Missouri’s Senior Property Tax Freeze: 5 Rules That Decide Who Qualifies
Missouri’s senior property tax freeze doesn’t stop your bill from rising.
Instead, it credits you for the increase since your baseline year, if you qualify.
Here are the rules that decide who qualifies, and the other Missouri credit to check if your county never signed on.
Note: This is general information, not legal or tax advice. Eligibility rules, deadlines and credit amounts are subject to change, so confirm the current details with your county collector’s office.
Missouri Senior Property Tax Freeze Eligibility
Senate Bill 190 created Missouri’s senior property tax freeze in 2023, and the current version took effect on August 28, 2025.
State law defines an eligible taxpayer as a Missouri resident who is 62 or older, owns the home or holds an interest in it, and owes its property tax.
Your income isn’t a factor.
Your county controls the other two of the five rules that decide who qualifies, which are whether it adopted the credit and when its application window runs.
Counties can write reasonable procedures, but a procedure can’t narrow who counts as an eligible taxpayer.
1. A County That Adopted the Credit
Your county’s governing body or its voters have to adopt Missouri’s senior property tax freeze before you can claim it.
Boone County voters approved Proposition 1 on April 3, 2024.
Johnson County took the ordinance route and passed one on March 17, 2025.
A public radio report said St. Charles County, St. Louis County and the City of St. Louis had all adopted the freeze by January 2024.
The bill’s sponsor estimated at that time that more than 12 counties had adopted it.
In a 2024 fiscal note, the Department of Revenue wrote that it doesn’t handle property tax, so it’s unaware of how many counties participate or plan to.
If you’re not sure whether your county adopted the credit, start with your county collector’s office.
2. Age 62 or Older
The age test for Missouri’s senior property tax freeze starts at 62, and you don’t have to collect Social Security to qualify.
A 2024 bill sought to settle that question after concerns that firefighters and teachers outside Social Security might be shut out.
In St. Charles County, you have to be at least 62 and living on the property as of Jan. 1, 2026.
Boone County’s rule adds a cutoff: You have to turn 62 before January 1 of your baseline year, the year your credit is measured from.
In Boone County, only one homeowner in your household has to meet the age test.
3. Ownership and Tax Liability
Missouri’s senior property tax freeze goes to the person who owns the home and owes its property tax.
State law counts you if you’re an owner of record or hold a legal or equitable interest that a written instrument shows.
Boone County asks you to prove ownership with a deed book and page number, a copy of your deed, or a deed plus a written instrument showing your interest.
The property tax has to be yours to pay.
If a qualifying owner dies, Johnson County recalculates the baseline year and the credit amount based on the remaining applicant’s eligibility.
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4. A Primary Residence
You can claim Missouri's senior property tax freeze on one home only, the one you live in.
State law defines your homestead as the property you occupy as your primary residence, and you can have only one.
Boone County's rule excludes rentals.
Your Boone County homestead covers your residence and up to 2.5 acres.
Boone County also limits you to one primary residence statewide as your homestead.
5. Your County's Application Window
Missouri's senior property tax freeze comes with an application in the four counties we checked: Boone, Johnson, St. Charles and St. Louis.
Boone County's page expects the next application window to begin by April 1, 2027, and run through June 30.
Johnson County's 2026 window ran from April 1 through June 30.
A base year application in Boone County must be signed in front of a notary public.
Your Boone County application is denied for that year if it's incomplete and you haven't corrected it by the deadline.
A 2026 base year approval in Boone County shows up on your 2027 tax bill.
Renewal rules differ by county.
If you were approved for base year 2024 or 2025, Boone County enrolls you automatically for later bill years as long as you remain eligible.
St. Charles County required seniors to apply or renew every year until its council voted unanimously on July 13, 2026 to drop the yearly renewal.
Technical problems pushed two counties' 2026 deadlines back.
In St. Louis County, the council extended the cutoff from June 30 to July 10 because of software and computer issues for applicants.
In St. Charles County, the council moved the deadline to July 6 after the online application portal stopped working on June 20.
Your Baseline Year
Missouri's senior property tax freeze credits you only for the increase in your homestead's property tax since your baseline year, which state law calls the initial credit year.
The credit doesn't stop your bill from rising because the program doesn't freeze your home's assessed value.
Boone County's page lists reassessments, new construction or improvements, and annexation into a new taxing district as things that can still raise your bill.
Taxes the program exempts, such as the State of Missouri Blind Pension Fund tax, can still rise too.
How Missouri's Freeze Sets Your Baseline Year
Your baseline year under Missouri's senior property tax freeze is the later of two years: The year your county authorized the credit or the year you first meet every requirement.
Those requirements are Missouri residency, an age of 62 or older, ownership of or an interest in the home, and liability for its property tax.
Boone County sets base years by application window, so check yours.
If a later year's tax comes in lower than your baseline, that lower year generally becomes your new baseline.
The exception is a drop that comes solely from a property tax levy reduction made under a separate state statute.
Counties Without the Freeze
If your county never adopted Missouri's senior property tax freeze, the state's Property Tax Credit is the separate program to check.
The Department of Revenue says that credit goes to certain senior citizens, based on the real estate taxes or rent they paid and their total household income.
The current maximum is $750 for renters and $1,100 for owners who owned and occupied their home.
You can check a qualification chart for the age and income details.
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FAQ
These answers cover Missouri's senior property tax freeze, not the state's separate Property Tax Credit.
Who qualifies for the Missouri senior property tax freeze?
You qualify if you're a Missouri resident who is 62 or older, you own or hold an interest in your primary residence, and you owe its property tax.
Your county also has to have adopted the freeze, and in the counties we checked, you have to apply in its window.
Is there an income limit for the Missouri senior property tax freeze?
State law's definition of an eligible taxpayer turns on age, residency, ownership and who owes the tax, not income.
Boone County's program page lists no income requirement.
Does the Missouri senior property tax freeze stop my taxes from rising?
No. The credit covers the increase above your baseline year, and Boone County lists reassessments, new construction and a state levy among the things that can still raise your bill.
Does the Missouri senior property tax freeze cover a rental property?
No. State law covers only the home you occupy as your primary residence, and Boone County says rental properties don't qualify.
Which Missouri counties offer the senior property tax freeze?
At least Boone, Johnson, St. Charles and St. Louis counties and the City of St. Louis have adopted it, and others have too.
Ask your county collector whether yours did.
Once you're approved in St. Charles County, you only need to contact the county if it asks for more information or if you sell or move.
Johnson County issues no refunds for prior tax years, so apply during the window.
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