Tax Assistance Program (PTAP) for lower-income owners

PTAP lowers the tax rate on the first $418,000 of a home's market value, according to the Department of Revenue. The statute sets a $350,000 base that is adjusted for inflation after each reappraisal (MCA 15-6-305). The Department explains: "Depending on your marital status and income, the reduction is 80%, 50%, or 30% of the normal tax rate. The income ranges are updated each year for inflation."

To be eligible for tax year 2027, you must own (or be buying under contract) and live in the home at least 7 months of the year, with 2025 federal adjusted gross income, including a spouse's, of $29,943 or less if single or $40,131 or less if married or head of household. For a home on agricultural or forest land, the benefit applies to the home and one-acre homesite.

Apply with the electronic Form PTAP or by returning a paper Form PTAP to your local Department field office. The Department says to "Apply by April 15. If you miss the deadline, your application will be considered the following year." The application stays active while you own and live in the home, but the income and occupancy tests must be met each year, and the Department sends an annual status letter. The statute's income table prints older base-year figures that are indexed each year, so use the Department's figures for the tax year you need.

Montana Disabled Veteran (MDV) program

MCA 15-6-311 reduces the tax rate on the home of a veteran with a 100 percent service-connected disability rating. The Department states: "Depending on your marital status and income, the reduction is 100%, 80%, 70%, or 50% of the normal tax rate."

An unmarried surviving spouse has a separate, lower table for tax year 2027: a 100% reduction up to $41,379, 80% from $41,380 to $46,344, 70% from $46,345 to $51,310, and 50% from $51,311 to $56,276.

You must own and live in the home at least 7 months of the year and "Have a letter from the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) showing your current disability status is 100% for a service-connected disability." An unmarried surviving spouse may also be eligible if the veteran died on active duty, died from a service-connected disability, or was rated 100 percent disabled at death. Apply with the electronic Montana Disabled Veteran Property Tax Relief Application or the paper MDV form, returned to your local Department field office, by April 15 of the first year you claim the reduction (MCA 15-6-302). The Department says a late application is considered for the following year. Once approved, eligibility continues through the Department's annual verification. See the Department's MDV page.

Disabled First Responder (DFR) program

MCA 15-6-314, added in 2025, gives the home of a qualified first responder, or of a qualified first responder's surviving spouse, a tax rate reduction on the same model as the MDV program. The Department runs it as the Disabled First Responder Assistance Program, with the same 100%, 80%, 70% or 50% reductions and, for tax year 2027, the same income tables as MDV.

A first responder means a law enforcement officer, firefighter or volunteer emergency care provider (MCA 15-6-301). A living first responder must receive a disability retirement benefit for a line-of-duty injury or, for a volunteer emergency care provider, workers' compensation for a permanent total or permanent partial disability. A surviving spouse must be unmarried, own and live in the home, and have a letter from the first responder's employer stating that the first responder was killed in the line of duty or died from a line-of-duty injury.

For tax year 2027, the Department lists 2025 federal AGI limits of $64,551 (single), $74,482 (married or head of household) and $56,276 (unmarried surviving spouse), and you must own and live in the home at least 7 months of the year. Apply on Form DFR, postmarked or hand delivered to a local Department field office by April 15 (MCA 15-6-302). See the Department's DFR page.

Land Value Property Tax Assistance. The Department also runs a program for residential owners whose land is worth disproportionately more than the home or other buildings on it, where the land has been in the family for at least 30 years. This page does not cover it; see the Department's property tax help page.

Elderly Homeowner/Renter Credit for residents 62 and older

This is an income tax credit rather than a property tax rate cut, and renters can claim it too. The Department states: "The benefit is a refundable credit on your Individual Income Tax, up to $1,150." The amount is computed from household income and the property tax billed or a rent equivalent.

To claim it, you must be 62 or older by December 31, a Montana resident for at least 9 months of the year, and have occupied a Montana home as an owner or renter for at least 6 months. Under MCA 15-30-2338, the claimant "must have less than $45,000 of gross household income."

You claim the credit on Schedule 2EC with the Montana individual income tax return (Form 2) or through the Department's TransAction Portal, even if you have no income tax filing obligation. MCA 15-30-2340 caps the credit at $1,150. The claim is due with your income tax return, or by April 15 of the following year if you do not have to file, and a missed claim can be made within 3 years of that deadline (MCA 15-30-2339).

Is there a cap on assessment increases?

No statewide cap on annual increases in a homestead's assessed value is in force. Residential property is reappraised on the periodic cycle in MCA 15-7-111.

Three proposed constitutional initiatives would cap growth at 2 percent a year: CI-129 (primary residence valuation), CI-130 (real property valuation) and CI-134 (local government property tax increases). As of October 8, 2026, the Montana Secretary of State lists them only as issues qualified to gather signatures, not among the issues qualified for the 2026 general election ballot. They are not law.

Montana creditor homestead (a separate law from the tax rate)

Montana's creditor homestead protects home equity from forced sale by most judgment creditors. It has nothing to do with the property tax rate. The Department of Revenue states: "A homestead declaration does not qualify you for the Homestead Reduced Rate. The Homestead Reduced Rate is a property tax classification claimed through the Montana Department of Revenue. The two are separate legal mechanisms."

