A residence homestead exemption in McLennan County subtracts $140,000 from your home’s appraised value for school district taxes, and stacks additional reductions from the county, your city, the community college district, and any special districts on top of that.1Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts. Property Tax Exemptions Homeowners who are 65 or older, disabled, or disabled veterans get larger reductions still. You file once with the McLennan County Appraisal District, and the exemption renews automatically every year you own and live in the home.
Who Qualifies
You qualify if you own the property (including partial ownership), use it as your primary residence, and hold a Texas driver’s license or state ID with an address matching the home.2State of Texas. Texas Code 11.13 – Residence Homestead Only one homestead per household per year. Second homes, rental properties, and business-only locations don’t count.
Eligibility is normally set as of January 1 of the tax year. Buyers who close and move in after January 1 can still receive a prorated exemption starting the date they take ownership and occupy the home. That prorated option has been in place since the 2022 tax year.
The exemption covers the residence plus up to 20 acres the home sits on, and includes secondary improvements used for residential purposes such as a detached garage or workshop. Mobile homes qualify when you own the structure and use it as your primary residence, even if the land is leased.
How Much the Exemption Saves You
Texas layers several exemptions, each hitting a different part of your tax bill. All of them apply automatically once your application is approved.
State-Set Amounts
Every qualifying homeowner gets a $140,000 reduction from the appraised value for school district taxes.1Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts. Property Tax Exemptions Counties that collect farm-to-market road or flood control taxes must also give a separate $3,000 exemption.2State of Texas. Texas Code 11.13 – Residence Homestead Beyond those floors, any taxing unit can adopt a local option exemption worth up to 20% of appraised value, with a $5,000 minimum.
Over-65 and Disabled Homeowners
If you’re 65 or older, or if you meet the Social Security Administration’s definition of disabled, you get an additional $10,000 school district exemption on top of the $140,000.3State of Texas. Texas Tax Code 11.13 – Residence Homestead Local taxing units can add their own senior and disabled amounts, and most in McLennan County have.
Qualifying as disabled requires a physical or mental impairment that prevents you from working, expected to last at least 12 continuous months or result in death. A doctor’s statement or a Social Security determination satisfies the proof requirement.
A surviving spouse who was at least 55 when the qualifying homeowner died keeps the over-65 exemption as long as the home remains the primary residence.2State of Texas. Texas Code 11.13 – Residence Homestead
Disabled Veterans
Veterans with a VA service-connected disability get a partial exemption on assessed value based on rating:4State of Texas. Texas Code 11.22 – Disabled Veterans
- 10% to 29% disability: up to $5,000
- 30% to 49%: up to $7,500
- 50% to 69%: up to $10,000
- 70% or higher: up to $12,000
Veterans rated 100% disabled or individually unemployable by the VA pay no property tax at all on their residence homestead.5State of Texas. Texas Code 11.131 – Residence Homestead of 100 Percent or Totally Disabled Veteran A surviving spouse who hasn’t remarried keeps the total exemption while remaining in the home, and the dollar amount transfers if the spouse later moves.
Local Option Amounts in McLennan County
State law sets the floor, but local taxing entities adopt additional exemptions that vary widely, and those differences can move your bill by hundreds of dollars depending on which city and district you’re in. As of the most recent tax year, the major taxing units have adopted the following local homestead exemptions:6McLennan County, TX. Tax Rates
- McLennan County: 20% of appraised value ($5,000 minimum) for all homesteads; additional $35,000 for over-65
- McLennan Community College: 20% ($5,000 minimum) for all homesteads; additional $12,000 for over-65
- City of Waco: 15% ($5,000 minimum) for all homesteads; additional $50,000 for over-65
- City of Hewitt: 20% ($5,000 minimum) for all homesteads; additional $4,000 for over-65
- City of Woodway: no general homestead exemption; $20,000 for over-65
- City of Robinson: no general homestead exemption; $10,000 for over-65
Smaller cities vary further. Bellmead and Lacy-Lakeview offer no general homestead reduction but give over-65 amounts of $7,500 and $5,000, respectively. Gholson and Riesel offer both a percentage-based general exemption and a dollar-amount senior add-on. You don’t file separately for any of these. Once MCAD approves your homestead application, every entity’s local option applies automatically.
