Florida voters will decide in November whether to substantially expand the state\u2019s homestead exemption, a proposal that has fueled an ongoing debate over affordability and how local governments pay for essential services.<\/p>\n
Amendment 3 would increase the homestead exemption for non-school property taxes to $150,000 in 2027 and $250,000 in 2028, with inflation adjustments thereafter. The proposal would also lower the annual assessment cap for non-homestead property from 10% to 5%.<\/p>\n
For homeowners, the measure could mean a lower property tax bill; for local governments, less tax revenue.<\/p>\n
Kevin Batdorf, a former St. Petersburg mayoral candidate and longtime real estate professional who previously served as president of the Shore Acres Civic Association, sees the proposal as significant relief for homeowners.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt would be a game changer. This amendment actually helps the lower income earners, elderly people on fixed incomes. Why are we charging people taxes, in essence, rent on their property,\u201d said Batdorf.<\/p>\n
On the campaign trail, Batdorf presumed that infrastructure and hurricane response would be the hot ticket topics. It was not. It was affordability.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt was the concern of everybody,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
Batdorf went on to call out the budgetary shortfall as misleading, considering the financial windfall that preceded and the new taxes the city accrued when the housing market shot up.\u201d<\/p>\n
The relationship between rising home values and property taxes, however, is not always straightforward.<\/p>\n
In Florida, property taxes use three important numbers: Just\/Market Value, Assessed Value and Taxable Value; and Market Value is what the Property Appraiser says your property was worth as of Jan. 1 every year.<\/p>\n
For homesteaded properties, Save Our Homes limits how quickly assessed value can increase from one year to the next. That can create a gap between a property\u2019s market value and its assessed value.<\/p>\n
An unchanged rate does not necessarily mean an unchanged bill. Rising taxable values can generate additional revenue for a city without an increase in its millage rate.<\/p>\n
When a homesteaded property changes ownership, the previous owner\u2019s Save Our Homes assessment limitation generally comes off. The property is reassessed at just value as of Jan. 1 following the change in ownership, establishing a new assessed value for the new owner. That can produce a substantially higher taxable value, and therefore a higher property tax bill, even when the millage rate remains unchanged.<\/p>\n