Real Estate Matters

I would appreciate hearing your comments regarding the new Florida property tax provisions presented recently by the Florida legislature.  Among the problems with the reform are people are locked into their homes; there are huge problems with highest and best use of a property; and taxes could have been rolled back for significant savings.  We deserve to have high expectations from our elected officials because total tax levies have increased by 99% between fiscal year 2000 and 2007, according to the Florida Association of Realtors. 

"Save Our Homes", which passed in 1992 created huge inequities among Florida taxpayers by allowing one house next to another paying  very different property taxes.  Because of Save Our Homes, local taxing authorities have increased the burden on non-homstead properties to compensate for the homstead savings.  According to FAR's president Nancy Riley, "the three problems with real estate in Florida are property taxes, property insurance and negative publicity."  Recently, the Florida Legislature passed three bills. Statutory rollbacks which are immediate and already signed by the Govenor; a constitutional amendment that creates a Super Homstead Exemption and a call for a special election. 

Save Our Homes is an assessment on cap on Homstead properties only.  It reduces the taxable value but it does not limit tax rates.  Local governments have had to keep millage rates artificially high to compensate for the taxable value that is shielded by SOH.  This particularly hurts the commercial and non-homstead properties. 

Instead of an assessment cap (such as SOH) there is an overall revenue cap proposed limiting what governments can collect from property taxes.  This will protect everyone, including commercial and rental housing from big and unpredictable property tax increases from year to year. The revenue cap requires a local government to collect the same amount of revenue it did in the previous year (adjusted for new construction and statewide personal income growth).  This would be the first time ever guaranteed property tax protection for commercial  and non-homestead properties in Florida's history. The statutory rollback  equals $15.6 billion in tax relief over five years, according to FAR.  Let me know your thoughts.

Bill