Florida Property Tax After Buying a House

Why the bill jumps after a sale

Florida taxes homes on assessed value, not price. For a homesteaded owner, assessed value can rise each year by no more than 3% or inflation, whichever is lower. Non-homestead property has a 10% annual cap on non-school levies. In a market that rose faster than those caps, the assessed value of a long-held home falls well below market value.

A sale ends that. Florida law requires the property appraiser to reassess the home at just value, essentially market value, as of January 1 after a change of ownership. The cap then restarts from that new base.

So the tax amount on the listing reflects the seller's history: how long they owned, whether they had homestead, and which exemptions they claimed. A seller who bought decades ago with homestead, plus a senior exemption, can show a bill that tells you almost nothing about yours.

The first-year timeline

The Florida property tax year runs on the calendar year and is paid in arrears. Here is how a typical purchase plays out:

• At closing: the seller credits you for their share of the current year's taxes, prorated to the closing date and usually based on the prior year's bill. You will pay the full current-year bill yourself in November.
• First November after closing: the bill for the year you bought is still based on the January 1 status, meaning the seller's assessment and the seller's exemptions. It often looks low.
• The following January 1: the reassessment happens. If you have made the home your permanent residence and filed by March 1, your homestead exemption applies.
• August: the TRIM notice (Truth in Millage) arrives with the new assessed value and proposed taxes. This is your first real look at the reset.
• November: the new, higher bill arrives. Paying in November earns a 4% discount, then 3% in December, 2% in January and 1% in February. Taxes are due by March 31 and delinquent April 1.

If your taxes are escrowed, your lender's first escrow analysis after the reset usually shows a shortage. The mortgage payment goes up to cover the shortage and the higher ongoing bill.

Estimating your tax before you make an offer

A good estimate takes about ten minutes. Here is the method I use:

• Start with the price as a stand-in for just value. Property appraisers' just values often run below sale prices, so this is conservative.
• Subtract exemptions you will qualify for: up to $51,411 in 2026 with homestead ($25,000 against all levies and up to $26,411 more against non-school levies), zero for a second home.
• Find the total millage for that exact parcel on the property appraiser's or tax collector's site. Rates differ by county, city, school district and special districts, so two homes a mile apart can differ.
• Add non-ad valorem assessments such as solid waste, stormwater, fire or a CDD, which are flat charges on the same bill.

A worked example at an illustrative 18 mills total (a mill is $1 per $1,000 of taxable value): on a $375,361 home bought as a homestead, taxable value is roughly $323,950 for non-school levies and about $350,361 for school levies. If the same home is bought as a second home, taxable value is the full $375,361, which at 18 mills is about $6,756 a year before non-ad valorem charges. Your actual millage will differ, and that's why the parcel lookup matters.

Second homes, Canadians and non-homestead buyers

Buyers who won't live in Florida full time get hit hardest by the reset. There's no homestead exemption, and the assessment cap is 10% a year on non-school levies with no cap on school levies. A seasonal buyer replacing a homesteaded seller can see a large jump.

For Canadian snowbirds and other non-permanent residents, I build the full non-homestead tax into the monthly cost from the first conversation. Using the seller's bill to judge affordability is the most common budgeting mistake I see with second-home buyers.

New construction has its own wrinkle. If the home wasn't finished on January 1, the first bill may cover the land only, or a partial value. The next year's bill includes the completed house, and it can be several times larger. Builders' sales offices sometimes quote that first small bill. Ask for an estimate based on the finished home.

If you think the new assessment is wrong

The TRIM notice is your window. If the just value looks too high compared with similar homes, you have options:

• Call the property appraiser's office first. Many disputes are resolved informally, especially when you bring recent comparable sales.
• File a petition with the Value Adjustment Board within 25 days after the TRIM notice is mailed. There is a small filing fee, and hearings are scheduled in the fall.
• Check exemptions. If homestead or another exemption you applied for is missing from the notice, contact the appraiser right away.

A sale price above the appraiser's just value is normal and not a reason the assessment is wrong. What you're checking is whether the just value exceeds market value as of January 1.

Planning around the reset

The reset is predictable, which means you can plan for it:

• Use your own estimated tax, not the listing's, when you compare homes and set your budget. Ask your lender to qualify you on that figure too, since an underwriter using the seller's bill can approve a payment that won't last past year one.
• File homestead promptly. Missing March 1 costs you a year of exemption and a year of the cap.
• If you sold a Florida homestead within the past three years, file for portability with your homestead application to carry part of your old Save Our Homes benefit.
• If your taxes are escrowed, set aside cash for the escrow shortage that usually follows the first full reassessed bill.

One open question at the time of writing: voters decide Amendment 3 on November 3, 2026. It would change parts of the homestead and non-homestead rules if it reaches the 60% it needs, so confirm the outcome before relying on any estimate here. This isn't legal or tax advice. If you want each home on a shortlist shown with a post-sale tax estimate instead of the seller's bill, that's how I set them up.