As with the senior citizen program, the state pays the taxes to the county, maintains the account, and charges 6 percent simple interest, which is also deferred. Taxes and interest must be repaid when the taxpayer dies, sells the property, ceases to live permanently on the property, or the property changes ownership. To qualify, the disabled person must live on the property that is the taxpayer's principle residence and must have a deed or recorded sales contract.
Participants can come in and out of the program if their income goes up or down.
A surviving spouse who also is disabled and receives federal Social Security Disability may continue to defer past and future taxes. He or she must file a new application. A surviving spouse who is not disabled and is under the age of 62 may file an application to continue to defer past taxes. Upon reaching age 62, he or she can defer future taxes by filing a new application under the Senior Citizen Property Tax Deferral program. Interested parties can get applications and information about the deferral program by contacting their local county assessor's office.