The Homestead/Farmstead application is a requirement of the Taxpayer Relief Act (Act 1) of 2006. This Act allows residents to decide whether they will shift the District’s revenue stream from real estate taxes to an additional income tax with additional future supplements from gambling revenues. Each dollar received from the tax shift must be used for tax relief to all approved homestead/farmstead owners through a reduction in their real estate taxes.
The application is processed and approved by the County Homestead Office. Once an application is approved as a homestead/farmstead, the owner is eligible for the tax relief and will not have to file again unless circumstances change regarding the property. Each year, prior to December 31st, individuals who do not have an approved application on file as well as individuals who acquired property within the school district during the year will be sent an application for completion. The filing deadline with the Assessment Office is March 1 of each year.
It is very important that each and every residential and farm property owner complete and file the application by the March 1, 2008 due date. If the filing deadline is missed, the taxpayer will not have another opportunity to file until next March and will not be eligible for any tax relief which may occur on the July 1, 2008 real estate tax bill.
In December 2007 applications were mailed to those taxpayers who did not have an approved application on file according to the Berks County Homestead Office’s database as of November 1, 2007. If your property has already been approved, no further action is required. However, if you did not receive an application by mail and your property has not been approved, you can stop in at the Tulpehocken Area School District office, 428 New Schaefferstown Rd, Bernville, PA, 19506 to get a form or call the Business Office at (610) 488-9955 and request an application be mailed. Any questions regarding whether your property has been approved can be addressed by the Berks County Homestead Office at (610) 478-6263.
Newly constructed homes (settlements during August 2007 or later) that have not yet received an interim real estate tax bill were not in the Homestead Office’s database and will need to fill out an application for submission. Also, any property settlements that occur between September 2007 and February 2008 will not receive an application and will be responsible for obtaining their own application for submission to be eligible for tax relief.