Bills › 91st General Assembly
Establishing a partial exemption on property taxes for certain residential properties sold in disaster areas
Sponsored by the House Ways and Means Committee, Rep. Sean Bagniewski (D), Rep. Taylor R. Collins (R), Rep. Tom Determann (R), Rep. Daniel Gosa (D), Rep. Thomas M. Jeneary (R), Rep. Craig P. Johnson (R), Rep. Megan Jones (R), Rep. Elinor A. Levin (D), Rep. Norlin G. Mommsen (R), Rep. Thomas Jay Moore (R), Rep. Jeff Shipley (R), Rep. David Sieck (R), Rep. Brent Siegrist (R), Rep. Mark I. Thompson (R), Rep. Mike Vondran (R), Rep. Sam Wengryn (R)
Topics:Housing & propertyTaxesProperty taxes
Same legislation: HF 565
Where it is now
- Done: IntroducedFebruary 24, 2025
- Done: SubcommitteeMarch 18, 2025
- Done: House committeeApril 9, 2025
- Done: Passes the HouseMay 8, 202579–5
- Stopped: Senate committeeDied when the General Assembly ended
- Next: Passes the Senate
- Next: To the Governor
- Next: Signed into law
Died when the session ended The 2026 session adjourned on May 3, 2026, the General Assembly’s last regular session. Bills that didn’t pass both chambers died. What’s a funnel?
What’s in it
AI summary People who buy a home from the federal government to live in after a major disaster could pay much lower property taxes. This tax break lasts for four years and slowly decreases each year. It only applies to homes located in the area hit by the disaster.1
Read the official explanation
A residential property sold by the United States department of housing and urban development (HUD) to an owner who is occupying the residential property as a homestead shall be partially exempt from taxation if the sale was to provide housing to individuals following a major disaster or disaster emergency and the residential property was located in the major disaster or disaster emergency area. The exemption is for a four-year period beginning with the first full assessment year after the sale. This bill provides an 80 percent exemption on the actual value in the first assessment year, a 60 percent in the second year, a 40 percent in the third year, a 20 percent in the fourth year, and the exemption expires in the fifth year. The bill defines “owner” and “homestead”.
Why it matters. Homeowners who purchase a residence from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development to live in as a homestead following a major disaster would receive a partial property tax exemption for four years. An average qualifying home would provide a savings of $6,532 to the homeowner over those four years, which would result in a proportional decrease in revenue for local governments.2
Senate subcommittee
Named May 12, 2025. It hasn’t reported yet.
Three legislators hear a bill first and recommend what the committee should do; it’s the best time to weigh in. How to take part
Fiscal note
Cost: up to $6,532 Compare with other bills
AI summary This bill provides a partial property tax exemption for homeowners who must replace a home destroyed by a natural disaster with a property purchased through the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. An average qualifying home would provide a savings of $6,532 to the homeowner over four years, which would result in a proportional decrease in revenue for local governments. Because the number of eligible homeowners is unknown, the total cost to local governments cannot be estimated.4
Read the fiscal note
Description
House File 1013 establishes a partial property tax exemption for a property owner whose homestead was destroyed or rendered uninhabitable due to a natural disaster. The partial exemption applies to the owner’s replacement property for four consecutive assessment years following the disaster. The property must be purchased through the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development. The partial exemption is equal to the percent of actual value starting on the first full assessment year following the sale and expires in the fifth year.
Background
According to the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), Iowa has received over 25 federal disaster declarations since 2000. However, no centralized State source exists that tracks the number of residential properties destroyed or requiring permanent relocation annually due to disasters.
Assumptions
- The average assessed value of a single-family home in Iowa is estimated at $208,000.
- Residential properties are estimated to increase in assessed value by 2.3% per year.
- The residential assessment limitation for assessment year 2024 is 47.4316%.
- The average consolidated property tax rate is $32.3467 per $1,000 of taxable value.
- The exemption applies to one property per qualifying event for a four-year period.
Fiscal Impact
The number of homeowners that may be eligible for this exemption is unknown. The estimated impact of a single-family home in Iowa is shown in Figure 1. This represents a savings to homeowners and a proportional decrease in revenues for local governments. An average home in Iowa that qualifies for this program would receive an average total benefit of $6,532 over four years.
Figure 1 — Example CalculationYear 1 Year 2 Year 3 Year 4 80.0% 60.0% 40.0% 20.0%1 80.0% 208,000$ 98,658$ 3,191$ 2,553$ 2 60.0% 212,846 100,956 3,266 1,959 3 40.0% 217,742 103,278 3,341 1,336 4 20.0% 222,750 105,654 3,418 684
Partial
Exemption
Current
Law Taxes
Homeowner
Savings
Year
Post
Assessed
Value
Taxable
Value
Sources
- Legislative Services Agency calculations
- Department of Revenue
- Flood Relief Replacement Housing, Property Taxes · April 17, 2025 · $6,532
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91st General Assembly
Similar bills
- HF 2341 Establishing a partial exemption on property taxes for certain residential properties sold…91st General Assembly · In committeeNearly identical
- HSB 271 Establishing a partial exemption on property taxes for certain residential properties sold…91st General Assembly · Subcommittee recommends passageNearly identical
Matched by wording or an identical title.