Owners of real property in Maui County who occupy their home as a principal residence may be entitled to a home exemption if certain requirements are met. Home exemption applications for the 2017 Assessment Year are due by December 31. 2016. There are significant property tax savings for homeowners who qualify. Some of the requirements for the 2017 Assessment Year are:

• Owner must own and occupy the property as their principal residence as of January 1, 2017 and file a claim for home exemption on or before December 31, 2016.
• Owner must file a 2015 State of Hawaii Resident Income Tax Return with a reported address in the County by December 31, 2016.
• Property taxes on the property must not be delinquent.

The requirement to file a state resident tax return was changed in 2012 to ensure that homeowners receiving the exemption were in-state residents. Non-resident and part-year resident tax returns do not qualify for the home exemption. On December 5, 2016, the county sent out a Real Property Home Exemption Disallowance Notice to everyone who may have not filed a 2014 State of Hawaii resident income tax for the current 2016 assessment year. If you receive one of these notices, please review it carefully and contact the Real Property Tax office for more information.

If you do qualify for a home exemption, make sure to get your application in on or before December 31, 2016 as you will need to wait a whole additional year to qualify if you miss the deadline.

Some links with additional information:

Claim for Home Exemption Form

Press Release dated 12/5/16 Reminding Homeowners to file State Tax Returns

Maui Real Property Tax Website