Updated September 4, 2026. Quick answer: Georgia protects up to $21,500 of a debtor’s interest in real or personal property used as a residence. If title to the residence is held by one of two spouses who are both debtors, the protected amount doubles to $43,000.
This just changed a lot. Georgia’s exemption jumped from the old $10,000/$20,000 figures to today’s $21,500/$43,000, a large enough change that older articles elsewhere online likely still show the smaller numbers.
This is protection against an ordinary money judgment creditor under O.C.G.A. §§ 44-13-1, 44-13-100(a)(1), a different question from a property tax bill or exemption, which this page does not cover.
How it works in Georgia
- Filing rule not addressed in the cited source. Confirm with a local attorney or your county recorder before relying on this being automatic.
- Married couples and joint owners: If title to the residence is held by one of two spouses who are both debtors, the exemption amount doubles to $43,000.
What it does not protect against
Taxes, purchase-money debt on the property, labor performed on the property, materials furnished for it, and removing an encumbrance from the property.
Read it yourself
Verbatim from O.C.G.A. §§ 44-13-1, 44-13-100(a)(1): “the debtor’s aggregate interest, not to exceed $21,500.00 in value, in real property or personal property that the debtor or a dependent of the debtor uses as a residence” Read the full official text before relying on any figure here. Exemption law is fact-specific, and this is a source-backed planning guide, not individualized legal advice.