Connecticut Homestead Exemption: Amount, Filing & Savings

Connecticut’s homestead law is a creditor shield, not a tax break: C.G.S. § 52-352b(21) exempts up to $250,000 of equity in an owner-occupied primary residence from debt collection. On the tax side, the state’s senior and disabled homeowner credit (§ 12-170aa) pays up to $1,250 for couples and $1,000 for single owners. Apply February 1–May 15.

That credit is means-tested and filed with the town assessor. The creditor exemption matters in court, when a judgment creditor or a bankruptcy trustee goes after the house. The two statutes sit in different titles, and only the creditor statute uses the word “homestead.”

§ 52-352b(21): $250,000 of protected equity

The subdivision exempts “The homestead of the exemptioner to the value of two hundred fifty thousand dollars.” Value “shall be determined as the fair market value of the real property less the amount of any statutory or consensual lien which encumbers it.” A mortgage (a consensual lien) or a statutory lien such as a property tax lien comes off the top before the $250,000 is measured.

A lower figure applies to one set of judgments. In the case of “a money judgment arising out of a claim of sexual abuse or exploitation of a minor, sexual assault or other wilful, wanton, or reckless misconduct committed by a natural person,” the homestead is protected only “to the value of seventy-five thousand dollars.”

“Homestead” is defined in § 52-352a(5) as “owner-occupied real property, co-op or mobile manufactured home, as defined in subdivision (1) of section 21-64, used as a primary residence.” The protection belongs to a natural person (the “exemptioner”).

Which cases get $250,000

Public Act 21-161 replaced the old $75,000 homestead, which was $125,000 for judgments arising from hospital services, with the current figure. The expanded exemption “applies in all bankruptcy and postjudgment proceedings initiated on or after October 1, 2021, regardless of when the underlying debts accrued” (347 Conn. 284, as summarized in the official annotations). The Appellate Court also applied it to a foreclosure filed before enactment but decided after it (224 Conn. App. 571, same annotations). Under P.A. 25-91, effective July 1, 2025, § 52-350f(b) requires a judgment-lien foreclosure to subtract the § 52-352b exemption when computing the lien. Judicial Branch forms such as the foreclosure worksheet must list the exempt property.

Tax relief the General Assembly requires towns to give

The relief Connecticut law makes towns give is aimed at groups, not at owner-occupants as a class. The Office of Legislative Research’s February 2026 report: “Connecticut laws require municipalities to provide property tax relief for specific groups of taxpayers, such as those who are seniors, veterans, or have a disability.” Towns may add more. The main senior program is below.

The Circuit Breaker credit, § 12-170aa

Who can claim it (§ 12-170aa(b)):

• An owner of real property, including property held in trust where the owner, or the owner and spouse, are grantor and beneficiary. A life tenant or tenant for a term of years who pays the tax also qualifies, as does a resident of a multiple-dwelling complex under the contract terms in subsection (j). Under subsection (h), an owner of a dwelling on leased land qualifies if the dwelling is the owner’s principal residence, the lease requires the owner to pay all property taxes on the dwelling, and the lease is recorded in the town land records.
• Age: 65 or over at the close of the preceding calendar year, or with a spouse of that age living in the home. A surviving spouse 50 or older qualifies if the homeowner who died “had qualified and was entitled to tax relief” and they lived together at the time of death.
• Or under 65 and eligible for Social Security permanent total disability benefits. A comparable government disability plan counts for someone never covered by Social Security.
• Residence: the credit is “allowed only with respect to a residential dwelling owned by such qualified homeowner and used as such homeowner’s primary place of residence.” OPM’s 2026 booklet requires the ownership to be in effect on or before October 1 of the assessment year claimed, and OLR’s 2026 report lists living in Connecticut at least one year before applying.
• Income: “taxable and nontaxable income” at or below the limit. OLR puts the current limit at $56,500 for married couples and $46,300 for singles, based on 2025 income. The statute indexes it each year to the Social Security cost-of-living adjustment. Medicaid payments are not income. A married applicant leaves out the Social Security income of a spouse who lives in a Connecticut health care or nursing home facility paid for under Medicaid, and an applicant legally separated as of the preceding December 31 may apply as unmarried.

Amount: § 12-170aa(c) sets a percentage-of-tax schedule by income bracket. The largest credit, in the lowest bracket, is $1,250 for married homeowners and $1,000 for unmarried ones. Each bracket also has its own minimum credit, from $400 down to $150 for married homeowners and from $350 down to $150 for unmarried ones. OPM adjusts the income brackets every year. Co-owners who do not qualify pay their own share of the tax. Special assessments, interest and lien fees are not “taxes” for this credit.

Filing, the biennial cycle and late requests

• Window: “at any time from February first to and including May fifteenth of the year in which tax reduction is claimed,” with the town assessor on the OPM form M-35H. Bring the federal return and the Social Security statement, or other proof of income if no return was filed.
• Every other year: the claim is filed the first year “and biennially thereafter.” In the year after an approved application, the homeowner “shall be presumed, without filing application therefor,” to qualify at the same percentage. Before a filing year, the assessor sends a notice and form by February 1. If nothing arrives by April 15, the assessor mails a second notice by April 30, and the application is then due by May 15.
• Extension: requested before August 15 of the claim year, for illness or incapacitation shown by a physician, physician assistant or APRN certificate, or for good cause. Through September 30, 2026 the request goes to the OPM Secretary. P.A. 26-114, § 16, effective October 1, 2026, moves both the request and the decision to the town assessor.
• Losing eligibility: a recipient whose income goes over the limit must tell the assessor by the next filing date. One who does not “shall refund all amounts of tax reduction improperly taken and be fined not more than five hundred dollars.” The same refund and fine apply to wilful nondisclosure, or a false statement made with intent to defraud, to get the credit.

Other mandated exemptions, in brief

From the same OLR report: a $1,000 exemption for owners who are eligible for Social Security permanent total disability benefits, qualify for permanent disability benefits under a government retirement plan, or are 65 or older and no longer receive disability benefits only because retirement benefits replaced them (§ 12-81(55)); a $1,000 basic exemption for wartime veterans (§ 12-81(19)) plus an income-based addition; graduated exemptions for veterans with a VA disability rating of at least 10%; and, beginning with the 2024 assessment year, an exemption of the primary dwelling (or, lacking one, one motor vehicle) of a veteran rated 100% permanent and total (§ 12-81(83)). Since the 2025 assessment year, a town may cap that exemption at the median assessed value of residential real property in the town.

Connecticut owners ask

I turned 65 in December 2025. Can I file in 2026?

Yes, if you meet the income test and owned the home, as your primary residence, on October 1, 2025. The age test is 65 “at the close of the preceding calendar year,” so turning 65 in 2025 counts for a 2026 claim filed February 1 to May 15.

Do I need to record anything to get the $250,000 creditor protection?

Section 52-352b(21) contains no recording step. The exemption depends on the property being the owner-occupied primary residence defined in § 52-352a(5).

Does a mortgage count against the $250,000?

The mortgage is subtracted first. The exemption applies to fair market value “less the amount of any statutory or consensual lien.”

My town offers its own senior freeze. Is that this program?

No. Town-adopted programs are local options with their own rules. OLR’s report 2026-R-0001 covers them.

Connecticut on askdoss: Connecticut property tax, mill rates and revaluation, Connecticut closing costs, Connecticut overview, property tax calculator, all states’ homestead rules. Sources: C.G.S. chapter 906, chapter 204a, OLR 2026-R-0027, OPM Circuit Breaker page.