Missouri · Property taxMissouri senior property tax freeze: when a buyer's base year starts

Missouri lets each county decide whether to freeze property taxes for seniors. A county authorized to impose a property tax may grant the credit by adopting an ordinance, or after a petition signed by at least 5% of the county's voters from the last gubernatorial election forces a referendum that passes. An eligible taxpayer is a Missouri resident who is 62 or older, is an owner of record of the homestead or has a legal or equitable interest in it under a written instrument, and is liable for the real property taxes on it; the homestead is the real property the taxpayer actually occupies as the primary residence, and only one may be claimed. The credit equals the taxpayer's real property tax liability on the homestead for the year minus the liability in the initial credit year. For someone who already qualified when the county adopted the credit, the initial credit year is the adoption year; for everyone else – including a buyer of a new home – it is the year the taxpayer meets all the requirements. If a later year's liability is lower, that year becomes the new base, and new construction or improvements, or annexation into a new taxing jurisdiction, raise the base. The county applies the credit when calculating the tax, and the amount appears on the statement the collector sends (RSMo 137.1050).