89% Vote Yes on Woodstock Senior Tax Exemption Change

Woodstock voters have approved a five-year residency requirement for the city’s senior property tax exemption, according to unofficial election results.

As of 10:16 p.m. May 21, 89.28% of voters in the city who cast a ballot, 2,665, had voted “yes” for the residency requirement, per numbers from the Georgia Secretary of State’s website.

The change will go into effect Jan. 1, 2025. Qualifying seniors who receive Woodstock’s senior homestead exemption in 2024 will be grandfathered in.

In Woodstock, seniors 62 and older can qualify for the city’s senior homestead exemption. There is no limit on income or home value.

The residency requirement matches that of the Cherokee County School District , which was part of the countywide referendum eliminating a cap on senior school homestead exemptions, that voters passed May 21 and will also go into effect in 2025.

“With an 89% majority, Woodstock’s voters chose to add a 5-year homestead minimum to our senior tax exemption which ensures the city’s ability to preserve our 100% senior tax exemption into the future,” Mayor Michael Caldwell said. “Our Council believes that our seniors have paid their fair share in property taxes and nearly 9 in 10 of Woodstock’s voters showed their support for that policy.”

Election results are not official until they are certified by the Cherokee County elections board. The elections board is scheduled to certify results at 2 p.m. May 28 at the Cherokee County Conference Center, 1130 Bluffs Parkway in Canton.