How Much Is the Disabled Veteran Property Tax Exemption in Cobb County, GA?
Georgia's disabled veteran homestead exemption (O.C.G.A. 48-5-48) removes the greater of $32,500 or the current federal cap under 38 U.S.C. 2102 from your home's assessed value, and it applies against your state, county, municipal, and school property taxes together. That federal linked figure was $121,812 for the 2025 tax year, and two independent sources put the 2026 figure at $126,526, though Georgia's own published exemption guide has not caught up yet. On a $450,000 home in Kennesaw, that can mean roughly $5,000 off your annual property tax bill. It is not automatic. You have to file it yourself with the Cobb County Tax Assessor's office.
TL;DR
- The exemption shields the greater of $32,500 or the federal VA cap from your home's assessed value. The best current estimate for 2026 is $126,526, and you should confirm that figure with Cobb County before you budget around it.
- It covers all four property tax levies, state, county, municipal, and school, which is broader than the basic $2,000 homestead exemption that skips municipal and bond taxes.
- You generally need a 100% VA disability rating (or you fit one of four other qualifying categories under the statute), and you have to file the paperwork. The exemption does not apply itself.
- An unremarried surviving spouse or minor children keep the same exemption as long as they continue living in the home as their residence.
- Filing after Cobb County's deadline for the year waives the exemption for that tax year only. It does not affect future years.
If you are a disabled veteran who owns a home in Kennesaw, Marietta, or Acworth, this is one of the most valuable exemptions Cobb County offers, and it is also one of the most overlooked. I walk veterans and their families through this every year, usually after they find out from a neighbor or a VA rep, not from their own tax bill.
Who Qualifies for the Disabled Veteran Exemption in Cobb County
O.C.G.A. 48-5-48 sets out five separate ways to qualify. You only need to meet one of them.
- Category 1: You are a Georgia resident, honorably discharged, and the VA rates you 100% totally disabled, or you are compensated at the 100% rate due to individual unemployability, or you are entitled to a VA statutory award for loss (or permanent loss of use) of one or both feet or hands, loss of sight in one or both eyes, or a specified permanent vision impairment.
- Category 2: You are a war or armed-conflict veteran with loss of use of both lower extremities that prevents walking without aids, blindness in both eyes combined with loss of use of one lower extremity, or loss of one lower extremity plus a balance or propulsion impairment that also prevents walking without aids.
- Category 3: You are a disabled veteran who is not receiving VA benefits but separately qualifies under Article VII, Section I, Paragraph IV of the Georgia Constitution.
- Category 4: You have loss of use of one lower extremity and one upper extremity that prevents walking without aids.
- Category 5: You became eligible for VA Specially Adapted Housing assistance under 38 U.S.C. 2101 on or after July 1, 1999.
Most of the veterans I work with in Kennesaw and Marietta qualify under the first category with a straightforward 100% disability rating. The other four exist for specific combinations of mobility and vision disabilities, so if your situation does not fit a simple 100% rating, it is worth asking the Cobb County Tax Assessor's office which category applies before you assume you do not qualify.
This is a property tax exemption, separate from any VA home loan benefit. It has nothing to do with the VA funding fee, a VA loan's lack of a county loan limit, or any other financing rule. You apply for it through your county tax office, not through a lender.
How Much the Exemption Is Worth on a Kennesaw, Marietta, or Acworth Home
Why the Dollar Amount Keeps Changing
The statute exempts "the greater of $32,500 or the maximum amount available to a disabled veteran" under the federal Specially Adapted Housing grant program (38 U.S.C. 2102). That federal cap gets adjusted periodically, which is why the Georgia number moves most years instead of staying fixed. The $32,500 floor has not applied in practice for a long time because the federal figure is always higher.
Georgia's Department of Revenue currently lists $121,812 as the exemption amount, but that figure is dated to the 2025 tax year. Two independent secondary sources that track this exemption put the 2026 figure at $126,526, a 3.87% increase that matches the VA's own federal Specially Adapted Housing grant adjustment effective October 1, 2025. I have not found a Georgia state source that has updated its published figure to reflect 2026 yet. Treat $126,526 as the best current estimate and confirm the exact number with the Cobb County Tax Assessor's office (770-528-8600) before you rely on it for planning.
What This Looks Like on a $450,000 Home
Here is an illustrative example only, recalculated directly for this post. Georgia assesses homes at 40% of fair market value, so a $450,000 home has an assessed value of $180,000 before any exemption.
Using the estimated $126,526 exemption against that $180,000 assessed value leaves $53,474 in taxable assessed value. Applying Cobb County's combined 2026 city, county, and school millage rates to that reduced amount gives a rough picture of the annual savings:
- Kennesaw (39.28 mills): roughly $7,070 before the exemption, $2,100 after. Savings of about $4,970.
- Acworth (39.08 mills): roughly $7,034 before, $2,090 after. Savings of about $4,945.
- Marietta (31.122 mills): roughly $5,602 before, $1,664 after. Savings of about $3,938.
- Unincorporated Cobb County (30.13 mills): roughly $5,423 before, $1,611 after. Savings of about $3,812.
