St. Louis County Mails Homestead Affidavit Cards To Residents, Complete + Return For Application

The St. Louis County Assessor's Department recently completed the mailing of the 2023 Homestead Affidavit Cards to approximately 12,000 property owners over the last week. And now that the cards are in the mail, they have two important messages for recipients: First, they're not a scam - the mailing is legitimate,  and two - make sure you complete and return them by the due date deadline.

If you received one of the cards, filling it out and returning it on time can have great benefits to the property owner.

Minnesota State Law allows for a reduction in the general property tax rate for certain properties that are listed as the primary residence for that individual.To qualify for the This Homestead reduction is available to properties in the state that meet the following three qualifications for applicants:

• Have an ownership interest in the property or be qualifying relatives of at least one owner
• Occupy the property as their primary place of residence, and -
• Be Minnesota residents

At the same time that the county can provide the Homestead Credit to qualified individuals via state law, they are also legally bound to have verification on file for each person receiving the credit. That verification comes either in the form of the affidavit card (the one that's being mailed to property owners) or an application in the Assessors Office. In order to comply, the Assessors Office has started the Department of Revenue-mandated project with the mailing.

Failing to return a mailed card "could result in a loss of homestead status" for the property owner.

The St. Louis County Assessors Office is trying to get the word out about this mailing - and that it's legitimate - due to the number of scams being perpetuated right now.  These Homestead Affidavit cards are legitimate.  Mary Garness, the Director of Public Records and Property Valuation explains:

"We have been receiving a lot of phone calls from people wondering if these cards are for real...and we appreciate that people are being cautious because these cards do include identifying information such as Social Security Number. So we want to reassure people that yes, these are legitimate; and also urge people to fill them out and return them to ensure they don't lose their homestead status."

St. Louis County officials are passing along some "key things to know" about the cards; it appears that the card you receive in the mail may be either light red or light blue in color, depending which particular one you've been sent. The red versions are part of the Department of Revenue project.  Blue versions are part of the regular renewal process.

No matter which card you receive, the county instructs you to review the information, make any corrections needed, and send them back in.