Key Takeaways
The Homeownership Opportunity and Market Equalization (HOME) Act caps annual homestead assessment increases at the rate of inflation, starting in 2027.
Unlike the 2024 floating homestead exemption, local governments cannot opt out of the HOME Act's mandatory cap.
Counties can pass a 1% Local Homestead Option Sales Tax (LHOST) beginning in 2028 to fund additional homeowner relief.
The caps apply only to homestead properties; rental and investment properties are not protected.
Filing a property tax appeal can lower your baseline before the cap takes effect, compounding your savings over time.
Intro
Georgia homeowners have watched their tax bills climb year after year. Between 2018 and 2022, total assessment values across Georgia rose by 39%, driven by surging home values and rising assessment totals. That trajectory left many homeowners searching for relief.
On May 11, 2026, Governor Brian Kemp signed Senate Bill 33 into law, giving Georgia homeowners the strongest assessment protection the state has ever enacted. Here is what the new law changes, how it interacts with exemptions and appeals, and what you should do before the cap takes effect in 2027.
What Is the HOME Act?
The Homeownership Opportunity and Market Equalization Act, known as the HOME Act, is Georgia's most significant property tax reform since the 2024 floating homestead exemption. Signed into law as Senate Bill 33, the HOME Act does two things that directly affect your annual tax burden.
First, it makes the inflation-rate cap on homestead assessments mandatory for every taxing jurisdiction in Georgia. Counties, cities, and school districts can no longer opt out. Second, it creates a new funding mechanism, the Local Homestead Option Sales Tax (LHOST), that counties can use to provide additional property tax relief.
The law builds on the foundation of Amendment 1 and HB 581, which Georgia voters approved in 2024. That earlier measure gave local governments the option to cap homestead assessment increases at the rate of inflation. But the word "option" was the problem. Many jurisdictions — especially across metro Atlanta — chose not to participate.
SB 33 closes that loophole. The assessment cap is no longer optional.
The bill's legislative path was unusual. SB 33 was originally filed as a hemp regulation bill. On the final day of the 2026 session, legislators repurposed it to carry the property tax reform provisions. That procedural move drew scrutiny, but Governor Brian Kemp signed it into law regardless.
Your Neighbors Might Be Paying Less...
How the HOME Act Caps Your Property Tax Assessment
Starting in 2027, your homestead property assessment cannot increase by more than the rate of inflation per year. That is the core protection the HOME Act provides.
To understand what that means in dollars, you need to know how Georgia calculates your tax bill. In Georgia, your assessed value equals 40% of your property's appraised fair market value (FMV). The county multiplies that assessed value by the local millage rate to determine what you owe.
Under the HOME Act, the county can still appraise your home at its full market value. But the assessed value used to calculate your taxes is capped. It cannot jump more than inflation allows in any single year. Below is an example:
Say your home has a fair market value of $300,000. Your assessed value is $120,000 (40% of FMV). If inflation runs at 3%, the most your assessed value can increase is $3,600, bringing it to $123,600.
Without the cap, a 10% increase in your home's market value would push your assessed value to $132,000. That $8,400 assessed-value difference corresponds to a $21,000 difference in market value. At Georgia's median effective tax rate of 1.00%, calculated on market value, the cap saves you roughly $210 per year in that scenario.
The numbers are modest in a single year. But the cap compounds. Year after year, it prevents the kind of steep assessment spikes that have pushed Georgia's total assessment values up by nearly 39% between 2018 and 2022.
There are two important exceptions. The cap resets when a property changes ownership or when new construction is added. And local voters can approve a higher cap through a referendum if their community chooses to do so.
What Is LHOST and How Does It Work?
The HOME Act introduces a second tool for property tax relief: the Local Homestead Option Sales Tax, or LHOST.
Starting as early as November 2027, counties can put a 1% local sales tax on the ballot. If voters approve it, the revenue goes directly toward funding homestead property tax exemptions. In effect, LHOST shifts part of the tax burden from homeowners to consumption.
The Association County Commissioners of Georgia (ACCG) estimates that approximately 110 counties could reduce or eliminate homestead property taxes using LHOST revenue. That is a dramatic statement, and the real-world impact will depend on each county's tax base and spending.
LHOST is similar to Georgia's existing Freeport Loss of Revenue Sales Tax (FLOST) mechanism, but with one key difference: LHOST revenue is earmarked specifically for homestead relief. The Georgia Municipal Association's 2026 session review details how LHOST and FLOST eligibility differ for cities and counties.
There is an important limitation. LHOST-funded exemptions benefit only homestead properties. Commercial properties, rental units, and non-homestead residential properties do not receive LHOST relief. And even with LHOST reducing your rate, it does nothing to correct an over-assessed property. If your home is over-assessed, you're still overpaying, just at a lower rate.
The HOME Act introduces a second tool for property tax relief: the Local Homestead Option Sales Tax, or LHOST.
Starting in 2028, counties can put a 1% local sales tax on the ballot. If voters approve it, the revenue goes directly toward funding homestead property tax exemptions. In effect, LHOST shifts part of the tax burden from homeowners to consumption.
How Much Are You Over Paying?
Who Benefits and Who Doesn't
The HOME Act's protections are not universal. Understanding who qualifies and who does not is critical before you plan around the new law.
The assessment cap and LHOST-funded exemptions apply only to homestead properties. That means your primary, owner-occupied residence. If you live in the home and it is your legal domicile, you are covered.
Rental properties, second homes, vacation properties, and investment real estate are excluded entirely. Commercial properties receive no benefit from the HOME Act.
