The figure that catches buyers is the seller's bill. Under the Save Our Homes cap a long-time owner's assessed value can sit far below the market, but when a home sells it is reassessed at market value on the next January 1, so your bill can be much higher than the one the seller paid. Each county property appraiser's website shows the current millage, and many have an estimator for a purchase price; use that, not the seller's bill. Every August the appraiser mails a TRIM notice with the proposed taxes and the dates of the public hearings where the rates are set. If the home is your permanent residence, file for the homestead exemption by March 1; in 2026 it takes as much as $51,411 off the assessed value.
Where to go from here.
01How does Florida's homestead exemption work?
If you own your home and it is your permanent residence on January 1, you can file for the homestead exemption with the county property appraiser by March 1, and it lowers that year's tax bill.
Read the answer →02How to research a Florida county
The six checks that decide whether a Florida county is right for you: housing cost, flood and wind, schools, healthcare, daily travel and storm readiness.
Open the page →03Moving to Florida
Plan a Florida move with region and county comparisons, a moving checklist, budget tools and official-source guidance.
Open the page → More questions like this.
No. Florida does not tax personal income, so wages, pensions, withdrawals from an IRA or a 401(k), and Social Security are all free of state income tax, and there is no inheritance tax or gift tax either.
Hurricane wind is the main cost in a Florida home policy, and the price is set by the address, the age and shape of the roof and how the house is built, so it can differ a great deal between two homes on the same street.
A standard homeowners policy does not cover flooding. Flood is a separate policy, from the National Flood Insurance Program or a private insurer, and an NFIP policy usually takes 30 days to start, so it cannot be bought the day a storm is named.