A recorded declaration is required. Under MCA 70-32-105, "The person selecting a homestead must execute and acknowledge, in the same manner as a grant of real property is acknowledged, a declaration of homestead and file the same for record." The declaration is recorded with the county clerk and recorder in the county where the land is. It must state that the person resides on the premises and claims them as a homestead, and it must describe the premises.

What it covers. Under MCA 70-32-101, "The homestead consists of the dwelling house or mobile home, and all appurtenances, in which the claimant resides and the land, if any, on which the same is situated, selected as provided in this chapter." There is no acreage limit; the limit is on value.

The value limit. MCA 70-32-104 states: "(b) In 2021, the homestead value limit is $350,000. (c) The homestead value limit must increase by 4% every calendar year after 2021." The Department of Revenue sets the current figure by rule, and we did not locate the rule stating the current amount, so this page does not give one. An owner of an undivided interest is limited to a proportional amount.

Debts the homestead does not stop. MCA 70-32-202 states: "The homestead is subject to execution or forced sale in satisfaction of judgments obtained: (1) on debts secured by construction or vendors' liens upon the premises; (2) on debts secured by mortgages on the premises, executed and acknowledged by the husband and wife or by an unmarried claimant; or (3) on debts secured by mortgages on the premises, executed and recorded before the declaration of homestead was filed for record." For other judgments, a creditor can petition for an appraisal and a sale of any value above the limit. This page does not cover debts that other Montana laws may let reach a homestead.

Bankruptcy. Montana has opted out of the federal bankruptcy exemptions. MCA 31-2-106 provides: "An individual may not exempt from the property of the estate in any bankruptcy proceeding the property specified in 11 U.S.C. 522(d)." A Montana debtor therefore uses the state exemptions, including the homestead. For how that works in a case, see our guide to Montana bankruptcy.

Probate homestead allowance

When someone dies, MCA 72-2-412 provides: "A decedent's surviving spouse is entitled to a homestead allowance of $22,500." If there is no surviving spouse, each minor and dependent child shares $22,500 equally, and the allowance has priority over claims against the estate. See our guide to Montana probate.

Related

• Homestead exemptions by state
• Montana bankruptcy
• Montana probate
• Montana property records

Disclaimer: This article is general legal information about Montana law (MCA Title 15, chapters 6 and 30, Title 70, chapter 32, MCA 31-2-106 and MCA 72-2-412), verified on 2026-10-08. It is not tax or legal advice. For your specific situation, contact the Montana Department of Revenue, your county treasurer, or a lawyer licensed in Montana.

Last updated: 2026-10-08.

Frequently Asked Questions

How much is the homestead exemption in Montana?

Montana has no dollar-amount homestead exemption. Instead, a principal residence is taxed at a lower tiered rate under MCA 15-6-405 and 15-6-134(3)(b)(i); for tax year 2026 the Department of Revenue lists 0.76% on the first $378,000 of market value, rising to 1.90% on any portion of $1,512,000 and up.

When is the deadline to apply for the Montana homestead reduced tax rate?

For tax year 2027, the Department of Revenue application period is May 4, 2026 to March 1, 2027. For tax year 2026, enrollment closed March 20, 2026; an approved application filed after the deadline applies to the following tax year.

Do I have to reapply for the Montana homestead rate every year?

No. Under MCA 15-6-405 the rate stays in effect until the end of the tax year in which ownership changes, the home stops being the principal residence, or the owner applies for a different home.

I just bought a home in Montana. Do I need to apply?

Yes. The Department of Revenue says you need to enroll if you recently bought or built a home or did not receive a 2025 property tax rebate. The seller's reduced rate ends at the end of the year of the sale, so the new owner applies for the following tax year.

What if I missed the Montana homestead deadline?

Under MCA 15-6-407, an eligible owner who did not receive the reduced rate can file an informal appeal with the Department of Revenue by May 31 of the following year to claim a refund for one year.

Who is eligible for the Montana Property Tax Assistance Program?

For tax year 2027, an owner who lives in the home at least 7 months and has 2025 federal AGI of $29,943 or less (single) or $40,131 or less (married or head of household). The program reduces the tax rate by 80%, 50% or 30% depending on income; apply by April 15.

Does Montana have a property tax break for disabled veterans?

Yes. Under MCA 15-6-311, a veteran with a 100% service-connected disability rating, or a qualifying unmarried surviving spouse, can get a 100%, 80%, 70% or 50% rate reduction depending on income; for tax year 2027 the income ceiling for any reduction is $64,551 single or $74,482 married or head of household for a veteran, and $56,276 for an unmarried surviving spouse.

Does the Montana homestead exemption protect my house from creditors?

Only if you record a declaration of homestead under MCA 70-32-105, and only up to the value limit in MCA 70-32-104, which was $350,000 in 2021 and increases 4% every calendar year after 2021. It does not stop the liens and mortgages listed in MCA 70-32-202.

Does a Montana declaration of homestead lower my property taxes?

No. The Department of Revenue states that a homestead declaration does not make you eligible for the homestead reduced rate; the two are separate legal mechanisms, and the tax rate is claimed through the Department.