The ad valorem tax in Florida is a property tax calculated on the assessed value of real estate and tangible personal property, and it is the main source of funding for local schools, fire departments, libraries, and infrastructure. What you actually pay depends on three things: your property’s assessed value, the exemptions you qualify for, and the combined millage rate set by the taxing authorities in your area. For homeowners, the homestead exemption and the Save Our Homes cap are where most of the savings live.
How the Tax Is Calculated
Florida law defines an ad valorem tax as a tax based on the assessed value of property.1Florida Senate. Florida Code 192.001 – Definitions Your county government, school district, city, and any special districts each set their own millage rate. One mill equals $1 for every $1,000 of taxable value. Add the rates together, apply them to your taxable value, and that’s your bill. A combined 18 mills on a home with $200,000 of taxable value produces $3,600 in annual tax.
Every dollar stays local. Florida has no state income tax, so property taxes carry an outsized share of local government funding.
Getting from your property to a bill involves three different value figures. First, the county property appraiser sets a just value, which the Florida Constitution requires to reflect fair market value.2Florida Laws. Florida Constitution Article VII Section 4 – Taxation; Assessments Appraisers consider the property’s highest and best use, condition, location, and recent comparable sales.3Florida Senate. Florida Code 193.011 – Factors to Consider in Deriving Just Valuation Then any assessment caps are applied to produce the assessed value. Finally, exemptions are subtracted from the assessed value to produce the taxable value, which is what the millage rate is applied to.
Your annual tax bill may also include non-ad valorem assessments for services like stormwater, solid waste, or fire rescue. Those are charged based on lot size, square footage, or a flat per-parcel fee rather than value. They appear on the same bill but are not part of the ad valorem calculation.
The Homestead Exemption
If you own a Florida property and make it your permanent residence, you can claim a homestead exemption that reduces your taxable value. The exemption has two components. The first $25,000 applies to all local taxes. An additional exemption of up to $25,000 applies to assessed value above $50,000 for every levy except school district taxes.4Florida Department of Revenue. Property Tax Exemptions and Additional Benefits
Starting with the 2025 tax year, the second $25,000 component is indexed to inflation. The Florida Department of Revenue adjusts it annually based on the Consumer Price Index, which brought the combined exemption to $50,722 for 2025.5Florida Department of Revenue. PTO BUL 24-20 Constitutional Amendment 5 Annual Inflation Adjustment to Homestead Exemption Value The adjustment only moves upward; it never reduces the exemption, even if the CPI is negative.
To qualify, you must hold title, make the property your permanent residence, and be a Florida resident as of January 1 of the tax year. File the application with your county property appraiser by March 1. Miss that date and you waive the exemption for the whole year. You only apply once; it renews automatically as long as you keep living there.
Save Our Homes Assessment Cap
The homestead exemption also unlocks the Save Our Homes cap. After the first year that your homestead is assessed at just value, its assessed value cannot rise by more than 3% or the change in the CPI, whichever is lower, in any subsequent year.2Florida Laws. Florida Constitution Article VII Section 4 – Taxation; Assessments When the market moves faster than that, a gap opens between your assessed value and your home’s market value. That gap is your Save Our Homes benefit, and it can grow into tens or hundreds of thousands of dollars over time.
The cap resets when the property changes ownership. The new owner’s home is reassessed at full just value as of January 1 of the year after purchase, and the cap starts again from there. That’s why a longtime resident may pay far less than a newer neighbor in an identical house.
Portability When You Move
You don’t have to lose the accumulated Save Our Homes benefit when you sell and buy another Florida home. Portability lets you transfer up to $500,000 of that benefit to your new homestead.6Florida Department of Revenue. Save Our Homes Assessment Limitation and Portability Transfer If the new home has a higher just value, the full dollar amount transfers. If it has a lower just value, the benefit is reduced proportionally.
You must establish the new homestead within three years of giving up the old one and file Form DR-501T with your new county’s property appraiser by March 1. The three-year window has been in effect since January 1, 2021; before that it was two years.
Other Exemptions That Can Lower Your Bill
Beyond the standard homestead exemption, several additional exemptions target specific groups. Each requires a separate application with your county property appraiser, typically by the March 1 deadline.
Seniors With Limited Income
Homestead owners aged 65 and older whose total household income falls below an annually adjusted threshold may qualify for an additional exemption of up to $50,000.7Florida Senate. Florida Code 196.075 – Additional Homestead Exemption for Persons 65 and Older For the 2026 tax year, the income limit is $38,686. The exemption only exists where the county or municipality has adopted a local ordinance authorizing it, so availability depends on where you live. In some jurisdictions, seniors who have owned their homestead for at least 25 years and whose home has a just value under $250,000 may qualify for a full exemption from ad valorem taxes on that property.
