North Dakota Property Tax Exemptions: Homestead, Senior and Veteran Relief

North Dakota's main owner-occupied relief is the Primary Residence Credit: up to $1,600, which cannot exceed the property tax due. It is open to anyone who owns a North Dakota home (house, mobile home, town home, duplex or condo) and lives in it as a primary residence, including homes held in trusts. There are no age or income limits; only one credit is allowed per household, and a person may not have more than one primary residence. For real property the approved credit appears on the 2026 property tax statement. A separate, income-based Homestead Property Tax Credit is available to homeowners 65 or older or permanently and totally disabled.

The Primary Residence Credit is applied for online only at tax.nd.gov/prc (there is no paper application; people without internet access can call 701-328-7988 or 877-649-0112 for help), and it has an annual application window, so homeowners apply each year. The Homestead Property Tax Credit and the Disabled Veteran's Property Tax Credit are filed with the local assessor or county director of tax equalization; the homestead credit application for a permanently and totally disabled person must include a physician's certificate.

Primary Residence Credit: January 1 to April 1 (2026 for real property; the mobile home application window covers 2027). The Tax Commissioner's 2026 property tax deadline calendar lists April 1 as the last day to file the Primary Residence Credit and as the due date for Homestead Property Tax Credit and Disabled Veteran's Property Tax Credit applications to the local assessor. Renter's Refund applications are due (postmarked) by May 31. Dates falling on a weekend or state holiday move to the next business day.

Homestead Property Tax Credit for homeowners 65 or older (or permanently and totally disabled) whose household income, including spouse and dependents, does not exceed $70,000 for the calendar year before the assessment date. It reduces taxable value: income of $0 to $40,000 gets a 100% reduction capped at $9,000 of taxable value (maximum $200,000 true and full value); income of $40,001 to $70,000 gets a 50% reduction capped at $4,500 of taxable value (maximum $100,000 true and full value). Apply to the local assessor or county director of tax equalization.

Disabled Veteran's Property Tax Credit: for an honorably discharged or retired veteran with a service-connected disability of 50% or greater (or an extra-schedular rating, including individual unemployability, paid at the 100% rate) who lives on and has an ownership interest in the property. It reduces the homestead's taxable value by up to $4,500 at 50%, $5,400 at 60%, $6,300 at 70%, $7,200 at 80%, $8,100 at 90% and $9,000 at 100%. After the veteran's death the spouse is eligible; a spouse receiving VA dependency and indemnity compensation gets 100% of the credit. Two disabled veterans married and living together cannot exceed 100% or $9,000 combined. The credit can move with the veteran to a new homestead, and it is applied automatically for those who qualify. Separate exemptions exist for paraplegic disabled veterans (including an unremarried surviving spouse).

A homeowner with a permanent and total disability (shown by a physician's certificate or a written disability determination from the Social Security Administration or another authorized agency) can claim the income-based Homestead Property Tax Credit on the same terms as seniors, apart from age. The Tax Commissioner also lists application-based exemptions for a paraplegic disabled person (including an unremarried surviving spouse; income restrictions apply), a permanently and totally disabled person confined to a wheelchair, and a legally blind person (an exemption cap on taxable valuation applies under N.D.C.C. § 57-02-08).

Renter's Refund: renters with household income of $70,000 or less can get up to $600 back when 20% of annual rent exceeds 4% of annual income (the difference is the refund). Heat, water, electricity, telephone and furniture costs are not rent, and rent for tax-exempt property such as nursing homes does not qualify. Apply to the Office of State Tax Commissioner by May 31. Homeowners who have the Homestead or Disabled Veteran's credit and still owe tax can also get the Primary Residence Credit.

Property is assessed at its value on February 1 each year, and a written notice shows the current and previous year's true and full value. An owner may appeal the local assessor's valuation to the township or city board of equalization, which meets within the first 15 days of April, then to the county board of equalization, which meets during the first 10 days of June. The final step is the State Board of Equalization, which meets the second Tuesday in August and may reduce an assessment only if the owner appealed to both the local and county boards; its decision is final. After that, an owner who disagrees may file an application for abatement, due by November 1 of the year following the year in which the tax becomes payable.

Tax statements must be postmarked by December 26, and payment is due January 1 of the year after the taxes were levied. A 5% discount applies if the tax is paid in full by February 15. Otherwise the first installment of real estate tax (and all special assessments) can be paid without penalty through March 1 and the second installment through October 15.