There is also a secondary effect worth watching. As local taxing authorities lose revenue from capped homestead assessments, they may adjust millage rates to compensate. Non-homestead properties could absorb a larger share of the overall tax burden as a result.
Renters may feel this indirectly. If landlords face higher property taxes on non-homestead rental units, those costs could be passed on to tenants as higher rent.
According to Ownwell's Georgia Homeowner Survey, 52% were surprised or shocked by their most recent property tax bill. That financial pressure is exactly what SB 33 aims to address for Georgia homeowners, but the relief is limited to those who own and occupy their homes.
For investors and commercial property owners who fall outside the HOME Act's protections, filing a property tax appeal remains the most direct path to lowering your tax burden.
Ownwell also offers commercial property tax appeals.
How the HOME Act Builds on Georgia's Recent Property Tax Reforms
The HOME Act did not arrive in a vacuum. It is the latest step in a series of property tax reforms that Georgia has enacted over the past two years.
In November 2024, Georgia voters approved Amendment 1 (HB 581), which created a floating homestead exemption. The exemption capped annual assessment increases at the rate of inflation, a concept the HOME Act carries forward.
But under HB 581, local governments could opt out by March 1, 2025. Many did, especially in high-growth metro Atlanta counties.
That same election included Referendum A, which raised the personal property exemption threshold from $7,500 to $20,000. A smaller change, but another signal of the state's direction on tax relief.
In 2026, the HOME Act closes the gap left open by HB 581. Here is how the two laws compare:
Feature | Amendment 1 (2024) | HOME Act / SB 33 (2026) |
|---|---|---|
Assessment cap | Inflation-rate cap | Inflation-rate cap (same) |
Local opt-out | Allowed (many opted out) | Not allowed, mandatory |
Effective date | 2025 | 2027 |
Sales tax option | FLOST | LHOST (earmarked for homestead) |
Voter override | N/A | Local voters can approve a higher cap |
Even with these legislative protections, the burden of action still falls on individual homeowners. Ownwell's Georgia Homeowner Survey found that over 8 in 10 Georgia homeowners have never appealed their property tax bill. Of those, 49% did not even know they had the right to do so.
Legislative reform caps future growth, but it does not fix an assessment that is already too high.
Why Filing a Property Tax Appeal Still Matters
The HOME Act caps how fast your assessment can grow. It does not correct an assessment that is already wrong. If your home is over-assessed today, the cap simply locks in that inflated number and lets it rise slowly from there.
That is why filing a property tax appeal before the cap takes effect in 2027 is so important. A successful appeal lowers your baseline assessed value. Under the new cap, that lower starting point then grows at no more than the inflation rate. The savings compound year after year.
Georgia also offers a powerful tool called the 299c three-year freeze. When you win an appeal, and your appraised value is lowered, your assessed value is locked for three consecutive tax years. Combine the 299c freeze with the HOME Act's inflation cap, and you could see three or more years of stable or declining taxes.
Here is how the math works. Say your home is currently assessed at $120,000. A successful appeal reduces that to $108,000. Under the 299c freeze, your assessed value stays at $108,000 for three years. Starting in year three, the HOME Act's inflation cap kicks in. At 3% inflation, your year-three assessed value would be $111,240.
Without the appeal, your assessed value under the cap would have risen from $120,000 to $123,600 after just one year. That is a $12,360 difference in assessed value by year three, saving you roughly $124 per year at a 1.00% effective tax rate.
Ownwell customers save an average of $774 per year on property taxes, with an 88% success rate on appeals. Lowering your baseline now, before the cap begins, maximizes the long-term value of both your appeal and the new law.
One important caution: Georgia is one of the few states where your assessed value can increase after a failed or poorly supported appeal. The evidence you submit matters.
Ownwell reviews relevant market data before filing any appeal in Georgia and may decline to file if the data suggests your assessed value could go up rather than down.
How Ownwell Can Help
Ownwell handles the entire Georgia property tax appeal process from start to finish. That includes gathering market evidence, filing your appeal, representing you at hearings, and negotiating with your county's Board of Equalization.
The results speak for themselves:
An 88% success rate
$774 in average annual savings for Georgia customers
Georgia pricing is straightforward. Ownwell charges a 35% contingency fee — you pay nothing upfront and only pay if your appeal delivers savings. If a 299c three-year freeze applies, an additional $20 filing fee applies.
Before filing, Ownwell reviews your property's market data to assess the risk of an upward reassessment. If the data suggests your assessed value could increase, Ownwell may decline to file. That due diligence protects you from the increased risk of assessment that makes Georgia appeals different from most other states.
Frequently Asked Questions
When does the HOME Act take effect?
The mandatory assessment cap takes effect in 2027. LHOST becomes available to counties starting in 2028.
Can my county opt out of the HOME Act's assessment cap?
No. Unlike the 2024 floating homestead exemption, local governments cannot opt out. However, local voters can approve a higher cap through a referendum if they choose.
Does the HOME Act apply to rental or investment properties?
The assessment cap and LHOST-funded exemptions apply only to homestead properties — your primary, owner-occupied residence. Rental, investment, and commercial properties are excluded.
Will the HOME Act lower my property tax bill?
It limits how quickly your assessed value can rise, thereby restraining future tax increases. But it does not reduce an assessment that is already too high. A property tax appeal is the most direct way to lower your current bill.
Is the HOME Act constitutional?
Some legislators have raised constitutional concerns about the bill's legislative path, arguing that revenue-related bills must originate in the House. Governor Kemp signed it into law, but legal challenges remain possible.
