Assessment Regressivity and the Homestead Exemption
Abstract
The statutory incidence of the property tax is not regressive across jurisdictions when regressivity is defined as having higher effective tax rates for lower-valued properties. However, a long-standing tendency toward higher assessment rates for low-priced homes commonly leads to a regressive tax structure. Using CoreLogic data, we calculate the size of the homestead exemption that would eliminate regressivity for 9,091 municipalities, of which the vast majority (92.3 percent) have at least somewhat regressive assessment practices. The median value of the required exemption is $24,639, and the interquartile range is $10,268–$47,514.
Fields of Study & Subjects
School Choice and Performance
Occupational and Professional Licensing Regulation
Psychometric Methodologies and Testing
Publication details
- Journal / source
- National Tax Journal
- Publisher
- University of Chicago Press
- Volume
- 79
- Issue
- 2
- Pages
- 393–407
- Publication date
- 20 April 2026
- Language
- EN