Senior Property Tax Freezes

Written by: Garrett Bohler, Wealth Manager

As we are now a few months into 2025 and the senior citizen property tax freezes in our area are coming up for renewal or some of you are applying for your first time, we wanted to share some important reminders. We have been receiving questions as to who is eligible and what exactly the program entails and wanted to provide the guidelines for St. Louis County, St. Charles County, and Jefferson County in Missouri, and a few details for our friends and families on the Illinois side as well.

As you are probably already aware, we believe that our families should take advantage of any tax savings that are available to them so that they can keep as much of their own money in their pockets, instead of in Uncle Sam’s pockets. This is why we believe if you live in any of these three counties and are eligible to apply, then you should consider doing so to keep your property taxes frozen from future rate hikes or evaluation. 

If you do not see your county listed below, you can reach out to your County Collector office to see if they are offering the property tax freeze and what their specific guidelines are for your county. 

St. Louis County Tax Freeze 

1. Deadline to apply/renew your tax freeze is June 30^th, 2025 
2. To be an eligible senior citizen you must be 62 years old as of January 1^st, 2025 
3. This freeze will freeze certain real property taxes for eligible seniors (this means you still may see some small increases on your property taxes year over year as the freeze does not apply to every tax that is charged on the property) 
4. There is not a refund or credit on the taxes that you will receive, but certain taxes will now be frozen at the base year that you qualify
5. This application can only be submitted online, if you would like assistance with the application, you can schedule a time with the county collector
6. To apply or to determine which documents are needed to apply please visit this link: https://stlouiscountymo.gov/st-louis-county-departments/revenue/senior-property-tax-freeze-application/ 

St. Charles County Tax Freeze 

1. Window to apply/renew your tax freeze is between March 1^st, 2025 – June 30^th, 2025 
2. To be an eligible senior citizen you must be 62 years old as of January 1^st, 2025 
3. This freeze will freeze all property taxes except for the portion of the property tax bill that goes to bonded indebtedness such as bonds for ambulance districts, fire districts, school districts and cities
4. This application can be submitted via mail, online, or in-person – you can schedule a time with the county collector’s office if you require assistance with the application
5. The paper application does require a notary to witness the signature, the county collector’s office will have notary services available for this as do most local banks (Wheelhouse also has notary services available to our clients, we simply ask that you call ahead if you’d like to utilize this service)
6. To apply or to determine which documents are needed to apply please visit this link: https://www.sccmo.org/2343/Seniors-Real-Estate-Property-Tax-Relief- 

Jefferson County Tax Freeze 

1. Window to apply/renew your tax freeze is between March 1^st, 2025 – June 30^th, 2025 
2. To be an eligible senior citizen you must be 62 years old as of January 1^st, 2025 
3. This freeze will freeze all property taxes except for the portion of the property taxes that are exempt from the credit by state law
4. To apply for the tax freeze, you can either print off the form or pick up a copy from the county collectors office
5. To print the form or to determine which documents are needed to apply please visit this link: https://www.jeffcomo.org/632/Real-Property-Tax-Credit-for-Seniors 

For those reading this who reside in Illinois, you may be wondering if something like this is available to you as well, the short answer is yes and it is more uniform across the board for the state of Illinois, whereas in Missouri each county has different rules or requirements. Please see the rules and requirements for the Illinois Senior Citizens Assessment Freeze below:

1. Completed application for Low Income Senior Freeze
2. Must currently have General Homestead Exemption
3. Must currently have or apply for the same year, Senior Homestead Exemption
4. Property is your principal residence
5. Property is a single-family residence
6. Are liable for property taxes on this property
7. Must be 65 years old or turn 65 years old in the year applying for
8. Name must be on the deed
9. Have a household (anyone living in the house) income below $65,000 per year
10. This must be applied for every year, prior to July 31^st

As always, should you have any questions about the information listed in this post please do not hesitate to contact us here at Wheelhouse, we are more than happy to help!