Homestead and the SOH cap can save you thousands of dollars per year!
When you file for Homestead Exemption, you are put in the Save Our Homes (SOH) Cap program, which limits the increase in assessed value of your home, thereby lowering your taxes. In the real example below, a property in Pinellas County has a Just Market Value of $456,362, (Note this isn’t the real market value or what the home would sell for but what the county assigns). Since the home has been Homesteaded since 2018 when it was purchased, and there was a SOH Benefit ported at that time from a prior sale, the Assessed value is $276,699. This results in a $179K SOH Benefit that lowers the annual tax bill by $3,244.32 in 2022. The Homestead benefit is an additional $753.81 for the 2022 tax year.
If this same home had been purchased as a second home, or the FL resident had not applied for Homestead in the intervening years, the tax bill for 2022 would have been $8,358.63, almost twice as much. By being homesteaded and participating in the SOH cap, which limits the assessed value increase to 3%, residents benefit significantly.
So Yes, there is a significant benefit to Homestead Exemptions!
The deadline to file for Homestead Exemption is March 1 of the tax year, or
March 1, 2023 for your 2023 tax bill which will come out in October.
Homestead Exemption
The Homestead Exemption is a constitutional benefit of a $50,000 exemption from the property’s assessed value. It is granted to those applicants with legal or beneficial title in equity to real property as recorded in official county records who are bona fide Florida residents living in a dwelling and making it their permanent home on January 1 of the taxable year. The first $25,000 is entirely exempt. The second $25,000 is to be applied to the value between $50,000 and $75,000, and does not include school taxes.
When you purchase a home and want to qualify for an exemption, you may apply online or in person at one of your county offices. You may file anytime during the year, but before the state’s deadline of March 1 for the tax year in which you wish to qualify. However, you should file as soon as possible once you own, occupy and make that home your legal residence to ensure all documentation is completed as required.
A Homestead Exemption is not automatic. If the home you purchased had a homestead exemption, you will benefit from that exemption, and their SOH cap, the year you purchased, after that, it is removed. The tax basis will reset based on the new purchase price and will result in a significant tax increase, so applying for Homestead Exemption helps reduce that, and puts you into the Save Our Homes cap program. You don’t have to apply every year, just once after you have purchased. If you sell and buy, you will need to apply for the new property to receive it, it is not automatically transferred. You can only have one homesteaded property at a time.
Bring the following evidence of residency and qualifications for all owners, including spouses, when filing:
- Florida Automobile Registration and Driver License
- If registered to vote, your Pinellas County Voter ID card or numbered Permanent Resident Card or other evidence of permanent resident status
- Proper certification for a disability exemption
- A death certificate or obituary notice for widow’s/widower’s exemption
- Social security numbers for all owners and spouses (required even if spouses are separated or if only one is on the deed)
- If you have another residency-based property tax exemption in Florida or another state, your application for exemption will be denied. Please provide proof of removal of residency-based exemptions for out-of-state owned property OR a copy of the most recent tax bill for all properties owned elsewhere within 30 days of making an application.
Additional Exemptions You May Qualify For
The following personal exemptions may also be available:
- Low-Income Senior (65+)
- Low-Income Senior (65+), 25-Year Residency
- Veteran Service-Connected Total and Permanent Disability or their Surviving Spouse
- Veteran Service-Connected 10% or Greater Disability or their Surviving Spouse ($5,000)
- Total and Permanent Disability
- Widow/Widower ($5,000)
- Disability ($5,000)
- Blind Persons ($5,000)
- Veteran with Combat-Related Disability or their Surviving Spouse (Property Tax Benefit)
- First Responder Total and Permanent Disability Sustained in the Line of Duty or their Surviving Spouse
- Surviving Spouse of Veteran or First Responder Who Died on Duty
- Veteran Confined to a Wheelchair or their Surviving Spouse
- Deployed Servicemembers
- Housing for Parents/Grandparents
Homestead Exemptions aren’t automatic!
Portability isn’t automatic!
You have to apply to receive and there is a time limit!
Portability
If you own a home anywhere in Florida that has a Homestead Exemption, you are in the Save Our Homes cap program. When you sell your home and buy a new one,, anywhere in Florida, the SOH cap creates a tax exemption that can be carried to a new home. Portability is the difference between the Market/Just Value and the Assessed Value of the home. When upsizing, you can keep all the SOH Exemption, when downsizing, you will need to prorate the SOH exemption based on lower market value. The county in which you purchase will calculate all these items. It is important to check the Portability box on the application.
Portability provides a significant tax savings to Florida Sellers that subsequently purchase another home in Florida. The portability is only available from 2-3 years after sale of your home, so don’t defer the purchase of a new home too long or wait to apply for Homestead and transfer of portability. The graphic below explains the 3 year time limit.
For more information or to apply for Homestead Exemption in the Tampa Bay Area
Pinellas County Property Appraiser: www.pcpao.gov
Hillsborough County Property Appraiser: www.hcpafl.org
Pasco County Property Appraiser: www.pascopa.com
Manatee County Property Appraiser: www.manateepao.com
Polk County Property Appraiser: https://polkpa.org/
Hernando County Property Appraiser: www.hernandopa-fl.us
Sarasota County Property Appraiser: www.sc-pa.com
