I’m not sure many wouldn’t like to pay less taxes, so when the Governor of Florida announced he is going to work on real estate tax reform, my attention was piqued. I listened to a broadcast of a proposed debate on the subject, where Governor DeSantis explained why he wanted the reform. Some of his points included the fact that insurance rates in Florida have spiked due to several hurricanes creating damage over the past few years.
More importantly, real estate values have risen dramatically, which in turn has increased taxes on Florida homeowners, as the tax is based on property value.
I’ve always found it interesting that property taxes rise quickly when property values increase, but decrease more slowly when property values decrease. At the same time, Social Security payments increase based on the cost of living, which does come close to covering the increases in taxes and insurance.
Since Florida is a very desirable place to live for retired folks, there are more and more people on fixed incomes moving to the state. Adding the large increases in insurance and the rising value of homes, creating a larger tax burden, there are a lot of people who are finding it necessary to look for other areas (states) to call their home.
One thing I may never understand is the constant increase in taxes in areas where home and business development are booming. I’ve always thought a growing community should see lower taxes since there are more people paying taxes, which helps pay the community’s expenses. I’ve always thought that an increasing tax base would be like a person paid by commission receiving a pay increase every time a sale is made. Each new home or business property adds to the tax base, which adds to the tax-collecting entity’s “income”, and with each new home or business, there should be more people sharing expenses, and the more people paying should present an opportunity to decrease each taxpayer’s share of the cost.
Florida’s Governor is recognizing that there is a large burden on residents due to the increase in insurance costs and the value of property, and will propose a decrease (if not total forgiveness) in the state’s real estate taxes for Florida residents.
I, for one, would applaud this change because it could mean an additional $500 per month I could spend on other things, like the higher cost of insurance and the crazy hikes in food costs. We’ll see what happens.
Have A Good Week!
