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Portability Benefit Can Reduce Tax Burden

February 21st, 2019 · Leave a Comment

There is an often forgotten benefit that is available to property owners and could save you thousands of dollars in property taxes. The benefit is portability, which is the ability to carry accrued property tax savings from one homestead residence to another.

“Everyone who is thinking about purchasing a larger home or downsizing to a smaller one should consider the potential tax savings portability may give them,” said Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices Florida Network Realty Vice President Kevin Waugaman. “Portability of homestead tax savings in Florida is designed to allow homeowners to move from one home to another without having their new property taxes deter the move.”

Portability in Florida refers to the ability of a property owner to transfer some or all of the ‘Save Our Homes’ benefit on a previous homestead to a new established homestead. The law was passed as a constitutional amendment in January 2008. The ‘Save Our Homes’ benefit is the difference between the assessed value and the market value of an existing home. Homeowners can use the benefit to reduce the assessed value of their new home which in turn will lower the taxable value after the appropriate exemptions are applied. The portability benefit is limited to $500,000.

“The portability benefit was put into place back in 2008 because homeowners were being dissuaded from moving since the tax bill on their new home would be significantly more than what they currently paid,” said C. Dennis Luettich Jr., Associate Counsel, Gibraltar Title Services, LLC, a partner of Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices Florida Network Realty. “At the time, many homeowners stayed put and didn’t move for fear of paying taxes. Portability works for homeowners who either are purchasing a larger property or who are downsizing to a smaller property.”

To learn more, visit the Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices Florida Network Realty blog.

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