Florida Homestead Exemption Filing Deadline is March 1st

Posted on 02/01/2017 by khaniauerbach

All legal Florida residents are eligible for a Florida Homestead Exemption on their homes, condominiums, co-op apartments, and certain mobile home lots if they qualify. The Florida Constitution provides this tax-saving exemption on the first and third $25,000 of the assessed value of an owner/occupied residence. While a complicated formula is used to explain this — as the additional $25,000 only applies to the non-schools portion of your tax bill — for example, a Broward County homeowner can save anywhere from $627.99 to $1,053.22 (depending upon your city’s millage rate) in annual tax savings for all homes with a value of $75,000 or higher.

You are entitled to a Homestead Exemption if, as of January 1st, you have made the property your permanent home or the permanent home of a person who is legally or naturally dependent on you. By law, January 1 of each year is the date on which permanent residence is determined.

Most counties provide for ONLINE filing. See below for a few links in the tri-county area.

The timely filing period for Florida Homestead Exemption for 2017 is March 2, 2016 through March 1, 2017. The absolute deadline to LATE FILE for any 2017 exemption — if you miss the March 1 timely filing deadline — is September 18, 2017. State law (Sec. 196.011(8), Fla. Stat.) does not allow late filing for exemptions after this date, regardless of any good cause reason for missing the late filing deadline.

What You Need When Filing for Homestead

When filing an application you must bring the following items listed below. To claim 100% coverage, all owners occupying the property as Tenants in Common (i.e., proportional share co-owners) must file in person on jointly held property. In the case of a married couple (“Tenants by the Entirety”) or Joint Tenants with Right of Survivorship (“JTRS”), any one owner may qualify for 100% coverage — although it is always highly advisable to have all eligible owner-occupants to file.

Proof of Ownership: In general, the recorded Deed or Co-op Proprietary Lease must be held in the name(s) of the individuals applying for Homestead. You do not need to bring a copy of the deed or co-op lease if the document has already been recorded in the Official Records of Broward County. If the PROPERTY IS HELD IN A TRUST, WE ALSO NEED EITHER A NOTARIZED CERTIFICATE OF TRUST OR A COMPLETE COPY OF THE TRUST AGREEMENT. Note: Most taxpayers prefer to use the simple Certificate of Trust form, instead of submitting the entire trust for our review, as it better protects the privacy of your estate planning and other financial matters.

Proof of Permanent Florida Residence — preferably dated prior to January 1 of the tax year for which you are filing — is established in the form of:

FOR ALL APPLICANTS: Florida’s Driver’s License (or — for non-drivers only — a Florida I.D. Card) is REQUIRED. Note: You must surrender to DMV any out-of-state regular driver’s license. You MUST also have either of the following:

Florida Voter’s Registration; or
Recorded Declaration of Domicile.

FOR NON-US CITIZENS, you MUST have the items listed above AND proof of permanent residency, asylum/parolee status (or other “PRUCOL” status); OR proof you are the parent of a US-born (US Citizen) minor child who resides with you.

If you or your married spouse have a Homestead Exemption in any other county, state or country (or an equivalent permanent residency-based exemption or tax credit, such as New York’s “S.T.A.R.” exemption) on another property you also currently own, you will NOT be eligible for a homestead in both counties until after you surrender the exemption in that other jurisdiction. Read filing in two counties for additional information on the detriments of filing in two counties.

The State-approved application form requests certain information for all owners living on the premises and filing:

Current employers of all owners
Addresses listed on last I.R.S. income tax returns.
Date of each owner’s permanent Florida residence.
Date of occupancy for each property owner.
Social Security numbers of all owners filing.
Social Security number of any married spouse of the applicant, even if the spouse is not named in the deed and is not filing).

Note: The amount of the Florida homestead exemption protection granted to an owner residing on a particular property is to be applied against the amount of that person’s interest in the property. This provision is limited in that the proportional amount of the homestead exemption allowed any person shall not exceed the proportionate assessed valuation based on the interest owned by the person. For example, assuming a property valued at $40,000, with the residing owner’s interest in the property being $20,000, then $20,000 of the homestead exemption is all that can be applied to that property. If there are multiple owners, all as joint tenants with rights of survivorship, the owner living at property filing receives the full exemption.