Disabled Veterans
Florida provides two levels of relief for veterans with service-connected disabilities. Veterans with a total and permanent service-connected disability receive a full exemption from ad valorem taxes on their homestead, and an unremarried surviving spouse keeps that exemption as long as they continue to own and live on the property.8Florida Senate. Florida Code 196.081 – Exemption for Certain Permanently and Totally Disabled Veterans and for Surviving Spouses of Veterans Veterans with a service-connected disability of at least 10% qualify for a $5,000 exemption on assessed value, and their unremarried surviving spouse also qualifies.9The 2025 Florida Statutes. Florida Code 196.24 – Exemption for Disabled Ex-Servicemember or Surviving Spouse
Both exemptions require documentation from the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. You can file before that documentation arrives, and if approved, the exemption applies retroactively to the original application date.
Non-Veteran Disability Exemptions
Florida residents who are not veterans but are certified as totally and permanently disabled qualify for a $5,000 reduction in assessed value on their homestead. Residents who use a wheelchair for mobility may qualify for a full exemption if their total household income does not exceed $37,712 for the 2026 tax year. Quadriplegic residents receive a full exemption with no income requirement.10Property Appraiser of Miami-Dade County. Exemptions for Persons Totally and Permanently Disabled Certification from one or two Florida-licensed physicians is required, depending on the type of exemption.
If You Own a Rental or Commercial Property
Non-homestead property gets some cap protection, though less than Save Our Homes. Annual increases in assessed value are capped at 10% for both non-homestead residential property of up to nine dwelling units and nonresidential property such as commercial buildings and vacant land.11Florida Senate. Florida Code 193.1554 – Assessment of Nonhomestead Residential Property12Florida Senate. Florida Code 193.1555 – Assessment of Nonresidential Real Property The 10% cap does not apply to school district taxes.
Unlike Save Our Homes, this cap also resets when the property undergoes an improvement that raises its just value by at least 25%. Expect a full reassessment to just value the year after a purchase or major renovation.
Reading the TRIM Notice and Paying the Bill
Before your tax bill arrives, the property appraiser sends a Truth in Millage (TRIM) notice, usually in August. It shows your just value, assessed value, exemptions, proposed millage rates from each taxing authority, and the estimated tax.13Florida Department of Revenue. Truth in Millage (TRIM) It’s not a bill. It’s your chance to review the numbers, file a petition if something is wrong, and attend the scheduled budget hearings if you want to object to proposed rates.
Tax bills go out on November 1 and are due by March 31. Florida rewards paying early:
- November: 4% discount
- December: 3% discount
- January: 2% discount
- February: 1% discount
- March: no discount
On a $4,000 tax bill, paying in November saves $160.14Florida Senate. Florida Code 197.162 – Tax Discount Payment Periods If the last day of a discount period falls on a weekend or holiday, it extends to the next business day.
What Delinquency Costs You
Taxes become delinquent on April 1, when a 3% penalty is added. In June, the county tax collector holds a tax certificate sale. The buyer of a certificate pays your delinquent taxes and receives a lien on the property, not the property itself, and bidding starts at 18% annual interest and moves down from there. If you don’t redeem the certificate within two years, the holder can apply for a tax deed, which starts a foreclosure that can end with you losing the property. Homestead properties with delinquent taxes under $250 are held by the county at 18% rather than sold to private bidders.
Challenging an Assessment You Think Is Wrong
If your assessed value looks too high, Florida gives you three routes, and they are independent. You don’t have to try one before another.15Florida House of Representatives. Florida Code Chapter 194 – Administrative and Judicial Review of Property Taxes
The simplest option is an informal conference with your county property appraiser. Bring evidence: recent comparable sales, a private appraisal, documentation of defects. Many disputes end here, and it costs nothing.
If that doesn’t work, you can file a formal petition with the county’s Value Adjustment Board. The VAB is a five-member panel of two county commissioners, one school board member, and two citizen members (a homeowner appointed by the commission and a business owner appointed by the school board).16The 2025 Florida Statutes. Florida Code 194.015 – Value Adjustment Board Petitions use a form prescribed by the Department of Revenue, and you’ll need to present evidence at a hearing. A private appraisal prepared for a VAB hearing typically costs $600 to $1,200. Legal representation isn’t required.
You can also skip the VAB and file suit in circuit court. If you already went through the VAB, you must file within 60 days of the VAB decision or the property appraiser’s certification of the tax roll, whichever is later. Before filing, you must make a good-faith payment of the taxes you acknowledge owing.17Florida Department of Revenue. Property Value Disagree Circuit court is expensive; it generally only pays off for large commercial properties or novel legal questions.
Deducting Florida Property Taxes on Your Federal Return
Florida property taxes are deductible on your federal return, but only if you itemize. They fall under the state and local tax (SALT) category, which is capped at $40,000 for most filers and half that for married filing separately. Above $500,000 in modified adjusted gross income, the cap begins to phase down. Because Florida has no state income tax, property taxes are usually the largest item in your SALT total. If you take the standard deduction instead of itemizing, your property tax payments produce no federal tax benefit.