Tax abatement programs reduce or eliminate the amount of property tax that homeowners pay on new construction properties or major improvements. They won't completely eliminate your property tax bill…you'll still have to pay taxes on the value of the property before it was improved, but the savings can be substantial.

Check out these tax abated areas:

Des Moines
https://www.dmgov.org/Departments/CommunityDevelopment/Pages/TaxAbatementPrograms.aspx

Pleasant Hill
http://www.ci.pleasant-hill.ia.us/289/Tax-Abatement-Information

Altoona
http://www.altoona-iowa.com/i-want-to/residential-tax-abatement/

Bondurant
http://www.cityofbondurant.com/webres/File/Bondurant%20Forms/Tax%20abatement%20application%202013.pdf