Federal Homestead Exemption

The homestead exemption is designed to protect the equity in your principal place of residence.  Keep in mind that you cannot use the homestead exemption on your investment or rental properties.  You can currently protect $25,150 of equity in your home under the federal exemptions.

Personal Property Exemptions

Personal property includes all property you have other than real estate. The following are some of the most important federal personal property exemptions:

  • $4,000 for your motor vehicle. (11 U.S.C. § 522(d)(2).)
  • $1,700 for jewelry. (§ 522(d)(4).)
  • $625 per individual item with a $13,400 aggregate value, on household goods, furnishings, appliances, clothes, books, animals, crops, musical instruments. (11 U.S.C. § 522(d)(3).)
  • $2,525 for tools of the trade including implements and books
  • health aids. (11 U.S.C. § 522(d)(6).)
  • $13,400 in loan value, accrued dividends, or interest in a life insurance policy. (11 U.S.C. § 522(d)(8).)

Exemptions Relating to Support or Benefits

  • Domestic maintenance such as alimony or child support reasonably necessary for your support.
  • Life insurance payments that you need for support under policy of someone you were a dependent of.
  • Social security, unemployment benefits and compensation, veteran’s benefits, public assistance, and disability or illness benefits.

Exemptions on Recovery Received Due to Injury

  • $25,150 for personal injury except for pain and suffering or pecuniary loss ($23,675 prior to April 1, 2019). (11 U.S.C. § 522(d)(11)(D).)
  • any award for the loss of future earnings you need for support
  • any recovery for the wrongful death of the person you relied on for support, and
  • all compensation received as a result of being a crime victim.

Wildcard Exemption

You can apply the federal wildcard exemption to any property you own.  Currently you are allowed $1,325 plus $12,575 of any unused portion of your homestead exemption to exempt any type of property.

Retirement Account Exemptions

Retirement accounts that are exempt from taxation, which usually include most genuine non-fraudulent retirement accounts, are fully exempt. However there is a cap of $1,362,800 on IRAs and Roth IRAs.