You will need to file the Declaration with the Clerk and Recorder's Office in the county where the homestead is located. Need More Information?To the professionals at my local Clerk and Recorder's Office,. A general residential homestead exemption is available to taxpayers who own and reside at a property as of January 1 st of the year. The Free Homestead Act of 1862 entitled anyone who filed to a quarter-section of land (160 acres) provided that person "proved up" the land. The homestead can't exceed one acre in a city or 160 acres in a rural area. Property owners who are 65 or older may be eligible to receive the Homestead Exemption.