Property Tax Stabilization for Senior Citizens, also known as the Property Tax Stabilization Program (the “Program”), is a State program that allows certain senior-citizen residents to stabilize, or freeze, the property taxes on their homestead. As long as you qualify and file a timely application each year, the tax billed to you for your homestead will be frozen at the amount you were billed in the prior tax year. Eligible residents who move may transfer the fixed tax amount to a new homestead, even if that new homestead is in a different Maine municipality.
Stabilization Guidance for Applicants
Once you have applied and are approved to participate in the Program, the property tax billed to you for the next tax year will be frozen at the amount you were billed in the previous tax year. You must file a new application each year by December 1 in order to maintain that stabilized tax amount.
Stabilization Guidance for Municipalities
The law goes into effect on August 8, 2022, and applies to property tax years beginning April 1, 2023. Interested taxpayers will need to first apply with the municipality where their homestead is located on or before December 1, and then reapply each year by December 1.