Head of family (also referred to as head of household or householder) is the person who provides for a family. The head of family provides practical support and maintenance to persons within their household, and such obligation is based on moral or legal responsibility.
The phrase head of family appears most often in homestead law. Most jurisdictions have adopted homestead exemption statutes that allow heads of household to designate their homes and land as homesteads, exempting them from general debt enforcement in bankruptcy. In addition, some states provide property tax exemptions for homestead property.
[Last updated in April of 2022 by the Wex Definitions Team]