Fort Lauderdale Realtor Explains Real Estate Taxes
As a Fort Lauderdale Realtor, I often hear clients say things like “but look at the difference in taxes on these two homes”, or the “the taxes on this unit are lower than the one downstairs”, or “that’s odd the taxes on this unit with a better view are 50% lower”. Each time the answer is the same, and as a #FortLauderdaleRealtor for over 20 years it is part of mission of excellent Fort Lauderdale Real Estate service to help buyers of #FortLauderdaleReal Estate understand how real estate taxes work in South Florida.
In Florida we pay our real estate taxes in arrears. This means we pay our #FloridaReal Estate taxes at the end of the year for the year that just past. If you purchase and close of a property prior to the tax being due the buyer will receive a credit from the seller for the portion of the taxes that occurred while the seller owned the property. The buyer will get the entire tax bill at the end of the year. Eric Miller of eXp Realty LLC in Fort Lauderdale makes your search for Ft Lauderdale Real Estate easy with access to all Fort Lauderdale Area Real Estate Listings and their availability to answer questions.
Ft. Lauderdale Real Estate Tax Assessments
The most important sentence in this post, Florida law calls for every property which is sold to be reassessed at full market value in the year following the sale. There are some adjustments for closings costs but….to be as close as possible and have no surprises use your purchase price and the tax rate you receive from your local Florida Real Estate broker or from the county in which you are purchasing South Florida Real Estate. When purchasing real estate in Fort Lauderdale which is Broward County you can count on 2% as a fairly accurate number or you can visit the county tax estimator at https://bcpa.net/TaxCalc.asp
As a reminder, every property will be reassessed so please ignore the current number indicating in the Fort Lauderdale MLS it is not an indication of your future taxes.
Homestead and Your Ft Lauderdale Real Estate
Two more subjects related to local real estate taxes in Fort Lauderdale. In you do not have a homesteaded property anywhere else in the country you may be eligible to homestead your South Florida home. This will provide you two benefits a) a $50,000 reduction on the valuation creating about a $1000 savings (exclusive of school tax) so reality a bit less is reality and b) a 3% cap on any assessment increase. The 3% cap is a huge deal.
Subject #2 – If you are unable to homestead your Fort Lauderdale area property, there will be a 10% assessment cap on the valuation of your property. This law went to effect in 2009. The 10% cap applies to all taxing authority millage rates except local school boards. Having this cap in place is a benefit to anyone who purchases in market with rising prices.
In a future post we will discuss Portability, and how it helps Fort Lauderdale Real Estate owners when they move to another property. Any additional questions about real estate taxes as you prepare to purchase a Home or Condo for sale in the Fort Lauderdale area feel free to call Eric Miller, Your Fort Lauderdale Realtor at eXp Realty LLC, 50,000 Realtors strong worldwide.
