Attention property owners: Unless you have filed a Homestead Verification Form with the county auditor by Dec. 31, you will lose a substantial credit on your property tax bill.
The pink forms were mailed to property owners with their tax bills in 2010, 2011 and 2012, but often, those bills are sent to mortgage companies, so some property owners might not have received the forms.
As of Dec. 12, 3,917 Monroe County property owners who claim the homestead credit have not yet filed the form, said county Auditor-elect Steve Saulter, but 25,243 have.
“The only way for a taxpayer to make sure that they have filed with us is to call or come to the office,” Saulter said in an email. Calling is fastest, he said. “We will look their parcel up while they are on the line and tell them right then. We have been getting calls already concerning this, and it only takes a minute or so to tell someone.”
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Completing the homestead verification form requires providing the last five digits of the property owner’s driver’s license and Social Security numbers, which will be used in a secure homestead database and prevent homestead fraud, according to the press release.
The completed homestead verification form must be filed at least once in 2010, 2011 or 2012.
Those who fail to file the form by Dec. 31 risk losing their homestead credit beginning with the property tax bills they will receive in May 2013. Those who have not filed the form after the tax bills are mailed will receive a final notification letter from the county auditor.
Any property owner in Indiana can claim a homestead credit for their primary place of residence. Vacation and rental homes do not qualify for the homestead credit. Some property owners, both unintentionally and fraudulently, claim homestead credits on more than one property. The verification forms aim to fix that problem.
Property owners who have claimed homestead credits inappropriately are liable for taxes that would have been due on the property, plus a 10 percent penalty.
