For landlords
Property taxes on a Florida rental
A Florida rental gets no homestead exemption, and its assessed value can rise up to 10% a year for most taxes, against 3% for a homestead. Turn your former home into a rental and the homestead benefits end, so the assessment can climb toward full market value in the first year. Read the TRIM notice each August, and in Broward pay in November for the 4% discount.
Updated Last checked 3 min read
Quick answer
- No homestead exemption on a rental. That exemption is worth up to $50,000 off taxable value.
- Non-homestead assessments can rise up to 10% a year, except for school taxes.
- Renting out your homestead counts as abandoning it under section 196.061.
- TRIM notices arrive in August. That is your window to question the value.
- Broward: 4% off in November, down to 1% in February, due by March 31.
On this page
Homestead versus rental, side by side
| Topic | Homestead (your residence) | Rental |
|---|---|---|
| Exemption | Up to $50,000 off taxable value | None |
| Yearly cap on assessed value | 3% or inflation, whichever is lower | 10%, not counting school taxes |
| Cap resets on | Change of ownership | Change of ownership or control |
The 10% cap in section 193.1554 covers homes of up to nine units and applies to levies other than school district taxes. School taxes follow the full assessed value each year, which is why a rental's bill can rise faster than the cap suggests.
Moving out and renting your home
Section 196.061 says renting all or substantially all of a home you claimed as a homestead counts as abandoning the homestead until you move back. A move after January 1 doesn't cost you that year's exemption, unless the home is rented more than 30 days a year for two years running. From the next January 1 you no longer live there, so the home is taxed as a rental. Members of the armed forces and certain federal officers posted outside Florida are exempt from this rule.
Years of the 3% homestead cap can leave a home assessed far below its market value. When the homestead ends, so does that cap, and the property appraiser can assess the home at its just value.
- Assessed value as a homestead, after years of the 3% cap
- $310,000
- Homestead exemptions
- Up to $50,000 off
- Just value the appraiser sets, first year as a rental
- $540,000
- Taxable value, before and after
- About $260,000, then about $540,000
Illustrative figures. Your millage rate turns the taxable value into the bill.
Run that through your rent before you decide to keep a former home as a rental. A tax bill that doubles can erase the margin a landlord expected.
Reading the TRIM notice
Each August the property appraiser mails a Truth in Millage notice. It shows the value assessed as of January 1, the tax rates the local taxing authorities propose, and any exemptions. It isn't a bill. If the value looks wrong, talk to the appraiser's office first, and if that doesn't settle it, a petition to the value adjustment board is due within 25 days of the notice's mailing under section 194.011.
Paying the bill in Broward
- Taxes are due November 1, with a 4% discount for paying in full that month.
- The discount falls to 3% in December, 2% in January and 1% in February.
- Full amount by March 31. Unpaid taxes go delinquent April 1.
- A quarterly installment plan, applied for by April 30, spreads the next year's taxes over four payments.
Miami-Dade, Palm Beach, Martin and St. Lucie run on the same statewide calendar, with their own tax collectors. Build the November payment into your rental budget so the discount is never the thing that slips.
Questions people ask
Can I keep my homestead exemption if I rent out my house?
Not once you move out. Renting all or substantially all of it counts as abandonment under section 196.061. The one cushion: a move after January 1 doesn't cost you that year's exemption, unless the home is rented more than 30 days a year for two years in a row.
How much can property taxes go up on a Florida rental?
The assessed value can rise up to 10% a year for taxes other than school taxes, under section 193.1554. It resets to just value after a change of ownership or control, and improvements are added at just value.
When are Broward property taxes due?
Bills are payable from November 1 with a 4% discount that month, falling 1% a month through February. The deadline is March 31.
For owners
Check what the home rents for before you decide to keep it.
A licensed agent prices your rental from signed leases, lists it on the MLS and answers your questions within 1 hour, 8am to 9pm.
Questions first? Call 888-601-8344 or email hello@rentvana.com.
Words in this guide
Sources
- Florida Department of Revenue: Property tax exemptions for homeownersfloridarevenue.com
- Florida Statutes, section 193.155: Homestead assessmentsleg.state.fl.us
- Florida Statutes, section 193.1554: Assessment of nonhomestead residential propertyleg.state.fl.us
- Florida Statutes, section 196.061: Rental of homestead to constitute abandonmentleg.state.fl.us
- Florida Statutes, section 194.011: Assessment notice, objections to assessmentsleg.state.fl.us
- Miami-Dade County Property Appraiser: TRIM notices (August 25, 2023)miamidade.gov
- Broward County Tax Collector: About your tax billbrowardtax.org
- Broward County Property Appraiserbcpa.net
Checked against these sources on by Rentvana Editorial. If something has changed, email hello@rentvana.com and we'll fix it.
Questions?
Call 888-601-8344 to talk to a licensed agent, or email hello@rentvana.com and one gets back to you within 1 hour, 8am to 9pm.