Denton County, TX: homestead & property-tax exemptions

How to claim property-tax exemptions in Denton County (Denton area): who qualifies, the deadline, where to file, documents, re-filing and appeals.

Last checked 2026-10-23 · 12 official sources

Exemptions available

• DCAD lists these homestead exemptions: general residence homestead, disabled person, age 65 or older, surviving spouse (55+) of someone who had the age 65 exemption, 100% disabled veteran's homestead (and unremarried surviving spouses), donated residence homestead of a partially disabled veteran (and surviving spouses), and surviving spouse of a service member killed in action. ^[1]
• General homestead: every school district must exempt $140,000 of the home's value. Other taxing units may add a percentage homestead exemption of up to 20%. You can qualify for more than one exemption. ^[1][2]
• Age 65 or older, or disabled: school districts must exempt an additional $60,000 and freeze (cap) the school tax on the home. Denton County has also adopted a tax ceiling (freeze) for homes with an over-65 or disabled person exemption, and other local units may give their own optional over-65/disabled exemptions. ^[1][2]
• Denton County's own local exemptions for the 2025 tax year (DCAD's 2025 Tax Rates & Exemptions table): homestead 1% ($5,000 minimum), over-65 $55,000, disabled person $15,000. Amounts for cities and school districts vary; for example, City of Denton 0.5% ($5,000 min) homestead and $50,000 over-65/disabled, Town of Flower Mound 20% ($5,000 min) and $150,000, City of Lewisville $60,000 over-65 and $20,000 disabled. School districts in the table show the state $140,000 homestead and $60,000 over-65/disabled amounts (Pilot Point and Sanger ISD show $66,000 over-65; Slidell ISD also lists a 20% local homestead). ^[3][4]
• 100% disabled veteran (100% disability compensation with a 100% rating or individual unemployability): total exemption on the residence homestead from all taxing units. If you qualify after January 1, you get it for the rest of that year. ^[1][2]
• Partially disabled veterans (10-90% service-connected rating) can get a partial exemption on one property using Form 50-135; the amount depends on the rating (see the Texas page). ^[5][2]

Statewide exemption details: Texas guide.

Who qualifies

• You must own the home and occupy it as your primary residence, and you can't claim a residence homestead exemption on any other property. If you bought after January 1, you can get the homestead exemption for the rest of that year if the previous owner didn't have it. ^[1]
• Age 65: you qualify effective January 1 of the year you turn 65 (or the year you buy a home if you're already 65). Surviving spouse: the deceased spouse must have died in a year they qualified, you must have been 55 or older at the time, and the home must remain your residence homestead. ^[1]
• Disabled person: DCAD uses the federal Social Security disability insurance definition (unable to engage in any substantial gainful activity because of an impairment expected to last at least 12 months or result in death). You qualify effective January 1 of the year you become disabled. ^[1]
• Surviving spouses of 100% disabled veterans or of service members killed in action must not have remarried, and the home must have been (and still be) their residence homestead. ^[1]

Deadline

• Texas general rule: file exemption applications before May 1. ^[2]
• DCAD's homestead page doesn't publish its own filing window or late-filing rules; see the Texas page and the 'Not verified yet' list below. ^[1]

Where and how to file

• Apply online through DCAD's portal (DCAD calls this the fastest way, and you can check your application's status there). Or use Form 50-114 (homestead, disabled person, over-65, 100% disabled veteran and more) or Form 50-135 (10-90% disabled veterans) from DCAD's forms library. ^[1][5]
• Mail or deliver paper applications to Denton Central Appraisal District, 3911 Morse Street, Denton, TX 76208. Phone (940) 349-3800. Office hours: Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday 8 a.m.-4 p.m.; Wednesday 8 a.m.-noon. ^[1][6]
• There's no fee, and you don't need to hire anyone to file a homestead application or to claim a refund for a late homestead filing. ^[1]

Documents needed

• A driver's license or state-issued ID showing the same address as the property. ^[1]
• Disabled person: proof of disability benefits, such as a Social Security award letter, a disability retirement insurance letter, or a physician's statement (on DCAD's form) that you're 100% disabled and unable to work. ^[1]
• Surviving spouses of 100% disabled veterans: the death certificate and a current VA letter identifying you as the surviving spouse and showing the veteran's 100% service-connected disability. Surviving spouses of service members killed in action: the death certificate and a current VA letter. ^[1]

Do you need to re-file?

• You don't reapply each year unless the chief appraiser asks for a new application in writing, you move, or your eligibility changes. DCAD audits exemption records every five years and may ask you to reapply. ^[1]
• If you bought a home, the previous owner's exemptions don't carry over; apply for your own. DCAD now mails a separate notice when an exemption is reduced or removed from the prior year (Tax Code 25.193); usually no action is needed unless you think it's wrong. Over-65 and disabled tax ceilings aren't affected. ^[7]

Appeal deadline

• Protest deadline: May 15 or 30 days after your Notice of Appraised Value is mailed, whichever is later. For 2026, DCAD mailed most real property notices April 10, with a May 15 protest deadline. File online (fastest), by mail, or in person at 3911 Morse Street, Denton, TX 76208. ^[8][9]
• Informal meetings with a DCAD appraiser can be booked after you file (in 2026 they ran through May 8); formal Appraisal Review Board hearings began May 11. Hearings can be in person, by phone or video (these require a notarized Affidavit of Evidence or Unsworn Declaration), or by affidavit (Form 50-283). You get one postponement without showing good cause (email [email protected] before the hearing date). ^[8]
• Late protests: filed after the deadline but before the ARB approves the records (around mid-July), the ARB may hear it only if you show good cause (e.g., active military, hospitalization, jury duty; vacation or missing the deadline doesn't count). After the ARB decision you can seek binding arbitration (homesteads of any value; request within 60 days, $450-$1,550 deposit), SOAH (property over $1 million) or district court. ^[8]
• Tax bills: the Denton County Tax Assessor-Collector mails statements in October and collects for most local units; taxes are due by January 31 of the next year. The tax office doesn't set values or exemptions (contact DCAD). Property tax office: 940-349-3500, P.O. Box 90223, Denton, TX 76202. ^[10][11]

Population: 1,045,120 (July 1, 2024 estimate) ^[12]

Other Texas counties

• Harris County
• Dallas County
• Tarrant County
• Bexar County
• Travis County
• Collin County