Homestead application found?

Question

I was cleaning around my house, and I found a homestead application from 1915. What was a homestead application, and how can I find out more information about it

Answer 1

I could explain it my way but here's a link that explains it best.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Homestead_e...

Answer 2

In the mass migration west in the 19th century, people would stake a claim on x-number of acres that they wanted to build a house on and raise their families. This was known as a "homestead."  As time went on, the government decided to tax this property, so people had to file applications stating "this is my primary home, and has been for x-number of years, and I feel I'm eligible to be exempt from so many taxes."  The home would be appraised, and that value would become exempt from property  taxes for so many years--the amount becoming less and less each year.

Wikipedia says: "Homestead exemption is a legal regime designed to protect the value of the homes of residents from property taxes, creditors, and circumstances arising from the death of the homeowner's  spouse. Homestead exemption laws typically have three primary features:

1.They prevent the forced sale of a home to meet the demands of creditors;

2.They provide the surviving spouse with shelter;

3. They provide an exemption from property taxes which can be applied to a home.

A homestead is the one PRIMARY residence of a person, and no other exemption can be claimed on any other property anywhere, even outside the boundaries of the jurisdiction where the exemption is claimed.

    In some states, homestead protection is automatic. In many states, however, the homeowner must file a claim for homestead exemption with the state, and will not receive the protections of the law until this has been done. Furthermore, the protection can be lost if the homeowner abandons the protected property by taking up primary residence elsewhere.

Each state has its own laws governing homestead exemptions, and what you have is an application for this exemption. A real estate lawyer should be able to tell you more about it, what property it was for, etc.