HB1498: HB1498 Ad valorem tax; procedures for transmission of relevant information following a real estate closing to allow for the automatic granting of homestead exemptions; provide

Under current Georgia law, homeowners must file a written application with their county tax receiver or tax commissioner to get a homestead exemption, which reduces the property tax owed on a primary residence. If they miss the deadline, they lose the exemption for that year and have to reapply the next year. This bill amends O.C.G.A. § 48-5-45 to add a new step. When an attorney closes a real estate purchase for a home that would qualify for a homestead exemption, the attorney must send the tax receiver or tax commissioner all the information needed to grant the exemption automatically, without the new owner filing anything. The tax office must then notify the homeowner that the exemption was granted and tell them which tax year it first applies to. The existing rules on renewal, the filing deadline, and the misdemeanor penalty for charging a fee to file someone else's homestead application remain unchanged.

• Requires attorneys who close real estate purchases on homestead-eligible property to send exemption information to the local tax receiver or tax commissioner right after closing.
• Allows tax receivers and tax commissioners to grant the homestead exemption automatically using that information, without a separate application from the buyer.
• Requires the tax office to notify the new homeowner once the exemption is granted and tell them which tax year it first applies to.
• Keeps in place the existing rule that a missed application deadline waives the exemption for that year, for cases outside the new attorney-transmission process.
• Keeps the existing misdemeanor penalty for charging a fee to file someone else's homestead exemption application.

The bill affects real estate closing attorneys, who take on a new transmission duty; county tax receivers and tax commissioners, who process the automatic exemptions and send notices; and homebuyers purchasing a primary residence, who may no longer need to file a separate homestead exemption application.

Homebuyers could get their property tax break on a primary residence without remembering to file a separate application or risking missing the deadline. The change shifts that administrative work onto closing attorneys and local tax offices instead of leaving it entirely to the new homeowner.

• Section 1 amends O.C.G.A. § 48-5-45 by adding subsection (a.1), requiring a closing attorney to transmit homestead exemption information to the tax receiver or tax commissioner after closing.
• Subsection (a.1) also requires the tax office to send the homeowner notice confirming the exemption and stating which tax year it first applies to.
• The bill states this duty applies notwithstanding any conflicting local Act, meaning it overrides local law provisions to the contrary.
• Existing subsection (a) rules on filing deadlines and waiver for missed applications remain unchanged for other applicants.
• Existing subsection (b) automatic renewal rule and subsection (c) misdemeanor penalty for soliciting fees to file applications remain unchanged.
• Section 2 repeals all conflicting laws.

1. 2026-03-06House Second Readers (House)
2. 2026-03-04House First Readers (House)
3. 2026-03-03House Hopper (House)

• David Wilkerson (D, HD-038)Primary sponsor
• Mary Ann Santos (D, HD-117)
• Eric Gisler (D, HD-121)
• Spencer Frye (D, HD-122)
• Dale Washburn (R, HD-144)

• property taxes
• homestead exemption
• real estate closings
• local tax administration