These numbers are illustrative, not a bill. Your actual savings depend on your home's current assessed value, your specific taxing jurisdiction, and whichever exemption amount Cobb County applies for the tax year. If your home's assessed value is below the exemption amount, you may owe little or nothing beyond fees required by law.
Filing for the Exemption in Cobb County: What to Expect
Documents You Will Need
What you need depends on which category above applies to you:
- Categories 1, 2, and 5: a letter from the VA or the Georgia Department of Veterans Service stating your qualifying disability.
- Category 3: a copy of your DD Form 214 and a letter from a Georgia-licensed doctor. The county board can ask for one or two more doctor's letters if they have questions.
- Category 4: a letter from a Georgia-licensed doctor describing the disability, with the same option for the board to request additional letters.
You file once with the Cobb County Tax Assessor's office, and the exemption then renews automatically each year as long as you keep occupying the home as your homestead. You do not need to reapply annually. The county can ask you to re-prove eligibility, but no more than once every three years, and it cannot demand more than a few doctor's letters at a time.
The Deadline Question
Georgia's homestead filing statute (O.C.G.A. 48-5-45) requires you to own and occupy the home as of January 1 of the tax year, and to file by the deadline set for the county's "closing of the books" on tax returns for that year. In practice, Cobb County and most Georgia counties have historically treated that as an April 1 deadline. I have seen some sources suggest a newer path tied to the 45-day window for appealing your annual Notice of Assessment, but I could not confirm that against a clear, current state source for this post. Ask the Cobb County Tax Assessor's office directly which deadline applies to your situation before you file.
What Happens If You File Late
Filing after the deadline waives the exemption only for that specific tax year. It does not forfeit the exemption going forward, and it does not affect a refund claim tied to a retroactive VA disability determination, discussed below.
If You Are a Surviving Spouse
If you are the unremarried surviving spouse, or a minor child, of a veteran who qualified under O.C.G.A. 48-5-48, you keep the same exemption amount as long as you continue living in the home as your residence. The exemption carries over automatically when the veteran passes away. If the veteran died or became incapacitated before filing, you can file on their behalf using the same documentation categories above.
If the VA later issues a disability rating with a retroactive effective date, you or the veteran may be able to claim a refund for property taxes paid during that retroactive period. The refund is capped at the three tax years before the homestead application was filed, and Georgia does not pay interest on it.
Do not confuse this benefit with the separate exemption under O.C.G.A. 48-5-52.1 for the unremarried surviving spouse of a service member killed in, or who died as a result of, war or armed conflict. That is a different code section with its own eligibility rules, even though the dollar figures can land close to each other in a given year.
One more distinction worth making directly: this is not the same as Marietta's own local $2,000 Disability Exemption for totally disabled homeowners generally. That city-level benefit is unrelated to military service and far smaller. If you are a disabled veteran, the exemption under O.C.G.A. 48-5-48 is the one worth pursuing first.
Figuring out whether you qualify, which category fits your situation, and how the exemption interacts with your specific home's assessed value is exactly the kind of question worth walking through with someone who knows this market and these numbers. If you are weighing whether to buy, sell, or just want your current Kennesaw, Acworth, or Marietta home's tax picture checked, schedule a consultation with me, Robert Masoudpour, Associate Broker in Marietta, GA, and I will help you figure out what applies to your situation. Schedule a 15-minute consultation
Frequently Asked Questions
How much is the disabled veteran property tax exemption in Georgia?
It is the greater of $32,500 or the current federal cap under 38 U.S.C. 2102. Georgia's own published guide still lists $121,812 for the 2025 tax year, and the best current estimate for 2026, based on two independent sources and the VA's own federal grant adjustment, is $126,526. Confirm the exact figure with the Cobb County Tax Assessor's office before relying on it.
Who qualifies for the disabled veteran exemption in Cobb County?
Most veterans qualify with a Georgia residency requirement, an honorable discharge, and a VA disability rating of 100% (or compensation at the 100% rate due to individual unemployability). Four other categories exist for specific combinations of mobility and vision disabilities under O.C.G.A. 48-5-48. If you own a home in Kennesaw, it is worth checking with the county even if your situation does not fit the most common category.
Do I have to reapply for the exemption every year?
No. You file once with the Cobb County Tax Assessor's office, and it renews automatically as long as you keep occupying the home as your homestead. The county can ask you to re-verify eligibility, but no more often than once every three years.
Does the exemption continue for my spouse if I pass away?
Yes, as long as your spouse remains unremarried and continues living in the home as their residence. Minor children can also keep the exemption under the same condition. This is separate from the surviving spouse benefit under O.C.G.A. 48-5-52.1, which applies to service members who died in or as a result of war or armed conflict.
What is the deadline to apply for the exemption in Cobb County?
Georgia's homestead filing statute requires ownership and occupancy by January 1 of the tax year and filing by the county's deadline for closing the tax digest, which Cobb County has historically treated as April 1. Confirm the exact current deadline directly with the Cobb County Tax Assessor's office at 770-528-8600, since filing requirements can shift. You can also find more on property taxes across Cobb's cities on the Marietta community page, or explore more Cobb County real estate guidance at Path2Sold.com.
