You closed. The keys are yours. Somewhere in the pile of paperwork is a tax line that says the school taxes on this house were a certain amount last year, and you budgeted around it. Then the first school tax bill arrives and the number is higher. Nothing went wrong. The seller had a STAR exemption, and it left with them.

This post explains what STAR is, why it does not transfer, what you get instead, exactly what to do after closing, and how escrow makes the whole thing look stranger than it is. It also covers the other exemptions that quietly disappear at a sale.

What is the STAR exemption, in plain terms?

STAR is New York's School Tax Relief program, and it lowers the school tax portion of your property tax bill on your primary residence. It does not touch county, town or village taxes. There are two levels: Basic STAR, for owner occupants whose household income falls under the state's limit, and Enhanced STAR, for owner occupants who meet the state's age and income requirements. The income thresholds change, so confirm the current figures with the New York State Department of Taxation and Finance rather than relying on what a neighbour remembers.

Here is the part that trips people up. There are two delivery methods with almost the same name.

• The STAR exemption is the older version. It appears as a line on the school tax bill that reduces what you owe. Only homeowners who already had it at that address and have kept it continuously still receive it this way.
• The STAR credit is the current version. You pay the full school tax bill, and the state sends you a check or a direct deposit separately. Eligibility rules are the same. The money arrives by a different route.

New York stopped issuing new exemptions to new homeowners several years ago. Anyone buying today is in the credit lane. That single fact explains most of the confusion around the star exemption in New York for a new owner.

Does the seller's exemption come with the house?

No. The exemption belongs to the person, not the parcel. It is tied to an owner occupying that property as a primary residence, so when ownership changes the assessor removes it. It does not pass at closing, it is not something your attorney can assign to you, and it is not part of the transfer documents.

What can happen is a timing lag. Assessment rolls are prepared months before the bills print. If the roll was finalised while the seller still owned the home, an exemption may still show on a bill that lands after you take title. Do not spend that difference. It is a snapshot of the old owner's status, and it will be gone next cycle.

What a new owner should do after closing

Register once. You do not reapply every year for Basic STAR as long as you stay in the home and your circumstances do not change.

• Register for the STAR credit with the New York State Department of Taxation and Finance. Online is fastest, and there is a phone line if you prefer to talk to a person.
• Have ready: the names and Social Security numbers of all owners and their spouses, the property address, the school district, the date you took title, and income information from the relevant tax year.
• Confirm the address on file with your town or village receiver of taxes, so bills come to you and not to the seller's forwarding address.
• If you meet the age and income requirements for Enhanced STAR, ask the state about the Income Verification Program, which lets the state check income each year so you do not have to refile.
• Tell your lender or servicer that your escrow may need a fresh look, for the reason below.

Why does my escrow payment jump in the first year?

Because the lender pays the full school tax bill, and your STAR money comes back to you separately. The seller's bill was net of an exemption. Yours is gross. Your servicer collects to cover the gross number, so the monthly escrow figure can rise even though nothing about the house changed.

Two practical consequences. First, budget on the full school tax amount, not the number printed on the listing sheet. Many MLS tax fields show taxes after the current owner's exemptions, and a listing sheet is not a bill. Ask for the actual tax bills during due diligence and read them line by line. Second, when the STAR credit arrives, it comes to you, not to the escrow account. It does not automatically reduce your payment. Treat it as a reimbursement.

The other exemptions that also vanish at a sale

STAR is the one buyers ask about, but it is not the only one attached to a person rather than a parcel. Veterans exemptions, senior citizen exemptions, exemptions related to disability, clergy exemptions and agricultural assessments all require the owner to apply and qualify. When the property sells, those come off unless the new owner separately qualifies and files.

This matters most on homes that have been owned a long time, which describes a lot of the housing stock in Henrietta, Rush, Mendon and Honeoye Falls. A tax figure that looked modest may reflect years of stacked exemptions. Run the numbers on the gross tax before you write the offer.

What about the assessment itself?

Separate issue, worth knowing. Your purchase is recorded and sale data is public, and assessors review recent sales when they prepare the next roll. A new assessment does not automatically follow a sale, and it is not a penalty, but it is reasonable to expect your assessment to be looked at. Each town publishes a tentative roll and holds a grievance period shortly after. Call your town assessor's office and ask for this year's dates so you are not finding out after the deadline.

Brighton, Pittsford, Henrietta and Perinton each run their own assessment office. The process is similar across Monroe County, the calendar details are not always identical, and the assessor is usually happy to explain the timeline if you call before the busy season.

Common questions

How long does it take to get the STAR credit after I register?

The state aims to issue credits around the time school tax bills come due, and registrations made close to that window may be processed for the following cycle instead. Register as soon as you close rather than waiting for a bill to arrive. If a cycle passes, contact the Department of Taxation and Finance directly, because late registrations can sometimes still be honoured.

I bought from someone who had Enhanced STAR. Can I keep it?

No. Enhanced STAR is granted to a specific owner who meets the state's age and income requirements, and it is removed when the property changes hands. If you meet those requirements yourself, you apply in your own name. If you do not, you may still qualify for Basic STAR.

Do I have to register again every year?

For the Basic STAR credit, no. You register once and the state carries it forward while you own and occupy the home as your primary residence. You do need to tell the state if you move, change ownership on the deed, or your eligibility changes. Enhanced STAR requires annual income verification, which the Income Verification Program can handle for you.

Can I still get the STAR exemption rather than the credit?

Not as a new owner. The exemption is closed to new applicants, so buyers today receive the credit. The dollar benefit is designed to be comparable, but it arrives as a payment to you instead of a discount on the bill, which is why your first year of escrow needs a second look.

What if the closing statement prorated taxes using the seller's exemption?

That is common and it is not an error, because proration is based on the bill that existed at the time. It also means the split does not reflect what you will pay going forward. Review the proration with your attorney, then budget from the gross school tax figure for your first full year.

If you are buying in Henrietta, Pittsford, Brighton, Rush, Mendon or Honeoye Falls and you want the real tax picture before you write an offer, not the listing sheet version, I will pull the bills and walk through them with you. Book a time with me here and bring your questions.

Khem Kadariya

About this data

The figures in this post were compiled from publicly available sources including Zillow, Houzeo, Movoto, RochesterFirst and FRED (Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis), along with other public market data. Real estate numbers change quickly, and these were accurate as of September 2026. For current figures on a specific home, street, or town, ask me directly rather than relying on a published average.