A homestead or homestead estate generally includes a house, outbuildings, and the adjoining land owned and occupied by a person or family as a primary residence.

Many states—but not all—have laws that protect a person’s homestead from forced sale for the satisfaction (payment) of debts—at least up to a certain amount of the homestead’s value. These laws may be referred to as homestead exemptions or homestead laws and may be located in a state’s constitution or in its statutes.

The homestead exemption exists to provide a secure home for the family against creditors. The exemption is liberally construed to further its purposes. No specific writing is needed to claim a homestead exemption, but instead merely proof of concurrent usage and intent on the part of the owner to claim the land as a homestead.

In some states the constitutional family homestead exemption applies to the entire family, and not to either spouse individually. Therefore, so long as real property is a family homestead due to one spouse's intention and use, that property is protected by the homestead exemption, unless full abandonment has been pleaded and proved. Once a property has been established as a homestead, the property remains exempt unless it ceases to be a homestead due to abandonment, alienation, or death.

Abandonment of a homestead occurs when the homestead claimant ceases to use the property and intends not to use it as a home again. Anyone asserting abandonment of a homestead has the burden of proving it by competent evidence.

In Ohio, the homestead exemption is a legal provision designed to protect a portion of a person's home equity from creditors in the event of bankruptcy or other financial distress. As of the knowledge cutoff in 2023, Ohio's homestead exemption allows homeowners to exempt up to $145,425 of their home's value (this amount is subject to periodic adjustments for inflation). This means that this amount of equity in the primary residence cannot be forced into sale by creditors to satisfy debts. The exemption applies to a house, outbuildings, and the adjoining land that is owned and occupied as the primary residence. The homestead exemption in Ohio is automatic and does not require specific writing to claim; proof of occupancy and the intent to use the property as a primary residence are sufficient. The exemption is intended to provide a secure home for the family and is liberally construed to further its purposes. In Ohio, the exemption applies to individuals and does not require that the property be owned by a family. If a homestead is abandoned, which means the owner ceases to use the property as a home with the intent not to return, the exemption can be lost. The burden of proving abandonment lies with the party asserting it.