What does the 100 percent disabled veteran exemption cover?
It covers the whole appraised value of your home. Under Texas Tax Code Section 11.131, a disabled veteran who has been awarded 100 percent disability compensation by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, due to a service-connected disability and a rating of 100 percent disabled or of individual unemployability, is entitled to an exemption from taxation of the total appraised value of the veteran’s residence homestead.
Read the qualification carefully, because it has two parts. The Comptroller’s FAQ says you need the 100 percent disability compensation award and either a 100 percent rating or a determination of individual unemployability. You do not need both the rating and unemployability.
The exemption applies only to your residence homestead, the home you own and live in as your principal residence. If you own other property, a separate disabled veteran exemption under Section 11.22 can apply to one property you designate.
If you are relocating to New Braunfels with a VA rating, this is one of the first numbers I would want settled before you set a budget. My military relocation checklist for New Braunfels covers the rest of the move.
What if you are buying as a surviving spouse?
The rules change here, so slow down. A surviving spouse of a veteran who qualified for this exemption, or who would have qualified if the exemption had been in effect when the veteran died, can keep a total exemption on the same home if the spouse has not remarried and the home was the spouse’s residence homestead when the veteran died and still is.
Buying a different home works differently. If a qualifying surviving spouse moves and qualifies a new residence homestead, the exemption on the new home equals the dollar amount of the exemption on the former home in the last year the spouse received it. The Comptroller’s FAQ says plainly that the new home might not receive a total exemption. Find out that dollar amount before you set your budget on the new house.
The late filing window is shorter for a surviving spouse, too. Form 50-114 puts it at two years after the delinquency date, compared with five years for the veteran.
When does the exemption start if you buy partway through the year?
It can start partway through the year. Tax Code Section 11.42 has a specific rule for this exemption. A person who qualifies for it after January 1 may receive it for the applicable portion of that tax year immediately on qualification. The Comptroller’s FAQ says the same thing, and adds that when a 100 percent disabled veteran moves to a different homestead, the exemption may start immediately when the veteran qualifies the new home.
How the first year’s tax is figured
Section 26.1125 sets the math. For the year you qualify, the tax on the home is figured from the full-year tax as if you had not qualified, cut down to the share of the year that passed before you qualified. The Comptroller’s FAQ puts it in one sentence. The tax due for that year is the amount due for the portion of the year before the exemption started.
The qualification date is the one to pin down. If you close on one day and move in later, ask the appraisal district which date it will treat as the day you qualified the home.
How does closing handle that year’s taxes?
On the standard TREC resale contract, Paragraph 13 says taxes for the current year are prorated through the closing date. The same paragraph says the tax proration may be calculated taking into consideration any change in exemptions that will affect the current year’s taxes. If the year’s taxes turn out different from the amount prorated at closing, the buyer and seller adjust the prorations when the tax statements are available. And if the taxes are not paid at or before closing, the paragraph says the buyer pays the current year’s taxes.
The adjustment sentence matters for you. If your exemption is not approved by closing day, the closing figures and the final tax bill can disagree for a while.
The Tax Code has a fix for the bill itself. Under Section 26.1125, if you qualify after the tax has already been calculated and your qualification lowers it, the tax is recalculated and the tax roll is corrected. If the tax was already paid, the overpayment is refunded to the person who owned the property on the date the tax was paid. If the seller paid that year’s bill before closing, ask your title company how a refund like that would be handled.
Bring this up with your title company early. Ask how they plan to prorate the year’s taxes, whether they will account for your exemption, and who handles the adjustment later. My New Braunfels buyer closing costs checklist has the rest of the closing-day questions. For how your escrow account will be set up, ask your lender.
How do you file in Comal County?
You apply. The exemption does not come with the house. Tax Code Section 11.43 says an allowed homestead exemption applies to the property until it changes ownership, and the Comal Appraisal District says homestead exemptions are not automatically applied when you buy a home in Texas.
Here is how the filing works:
- Use Form 50-114. It is the Comptroller’s Residence Homestead Exemption Application, and it covers the 100 percent disabled veteran exemption under Section 11.131. File it with the appraisal district in the county where the home is located, not with the Comptroller.
- Attach your VA documentation. Include documentation from the VA showing your 100 percent disability compensation and your rating or individual unemployability.
- Attach your ID. The form requires a copy of each owner’s driver’s license or state ID, and the address on it must correspond to the home’s address. Active duty armed services members and their spouses have a separate documentation path, which the form and the Comal Appraisal District both describe.
- Watch the dates. The general deadline is April 30 of the year you are applying for. A disabled veteran can file a late application for the 100 percent exemption up to five years after the delinquency date for the taxes on the property.
- Keep a copy. Once the exemption is granted, you do not need to reapply every year unless the chief appraiser asks you to.
You can check one local detail before you file. The Comal Appraisal District’s office is at 900 S. Seguin Ave. in New Braunfels, as listed on both the district’s site and the Comptroller’s county directory. If your home is in another county, file with that county’s district instead. My guide to Comal and Guadalupe County property taxes explains why the county matters in this area.
What should you check before you close?
Start with which exemption matches your VA award. Here is how the two disabled veteran exemptions compare, based on the Tax Code and the Comptroller’s FAQs:
| 100 percent exemption (Section 11.131) | Disabled veteran exemption (Section 11.22) | |
|---|---|---|
| Who qualifies | 100 percent disability compensation plus a 100 percent rating or individual unemployability | A VA disability rating of at least 10 percent |
| What it covers | The total appraised value of your residence homestead | Up to $5,000, $7,500, $10,000 or $12,000 of assessed value, depending on rating and a few other conditions |
| Which property | Your residence homestead only | One property you designate |
| Late filing | Up to five years after the delinquency date | Up to five years after the delinquency date |
Then work through this list before closing day:
- Get a current VA award letter. Make sure it shows both the compensation level and the rating or unemployability determination.
- Confirm the county. Look up the property on the appraisal district’s site so you file with the right office.
- Note your dates. Write down the closing date and the date you will actually move in.
- Ask the title company about proration. Get their answer in writing if you can.
- Ask your lender about escrow. Your tax bill may drop sharply after the exemption is approved.
- File soon after you move in. Section 11.42 lets the exemption start on qualification, and the district has to process your application before it shows on the bill.
Before you lock in a payment, run the numbers both ways, with and without the exemption for the first year. My house budget and taxes guide covers the other monthly costs to check.
