Determine your home's current market value. It is a local option to establish two separate property tax rates: a lower tax rate for residential property owners.Exemption applications must be filed with your local assessor's office. See our Municipal Profiles for your local assessor's mailing address. You can get information about your property tax benefits, including: Application status, Current benefit amounts, Proposed benefit for the upcoming tax year. Homestead exemptions protect homeowners in financial distress from losing their entire property holdings to their creditors. Senior Citizen Homeowners' Exemption (SCHE). Eligibility. This guide breaks down everything you need to know, from who qualifies to how it can shield your home from certain debts and lower your property taxes. Mortgages and certain liens won't be included in the exemption. In New York, the homestead exemption allows homeowners to safeguard a certain amount of equity in their primary residence from creditors.