Fort Bend County, TX: homestead & property-tax exemptions

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

Last checked 2026-10-25 · 19 official sources

Exemptions available

• Form 50-114 covers the general residence homestead, age 65 or older, disabled person and 100% disabled veteran exemptions (plus the surviving-spouse versions of each), and the exemptions for surviving spouses of armed services members or first responders killed in the line of duty and the donated residence of a partially disabled veteran (and surviving spouse). ^[1]
• General homestead: school districts must exempt $140,000 of the appraised value. Counties that collect farm-to-market or flood control taxes must give $3,000. Other taxing units may offer up to 20% of the appraised value (minimum $5,000). The homestead cap limits increases in your appraised value to 10% a year, not counting new improvements. ^[1][2]
• Age 65 or older, or disabled: school districts must exempt an additional $60,000, and other taxing units may offer their own exemption (minimum $3,000). You can't have both the over-65 and disabled person exemptions; you choose one. Either one also sets a school tax ceiling (freeze), so your school taxes can't rise above the year you qualified unless you add significant improvements such as a pool or converted garage. A surviving spouse keeps the deceased spouse's ceiling while living in the home. ^[1][3]
• Fort Bend County's own local exemptions for the 2026 tax year (FBCAD's 2026 Exemption List, dated June 9, 2026): Fort Bend County (General) 20% homestead ($5,000 minimum), $100,000 over-65 and $100,000 disabled person; Fort Bend Drainage District the same. Examples of cities: Houston 20% and $260,000 over-65/disabled; Sugar Land 15% and $70,000; Katy 20% and $100,000; Rosenberg 20% and $85,000; Missouri City 2.5%, $25,000 over-65 and $20,000 disabled; Richmond 3.5% and $6,000 over-65; Fulshear 14% and $15,000; Stafford 20% and $1,000,000 over-65/disabled. Houston Community College 17% and $135,000; Wharton County Junior College $10,000 over-65/disabled. MUDs, ESDs and other districts have their own amounts in the list. ^[4][5]
• School districts in the 2026 list (Fort Bend ISD, Lamar CISD, Katy ISD, Needville ISD, Brazos ISD, Stafford MSD) all show the state $140,000 homestead and $60,000 over-65/disabled amounts. A few add local exemptions: Stafford MSD a 20% homestead, Brazos ISD a 5% homestead, and Katy ISD an extra $10,000 over-65. ^[4]
• Harris-Fort Bend ESD 100 eliminated its 20% homestead and $100,000 over-65 exemptions for tax year 2026 (its $100,000 disability exemption remains). FBCAD says exemptions from school districts, the county and other units generally didn't change. ^[6][4]
• 100% disabled veterans (100% service-connected rating or paid at 100% for individual unemployability) get a total exemption on the residence homestead, and so do their unremarried surviving spouses. Surviving spouses of armed services members or first responders killed in the line of duty also get a total exemption. ^[1][2]
• Partially disabled veterans (10% or higher rating) apply on Form 50-135. The exemption can go on any one property the veteran picks, as long as it's the same property for all taxing units, and it doesn't have to be the homestead. The amount depends on the disability rating (see the Texas page and 'Not verified yet' below). ^[3][2]
• Tax deferrals (postpone, not cancel): homeowners with the over-65, disabled person or disabled veteran exemption can defer homestead taxes while they own and live in the home (Form 50-126; 5% interest a year). Any homestead owner whose appraised value rose more than 5% can defer the tax on the increase above 5% (Form 50-274; 8% interest a year). File the affidavit with FBCAD. A mortgage may allow the lender to foreclose if taxes go unpaid. ^[7]

Statewide exemption details: Texas guide.

Who qualifies

• The home must be your principal residence, and you can't have a homestead exemption on any other property. To get it on a new home, you must first remove the exemption from the other property and give FBCAD proof, usually a date-stamped copy of your removal request. Since 2022 buyers can apply in the year they buy, and the exemption counts from the purchase date. ^[3][8]
• Over 65: the exemption is effective January 1 of the year you turn 65, but you can't apply until on or after your 65th birthday. The person who qualifies (for over-65 or disabled person) must sign the application and provide their ID. ^[3]
• Disabled person: you need a Social Security award letter that clearly states the date you became disabled. ^[9]
• Heirship property (you inherited the home without a probated title) gets the same homestead exemption and features, with extra documents (see below). ^[1]

