By Donna Westfall – February 13, 2024 Did you know that if you live in your home you can get a slight tax break by filing for a Homeowner's Exemption. First call up the Assessor's Office: Phone (707) 464-7200 and ask them to check to see if you have the Homeowner's Exemption on your property. Or you can go in to their office located at 981 H Street, Suite 120 and ask them to check, which they will do right there. If your home is your principal residence as of January 1, then you may apply. It's a 1 page form and relatively easy to fill out. The Exemption is up to $7,000. Now the $7,000 reduction is off the taxable value on your primary residence. With an approximate 1% property tax rate, the exemption provides roughly a $70 annual saving off your property taxes. It's not a lot, but as my mother-in-law used to say, "It's better than a poke in the eye with a stick." Here's how that works. Fill out the form. The form # is BOE-266-R13-0520-08000112-1. You can download a form or get one emailed to you. Or walk in and request a form. If you haven't already filed for your Homeowner's Exemption, the deadline is February 15th, so don't hesitate. The last question is this: Is the Homeowner's Exemption and Homestead Exemption the same thing? The answer is NO. We'll go into the difference in another article.