VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. — Some people living in Hampton Roads could see some cash staying in their bank accounts thanks to recent decisions made by city council members in Virginia Beach and Chesapeake.
Tuesday night, the council for each city voted to reduce the personal property tax on people's cars for 2022.
Chesapeake City Council voted to reduce the tax by 22.5%. Council member in Virginia Beach voted to reduce the tax by 25%.
Virginia Beach Commissioner of Revenue Phillip Kellam said he noticed a rise in car values this year, meaning people would have to pay more in property tax this year compared to others. That's what pushed him to propose the cut.
"It's quite disturbing, frankly," said Kellam. "I was stunned. We had an over 40% increase on the average value of vehicles."
Kellam said the 25% reduction could help people save a few extra hundred dollars this year, but it comes with an asterisk, of sorts.
"The problem is though, their bill would have gone up so much more than last year, even on used cars, because that is what the market is," said Kellam. "So, this will bring it more in line as to what it would've grown in a normal year."
Chesapeake Commissioner of Revenue Victoria Proffitt said the reduction will make things slightly better than other years. Essentially, she said it'll save people a lot more on a larger scale.
"The tax that would've been $1,017. The tax now would be $724, so that puts $293 back into our taxpayers' pocket," said Proffitt.
It's a relief for Monte Pope of Chesapeake. He said he and others use a sense of relief, no matter how small of a difference it could make.
"Money is tight, gas going up, everything in the economy happening. No one is trying to pay extra for [personal] property taxes now," said Pope. "Everybody needs a little break. Like I said, everybody can't afford to keep just paying more for things, so if you're saying they're lower, that's great news for everybody."
Kellam and Proffitt said their offices will reassess the best plan for 2023, but hope the inflation goes down so there is no concern moving forward.
If you have any questions or concerns regarding your personal property taxes, you can contact the appropriate office in Chesapeake or Virginia Beach.