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A non-ad valorem assessment may be added to your property taxes, but it is not directly related to your property value. These are other assessments like Community Development District assessments or landscape district assessments that need to be added to your tax bill. These will only be a part of your tax bill from the county if that has been arranged by the developer, builder or local government.
The Save Our Homes amendment puts a cap on the increase of your home's value as long as you own it.
For instance, if you bought a home five years ago and applied for and received the homestead tax exemption then the assessed value of your home could only rise up to 3%, protecting people from the huge tax bills that would come along with increasing home values. When you sell the home to someone else, they can inherit your HEX for that year, and your assessment cap, but the following year they have to re-apply for HEX and the cap will be applied to the new assessed value of the home.
This can mean a significant jump in taxes for a new homeowner in the Miami area, but if you use the tax estimator, with the correct appraised value, then you'll be prepared.
Miami Dade county offers several opportunities for residents to declare various tax exemptions. If you are purchasing a Miami home or Miami condo, you may be eligible for one of more of these exemptions.
Buying a home at the end of the year has advantages. Tax savings, for one. Closing on your new Florida home by Dec. 31 means you can deduct mortgage interest, property taxes and points on your loan on that year's income tax return.
You can also deduct the interest costs associated with a home equity loan. These deductions are significant, especially in the early years of your loan when you are paying off so much interest. Many sellers will also be anxious to sell by the end of the year so that they, too, can enjoy tax savings on the next home they purchase.
Millage is a term widely used by the Miami Dade tax collector. A "Mill," the route of the word, represents one thousandth of a dollar. "Millage Rates" refer to tax rates based on mills per dollar per the value of the property.
Published millage rates always indicate the tax rate for the previous year and can be used to estimate future tax payments, but never to definitely predict them in the future. Tax rates can change significantly year over year depending on exemptions that have been removed or a change in the market value of the home.
The homestead exemption can be a bit tricky for the uninitiated Miami home buyer and can offer a nasty surprise when your tax bill arrives. This is a tax exemption that any homeowner in Miami can receive and it discounts the assessed value of your home by $25,000.00.
If you have just purchased your home and your seller had "HEX" then you can inherit it for that calendar year. The following year, you will need to reapply for the homestead exemption and the $25,000.00 will come off the newly assessed value of your home. This means that your taxes may be much higher because the assessed value of your home has risen.
You are protected from future inflation of your home's assessed value, as long as you own it, by the Save Our Homes Amendment, which is related to the Homestead Exemption.
Ad valorem taxes are taxes based on the property value. Essentially, you would take the value of the home and multiply it by the tax rate (or millage rate) of the previous year. The value of your home should be entered as accurately as possible to give you correct results.
If you recently purchased the home, you can use the appraisal you received at the closing. The assessed value of the property may not have caught up with the tax system, so if you had an old tax rate, it may not be valid anymore. For instance if you got a preconstruction tax bill based on your build-able lot, with no structure, your rate will rise considerably once the structure is complete.
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George Sayour |