About the data

Everything on this site comes from public property records and the U.S. Census.

Sources

• City of Decatur 2026 tax bills, which list each exemption as a line item (city tax search).
• DeKalb County Tax Commissioner exemption and ownership records (dekalbtaxga.gov) and DeKalb property appraisal records.
• City of Decatur and DeKalb County parcel maps (DeKalb GIS open data).
• U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020–2024 and the 2020 Census (data.census.gov).

Records were collected in September and October 2026 for about 7,700 residential parcels in the City of Decatur, using a slow, rate-limited process so the public sites weren't burdened.

How gaps are found

A gap is counted as proven only when one office's records already show the owner meets the requirement for an exemption the other office hasn't applied. For example, DeKalb has a homestead on file but the city bill has none. Ages are taken only from exemptions already on file and are never guessed about individuals.

City savings are each missing exemption multiplied by the 2026 city tax rates; this method matches the credits on 99.8% of 2026 city bills. County savings are modelled from what recent county filers receive and are about 7% high overall, so they're shown as a range.

Limits

• Public records don't show income or exact age, so exemptions with income tests can only be flagged as "worth checking".
• Some homes may not be the owner's main residence, which every homestead exemption requires.
• Records change. An application filed after September 2026 won't show here until the next update.

Privacy

• The address check shows only what is already public for that address, and never shows owner names.
• Addresses typed into the check aren't stored. To prevent misuse, the site keeps a scrambled, daily-changing code for each visitor for two days to limit how many lookups one person can make.
• The partner outreach list and map, which include names and mailing addresses from public records and show individual homes, are available only to approved organizations after signing in, and every view is logged. The public maps on this site show only ranges for areas of 10 or more homes.

Report a mistake

If the check shows something wrong for your home, the official record is what each office has on file: call the city at 404-370-4100 or DeKalb at 404-298-4000. To tell us about an error on this site, contact the project team through the person who shared it with you.