Senior homeowners in Atlanta struggling with property tax increases may be eligible for relief through a program launching citywide for the first time.
The Anti-Displacement Tax Relief Fund will pay for an increase in taxes above homeowners' base taxes for 20 years, as long as they continue to qualify. The 2025 application period begins May 1 and lasts through the end of the month.
The city and Invest Atlanta, its economic development authority, launched the program with $10 million in funding from the Centennial Yards Housing Trust Fund. CIM Group, the Los Angeles-based developer of the $5 billion Centennial Yards mixed-use megadevelopment in downtown Atlanta, is contributing to the affordable housing trust fund.
The pilot program started last year in part of the city, providing funds for 105 homeowners. The city and Invest Atlanta are rolling out the program across the entire city this year and hope to assist an additional 245 people, according to Anita Allgood, Invest Atlanta's vice president of single-family and homeownership services.
At the end of February, Atlanta's median single-family home price was $447,950, up 1% from the same month of 2024, according to Homes.com data.
As home values rise in Georgia, residents on fixed incomes often struggle to pay their property tax bills, Allgood noted in an interview.
"Our job is to grow the economy, but that good work has unintended consequences, like an increase in taxes," she said.
The Atlanta metropolitan area was the eighth-fastest-growing region in the country with more than 75,00 new residents from 2023 to 2024, according to U.S. Census figures released last month.
To be eligible for the tax relief program, applicants must be at least 60 years old and have owned a home in the city of Atlanta since at least 2015 and have an annual household income of 60% below the area median income. That means a one-person household could not earn more than $45,180, while the income for a two-person household tops out at $51,600. Income limits rise, depending on the number of people living in the home.
Applicants also must show proof of ownership, have no negative liens and be enrolled in qualifying homestead exemption programs.
The city hopes to open the program to more homeowners in future years, but that depends on additional fundraising, according to Allgood.
Invest Atlanta is holding a webinar on April 8 from 5 p.m. to 6 p.m. for previous participants who want to recertify for the program. New applicants can register at the Invest Atlanta website.