Could grandparents and a grandson claim Louisiana's homestead exemption on jointly owned land?

Plain-English summary

Lincoln Parish's assessor asked about land jointly owned by grandparents and a grandson. The Attorney General said the homestead exemption appeared unavailable to those owners because the property was held in indivision. He relied on prior AG opinions and a federal appellate decision describing Louisiana case law on co-ownership with people outside a spouse-and-children community regime.

The AG did not make the final factual assessment. He said the assessor had responsibility for deciding exemption eligibility, subject to review by the Louisiana Tax Commission and the courts.

Currency note

This opinion was issued in 2001. Subsequent statutory amendments, court decisions, or later AG opinions may have changed the analysis. Treat this page as historical context, not current legal advice. Verify current law before relying on any specific rule, deadline, or remedy mentioned here.

Common questions

Did the AG find the grandparents-and-grandson property exempt?
No. He said the homestead exemption appeared unavailable for the property owned in indivision as described.

Did the AG decide the property's facts himself?
No. The opinion assigned the factual eligibility determination to the parish assessor, with review by the Tax Commission and ultimately the courts.

What kind of co-ownership did the cited case discuss?
The opinion quoted Brocato v. Traina on property held in indivision with people other than a spouse and that spouse's children in a community regime.

Background and statutory framework

The opinion quoted Article VII, Section 20 of the Louisiana Constitution on the homestead exemption and cited Article VII, Section 8 and R.S. 47:1952 for the assessor's role. It applied the co-ownership analysis quoted from Brocato to the family ownership arrangement presented in the request.

Citations and references

• Article VII, Sections 8 and 20 of the Louisiana Constitution
• R.S. 47:1952
• Brocato v. Traina, 30 F.3d 641 (5th Cir. 1994)

Source

• Landing page: https://www.ag.state.la.us/Opinions
• Original PDF: https://www.ag.state.la.us/Opinion/Download/01-0031

Original opinion text

March 14, 2001
OPINION NO. 01- 31

125 – TAXATION – Homestead exemption
Ms. Pam C. Jones, CLA
Assessor, Lincoln Parish
Article VII, §§ 18 and 20
P.O. Box 1218
Immovable property owned in indivision by grandparents and
Ruston, LA 71273-1218
grandchild does not enjoy the homestead exemption.

Dear Ms. Jones:

You have requested an opinion of the Attorney General regarding the eligibility for homestead exemption of immovable property which is owned in indivision by the grandparents and a grandson.

Initially, it should be noted that the determination of whether property is subject to homestead exemption is a factual determination which is the responsibility of the tax assessor, subject to review by the Louisiana Tax Commission and, ultimately, the courts. Article VII, § 8 of the 1974 Louisiana Constitution and R.S. 47:1952. We offer the following discussion to assist you in making this determination.

Article VII, § 20 of the Louisiana Constitution of 1974 provides, in pertinent part, with respect to the homestead exemption as follows:

Section 20. (A) Homeowners.

(1) The bona fide homestead, consisting of a tract of land or two or more tracts of land with a residence on one tract and a field, pasture, or garden on the other tract or tracts, not exceeding one hundred sixty acres, buildings and appurtenances, whether rural or urban, owned and occupied by any person, shall be exempt from state, parish, and special ad valorem taxes to the extent of seven thousand five hundred dollars of the assessed valuation . . . .

(2) The homestead exemption shall extend to the surviving spouse or minor children of a deceased owner and shall apply when the homestead is occupied as such and title to it is in either husband or wife but not to more than one homestead owned by the husband or wife.

Page 2

OPINION NO. 01-31
Ms. Pam C. Jones, CLA
Assessor Lincoln Parish
Page No. 2

As noted above, the property in question is owned in indivision. This office has consistently opined, in accordance with the jurisprudence of this State, that immovable property held in indivision is not entitled to the homestead exemption afforded by Article VII, § 20.

In the case of Brocato v. Traina, 30 F.3d 641 (5th Cir. 1994), the court held:

We find an unbroken line of Louisiana appellate court decisions beginning with Henderson v. Hoy, 26 La. Ann. 156 (1874), and ending with Gulfco Finance Co. v. Browder, 482 So.2d 1019 (La.
App. 3rd Cir. 1986), squarely holding that property owned in indivision with other than a spouse and children of that spouse in a community regime, cannot qualify for the homestead.

In accord are Attorney General Opinion Nos. 99-155, 98-236, 96-3 and 95-131.

Accordingly, it is the opinion of this office that the homestead exemption would appear to be unavailable to the owners in indivision presented in your request.

Trusting this adequately responds to your inquiry, I am

Very truly yours,

RICHARD P. IEYOUB
ATTORNEY GENERAL

By:
ROBERT E. HARROUN, III
Assistant Attorney General

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Page 3

OPINION NO. 01-31

125 – TAXATION – Homestead exemption

Article VII, §§ 18 and 20

Immovable property owned in indivision by grandparents and grandchild does not enjoy the homestead exemption.

DATE REQUESTED: January 17, 2001

DATE RELEASED: March 14, 2001

REQUESTED BY: Pam Jones, CLA
Assessor, Lincoln Parish
P.O. Box 1218
Ruston, LA 71273-1218

AUTHOR: ROBERT E. HARROUN, III
Assistant Attorney General
Public Finance and Contracts Section