Montana's homestead rate leaves second homes and entity-owned units at 1.9 percent
Montana's homestead rate leaves second homes and entity-owned units at 1.9 percent
2026-09-15 · Montana · Compliance
What happened. Montana's 2025 property tax overhaul split a single association's membership into two very different tax positions — and the dividing line is whether the owner filed an application.
The rates for 2026
House Bill 231 (Chapter 674) and Senate Bill 542 (Chapter 767), both signed May 13, 2025 with sections effective January 1, 2026, created the tiered structure now codified at Mont. Code Ann. § 15-6-134(3).1 For tax year 2026, per the Department of Revenue:2
- 0.76% on the first $378,000 of market value of an enrolled primary residence
- 0.90% from $378,001 to $756,000
- 1.10% from $756,001 to $1,511,999
- 1.90% above $1,512,000
- 1.90% flat for non-homestead residential — second homes and short-term rentals
A qualifying rental multifamily dwelling unit is taxed at 1.1% under § 15-6-134(3)(b)(ii). Condominiums are an eligible property type for the reduced homestead rate.
The application, which is not automatic for everyone
Under § 15-6-405, beginning in tax year 2026 owners who received the 2024 rebate automatically qualify; everyone else must apply. The window is December 1 of the preceding year through March 1, electronically at homestead.mt.gov or by mail postmarked by March 1. Late applications apply to the following tax year.
For 2026 the Department extended the deadline to March 20, 2026 because of “intermittent technical issues with the department's online application portal caused by a high volume of last-minute filings.”3
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Related Montana HOA Topics
- Mont. Code Ann. § 15-6-405 — homestead reduced tax rate, application window and the entity-ownership exclusion (official) ↩
- 2026 Tax Information for Montana Property Owners — homestead tiers and the flat non-homestead rate (Montana Department of Revenue) ↩
- Montana Department of Revenue news release, Feb. 26, 2026 — homestead and long-term rental application deadline extended to March 20, 2026 ↩
- MAR Notice No. 2025-430.2, Register Issue No. 1, Jan. 9, 2026 — adoption of ARM 42.19.203 through 42.19.206 (Montana Department of Revenue) ↩
- Proposed 2026 ballot issues, including CI-129, CI-130 and CI-134 property tax caps and the measures that qualified (Montana Secretary of State) ↩
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