The 10% Cap on Yearly Appraisal Increases
Once your homestead exemption is on file, the appraised value used to calculate your taxes cannot rise more than 10% per year over the previous year’s appraised value, plus the value of any new improvements you add.7State of Texas. Texas Code 23.23 – Limitation on Appraised Value of Residence Homestead
The cap doesn’t kick in immediately. In your first year with the exemption the district values the property at full market value, and the 10% limit starts on January 1 of the following tax year. So a prorated exemption starting July 1, 2025 first draws the cap’s protection on January 1, 2027, after one full calendar year of qualification.
The cap limits your taxable appraised value, not your market value on record. The district can still note that your home’s market value jumped 25% in a year. It just can’t tax you on more than a 10% increase. In a rising market that gap widens year after year, and it’s one of the more valuable protections of Texas homeownership. The cap ends if neither you nor your surviving spouse continues to qualify.
School Tax Ceiling for Over-65 and Disabled Homeowners
Once you qualify for the over-65 or disability exemption, your school district tax bill is frozen at the amount charged in the first year you qualified. This is commonly called the tax ceiling.8State of Texas. Texas Tax Code 11.26 – Limitation of School Tax on Homesteads of Elderly or Disabled Rising values or higher school tax rates cannot push it up. Only new improvements beyond ordinary repairs can.
The ceiling transfers when you move to a new home in Texas, but not as a flat dollar figure. The appraisal district calculates the percentage of the full school tax bill you actually paid at the old home and applies that same percentage at the new one. Request a Tax Ceiling Certificate from your former county’s appraisal district and submit it with your new application.
A surviving spouse who was at least 55 when the qualifying homeowner died keeps the ceiling while remaining in the home.8State of Texas. Texas Tax Code 11.26 – Limitation of School Tax on Homesteads of Elderly or Disabled
How to Apply in McLennan County
File Texas Comptroller Form 50-114, the Residence Homestead Exemption Application, with the McLennan County Appraisal District. The office is at 315 S. 26th Street, Waco, TX 76710. MCAD also accepts applications through its online public portal at mclennancad.org, which is the fastest route.
The form asks for your full legal name, date of birth, and property account number, which is searchable on the MCAD site by street address.9Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts. Residence Homestead Exemption Application You’ll also provide your Texas driver’s license or state ID number, and the address on that ID must match the property. If a mismatch is unavoidable, such as a rural address that ID records don’t reflect, the form has a section to request a waiver from the chief appraiser.
For the over-65 exemption, your date of birth on the form is proof enough. For a disability claim, attach a doctor’s statement or Social Security documentation. Disabled veterans should attach their VA disability determination letter. If you inherited the home and were never added to the deed, complete the heir property section and submit the accompanying affidavit; the form has a place for this, and it’s a commonly missed opportunity in families where a home passed down without probate.
Deadline and Late Filing
The filing deadline is April 30 of the tax year you’re claiming.10State of Texas. Texas Code 11.43 – Application for Exemption Miss it, and you can still file a late application up to two years after the delinquency date for that tax year.11State of Texas. Texas Code 11.431 – Late Application for Homestead Exemption If a late application is approved, the tax collector subtracts the exemption from your bill or refunds what you already paid. Veterans rated 100% disabled have five years after the delinquency date to file late.
You only apply once. After approval, the exemption renews automatically every year until you sell the home or your qualifications change.10State of Texas. Texas Code 11.43 – Application for Exemption No annual paperwork.
Trusts, Absences, and Renting a Room
A home held in a qualifying beneficial trust still qualifies as long as a trustor or beneficiary lives there. Indicate the trust arrangement on the application.
You can leave the home temporarily for up to two years without losing the exemption, provided you don’t establish a new primary residence and intend to return. That two-year limit doesn’t apply while you’re on active military duty or living in a care facility for health reasons; in those cases the exemption stays in place indefinitely.
Renting out a room or portion of your home while you still live there doesn’t affect the exemption; it covers the whole property. Renting out the entire home while you live elsewhere disqualifies it.
If Your Application Is Denied
If the chief appraiser denies your application, you can protest to the Appraisal Review Board using Form 50-132. The deadline is May 15 or 30 days after the denial notice is delivered, whichever is later. Bring documentation that addresses the reason for the denial, whether that’s an updated ID, a corrected deed, or proof of occupancy. Informal resolution with district staff is often possible before the formal hearing.
Keep the Exemption Honest
Notify MCAD when your eligibility changes: moving out, converting the home to a rental, selling, or no longer meeting the disability criteria. If the district later discovers a homestead exemption was improperly claimed, it can assess back taxes for up to five years, plus penalties and interest on those amounts. Those bills arrive in a single stack. Texas law treats a knowingly false application seriously, so keeping the filing current is far easier than dealing with the audit that follows.