Anna Maria Island Real Estate Sales Blog

This week, property owners who qualified for a homestead exemption on state and local taxes received their postcard from Charles E. Hackney, the Manatee County Property Appraiser.

The renewal is automatic if one is still entitled to the exemption; filing is the responsibility of the homeowner. Applications are taken year round, but they must be completed by March 1 of the year in which the exemption is to be effective. AND you have to be a permanent resident of Florida before January 1 of the year in which you apply.

If you buy a home during any calendar year, and the property owner qualified for exemption, that exemption will be continued until the end of that year. So, you must come in and file before March 1 of this year to continue an exemption if you bought property and made it your permanent residence in 2009, for example.

Other information may be necessary if you sold one exempted property and then bought another. A portion of the exemption may be 'portable' under certain circumstances.

Go to www.manateepao.com for more information.