Updated September 5, 2026. Quick answer: Kentucky protects only $5,000 of equity in a home used as a permanent residence, and that same $5,000 figure also covers an alternative burial-plot exemption. The amount has not changed since 1980, so it is now far lower than the exemption in most other states.
This is protection against an ordinary money judgment creditor under KRS 427.060, with related KRS 427.070, 427.080, 427.090, 427.100, a different question from a property tax bill or exemption, which this page does not cover.
Kentucky homestead exemption at a glance
| Protected amount | Kentucky protects only $5,000 of equity in a home used as a permanent residence, and that same $5,000 figure also covers an alternative burial-plot exemption. The amount has not changed since 1980, so it is now far lower than the exemption in most other states. |
|---|---|
| Filing/declaration | Not required: No advance declaration is filed; at the time of a levy, the officer executing the writ has the homestead portion selected and valued under oath by two disinterested county housekeepers before it is set apart to the debtor. |
| Married couples / joint owners | A surviving spouse (and minor children) may continue occupying the homestead after the debtor’s death, and any mortgage, release, or waiver of the exemption is invalid unless it is in writing, signed by both the debtor and the debtor’s spouse, and recorded like a deed. |
| If you sell the home | If the homestead property cannot be divided without a big loss in value, the whole property is sold, and $5,000 of the sale proceeds is paid to the debtor to buy another home; the property cannot be sold for less than $5,000. |
How it works in Kentucky
- No filing required. No advance declaration is filed; at the time of a levy, the officer executing the writ has the homestead portion selected and valued under oath by two disinterested county housekeepers before it is set apart to the debtor.
- Married couples and joint owners: A surviving spouse (and minor children) may continue occupying the homestead after the debtor’s death, and any mortgage, release, or waiver of the exemption is invalid unless it is in writing, signed by both the debtor and the debtor’s spouse, and recorded like a deed.
If you sell the home
If the homestead property cannot be divided without a big loss in value, the whole property is sold, and $5,000 of the sale proceeds is paid to the debtor to buy another home; the property cannot be sold for less than $5,000.
What it does not protect against
The exemption does not apply to a mortgage given by the homeowner, debt for purchase money on the property, or any debt or liability that existed before the property was purchased or improved.
Read it yourself
Verbatim from KRS 427.060, with related KRS 427.070, 427.080, 427.090, 427.100: “In addition to any exemption of personal property, an individual debtor’s aggregate interest, not to exceed five thousand dollars ($5,000) in value, in real or personal property that such debtor or a dependent of such debtor uses as a permanent residence in this state, or in a burial plot for such debtor or a dependent of such debtor is exempt from sale under execution, attachment or judgment, except to foreclose a mortgage given by the owner of a homestead or for purchase money due thereon.” Read the full official text before relying on any figure here. A second citation, the full KRS Chapter 427 index, same domain, is available here. Exemption law is fact-specific, and this is a source-backed planning guide, not individualized legal advice.