Deadline

• File by April 30 of the tax year you want the exemption for. ^[1][10]
• Late filing: for most of these exemptions you can file up to two years after that tax year's delinquency date. For the 100% disabled veteran exemption, up to five years. List every year you think you qualify for on Form 50-114, and FBCAD will review each year the Tax Code allows. ^[1][3]

Where and how to file

• Online (FBCAD's recommended method, and you get email status updates): use the Exemption Application at https://www.fbcad.org/exemption-application/ (it opens FBCAD's online portal; FBCAD asks you to use Google Chrome). A PDF of Form 50-114 is in FBCAD's eServices forms. ^[3][1]
• Paper applications go to Fort Bend Central Appraisal District, 2801 B.F. Terry Blvd., Rosenberg, TX 77471. Phone 281-344-8623, email [email protected], Monday-Friday 8 a.m.-4:30 p.m. ^[11][8]
• It's free. Mailers offering to file a 'homestead designation' for a fee aren't from FBCAD and aren't an exemption application. A designation is a County Clerk filing that protects a home from forced sale. ^[3]

Documents needed

• A clear copy of your current Texas driver's license or state ID. For Form 50-114 exemptions the address must match the property (unless you qualify for address confidentiality); for Form 50-135 it doesn't have to. ^[9][3][1]
• Married couples: one spouse signs and provides ID; with different last names, attach the marriage license. Unmarried co-owners: every owner signs and provides ID, and they file a Request for Separate Taxation of Undivided Interest. ^[3][9]
• Disabled person: Social Security award letter (or other disability benefits letter). 100% disabled veteran: a current VA letter stating 100% service-connected disability or 100% pay for unemployability. Surviving spouses: the spouse's death certificate (plus VA or first-responder proof for line-of-duty deaths). Heirship homestead: an affidavit establishing ownership, the deceased owner's death certificate, a recent utility bill and any court record citation. Mobile homes: the TDHCA title, a notarized bill of sale, or a notarized manufactured home affidavit. ^[9][1]

Do you need to re-file?

• Once an exemption is on your property you generally don't reapply. FBCAD removes exemptions when ownership changes or when the home stops being your primary residence. These count as ownership changes and need a new application: adding a spouse to the deed, moving the home into a trust, one spouse getting the home in a divorce, or one spouse dying. ^[3]
• Surviving spouses: reapply for your exemptions the January after your spouse dies, using Form 50-114 or 50-135 with your ID and the death certificate. ^[9][3]

Appeal deadline

• Protest deadline: May 15 or 30 days after your notice of appraised value is mailed, whichever is later. For 2026 the deadline was May 15, 2026. FBCAD began mailing 2026 notices the week of April 1 (residential market values were up about 3.88% overall). ^[12][6][13]
• There are four ways to file: online through the portal (filing plus an online informal review by an FBCAD appraiser, account required), eFile (no account), mail, or drop-off at 2801 B.F. Terry Blvd., Rosenberg, TX 77471. File only one way, because duplicate filings cause delays. ^[12]
• Informal conferences are optional, remote meetings with an FBCAD appraiser; FBCAD suggests requesting one at least 5 days before your hearing (https://www.fbcad.org/informal/ or 281-344-8623). Formal Appraisal Review Board hearings are held at the ARB building at 2801 B.F. Terry Blvd., Rosenberg (phone or video on written request). Bring three hard copies of your evidence. Evidence you shared at the informal conference must be given to the ARB again. Request FBCAD's evidence packet early, which is sent at least 14 days before the hearing. ^[12][14][15]
• You get one postponement without showing cause (if you have no agent), requested in writing before the hearing date at https://www.fbcad.org/arb-reschedule-request/. Late protests can be heard only for good cause, filed by mail or in person before the ARB approves the records (typically around July 20-25). After the ARB decision, see the Texas page for binding arbitration and court appeals. ^[14][12][13]
• Tax bills: the Fort Bend County Tax Assessor-Collector mails statements on October 1 or soon after. They're due on receipt and become delinquent February 1 (pay by January 31). Over-65 and disabled homeowners can pay in quarterly installments: at least 1/4 by January 31, then March 31, May 31 and July 31. Tax office: 1317 Eugene Heimann Circle, Richmond, TX 77469-3623; 281-341-3710; [email protected]. Since October 7, 2026, offices close at noon on Wednesdays (other weekdays 8 a.m.-4:30 p.m.). ^[16][17][18]

Population: 958,434 (July 1, 2024 estimate) ^[19]

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