Chesapeake Disabled Veteran Real Estate Tax Exemption

This is how the City of Chesapeake applies the statewide disabled-veteran real estate exemption, under section 30-104.3 of the City Code. The Commissioner of the Revenue takes the application with a notarized statement and the current VA Summary of Benefits letter. There is no income test and no net-worth test. The city exempts the dwelling, accessory structures, and up to three acres, matching the three acres of its relief program for older and disabled owners. A garage or shed on those three acres used for vehicles or household goods, and not for a business, is exempt too. A manufactured home qualifies even on land the veteran does not own; the land is then taxable. A home jointly owned with someone who does not qualify is exempted in proportion. The Commissioner's page states the test as VA certification of a permanent and total service-connected disability with an overall rating of 100% or a compensation rating of 100% for individual unemployability. That names the unemployability route in so many words, which many localities' pages do not. A buyer can file a preliminary application with the purchase agreement. The city answers within 20 business days with the exemption amount, which takes effect once the veteran owns and occupies the home. A surviving spouse qualifies when the veteran died on or after January 1, 2011 and the spouse has not remarried; the city code says the exemption follows the spouse to a new home for tax years from 2019. The Commissioner's page reported in September 2026 that refunds for exemptions approved through July 30, 2026 had been mailed.