Scott County Designated as a New Home Base Iowa Community, Linking Veterans and Jobs
Veterans who put their boots – and roots – in Scott County now may be eligible for up to $8,250 in relocation incentives after the county’s new designation as a Home Base Iowa (HBI) community. The designation involves area partners including Scott County, the City of Davenport and the Quad Cities Chamber. The chamber announced Thursday the following incentives:
- $1,500 closing costs reimbursement from Scott County. Scott County provides this incentive to qualifying veterans living outside of the county who purchase a home in Scott County.
- $1,500 closing costs reimbursement from the City of Davenport. The City provides this incentive to qualifying veterans living outside of Davenport who purchase a home in Davenport.
- Interview expenses reimbursement. Scott County will reimburse qualifying veterans living outside the county with a maximum of $250, up to two times, for hotel and meal costs incurred when interviewing for a job with an employer in Scott County.
- $5,000 tax credit available for any qualifying veteran purchasing a home within Scott County. The credit, provided through the State of Iowa, is awarded at the time of closing. To be approved, the veteran’s lending institution must be affiliated with the Iowa Finance Authority.
Home Base Iowa is a one-of-a-kind program designed to connect businesses with qualified veterans, transitioning service members and their spouses who are in search of career opportunities statewide. It also provides resources to connect veterans and their families with education and transitioning to a new community.
“Veterans, we welcome you. We want you to come to the Quad-Cities to live, work, and play,” Mike Oberhaus of the Q-C Chamber said in a chamber promotional video. “In order to do that, we’re offering an incentive in Scott County.”
“We really hope you take advantage of this wonderful opportunity. We want you to come and enjoy the beautiful Quad-City area,” he said. “It’s a great place to live, work and play.”
Home Base Iowa is a program designed to connect businesses with qualified veterans, transitioning service members and their spouses who are in search of career opportunities statewide.
The HBI network includes more than 2,400 military-friendly companies in Iowa that have pledged to hire veterans. Veterans can search for opportunities, as well as post their resume at homebaseiowa.gov, which doubles as a resource for businesses and communities looking to find veteran job seekers.
The State of Iowa also offers a variety of veteran incentives including: no state taxes on military pensions as well as veteran hiring preference, which allows veterans preferential treatment in hiring decisions by both the private and public sectors.
HBI partners with colleges and universities across Iowa through its Certified Higher Academic Military Partners (CHAMPS) program including Eastern Iowa Community Colleges, St. Ambrose University, University of Iowa and Upper Iowa University. Veterans moving to Iowa can receive special tuition rates for themselves, their spouses, and their dependents.
Scott County joins Clinton and Muscatine counties as HBI communities.
Businesses and communities can also use homebaseiowa.gov to search for veteran job seekers who have uploaded their resume to the website. In addition to the 100 communities statewide, the program also partners with over 27 colleges and universities.