Click on the County that your real estate is located in to file online.
Broward County
Miami-Dade County
Palm Beach County

One Family Cannot Claim Homestead Exemption in Two States

Posted on 03/31/2016 by khaniauerbach

by Khila L. Khani, Esq.

On March 23, 2016, the Fourth DCA a/k/a the appeals court of Florida decided in VENICE L. ENDSLEY, Appellant, v. BROWARD COUNTY, FINANCE AND ADMINISTRATIVE SERVICES DEPARTMENT, REVENUE COLLECTIONS DIVISION; LORI PARRISH, as Broward County Property Appraiser, et al., Appellees. 4th District. in Case No. 4D14-3997 that Article VII, Section 6(b) of the Florida Constitution does apply if a homeowner has a second exemption property in another state, however, it is NOT unconstitutional to deny a spouse her exemption if the other spouse sought exemption in another state. What does that mean for you, the property owner of two homes in two different states?

Let’s rewind a bit and explain how the Florida Homestead Exemption works. The State of Florida, via the Florida Constitution, exempts a portion of a Florida homestead from ad valorem tax. This exemption can potentially save taxpayers a few hundred dollars each year. The economic value for homeowners is that such an exemption, under Florida’s Save our Homes provision, caps the ad valorem tax value increases to 3% per year, despite the fact that the value of the residence may increase by more than 3%.

In the case cited above, a husband owned a residence in Indiana. On the property in Indiana, he received a residency-based property tax exemption, somewhat similar to the tax exemption provided by the Florida Constitution. His wife, however, owned a Florida property that she claimed as her residence and received a Florida homestead ad valorem tax exemption. In August 2006, the Broward County Property Appraiser did their homework and revealed that husband and wife were double dipping with the dual exemption filings. The Broward County Property Appraiser audited the exemption with support from Article VII, Section 6(b) of the Florida Constitution, which reads in part that “[n]ot more than one exemption shall be allowed any individual or family unit or with respect to any residential unit.” Based on that provision, the Appraiser’s office sought to remove the homestead exemption from the couple’s Florida property, even though the property was held in the wife’s name alone, for 1996 through 2006 – this would remove the cap on the value for ad valorem tax purposes and thus, remove the 3% Save our Homes protection.

As mentioned above, the appeals court reviewed the lower court’s decision and decided that the Constitution provision applies if the second exemption property is in another state. Furthermore, the appeals court decided that it is NOT unconstitutional to deny the wife her exemption on the Florida property because her husband sought exemption in another state.

Florida homeowners with families, you are now informed, warned and advised that you cannot claim homestead in two different states, even if you are married and have individual ownership of those two different properties. One family cannot claim homestead exemption in two states.

At Khani & Auerbach, it is our goal to educate the public as much as possible about changes in real estate law. Khani & Auerbach is here to help.

Florida Homestead Exemption Filing Deadline is March 1, 2016

Posted on 01/29/201601/29/2016 by khaniauerbach

Homestead Exemption Filing Deadline is March 1, 2016

All legal Florida residents are eligible for a Homestead Exemption on their homes, condominiums, co-op apartments, and certain mobile home lots if they qualify. The Florida Constitution provides this tax-saving exemption on the first and third $25,000 of the assessed value of an owner/occupied residence. While a complicated formula is used to explain this — as the additional $25,000 only applies to the non-schools portion of your tax bill — the bottom line is that the basic homestead exemption can save a Florida homeowner in 2015 anywhere from $641.73 to $1,077.67 (depending upon your city’s millage rate) in annual tax savings for all homes with a value of $75,000 or higher.

In some Florida Counties, you may be able to file for Homestead ONLINE. Check with your county’s property appraiser office for more information about how to file.

The timely filing period for Homestead Exemption for 2016 is March 3, 2015 through March 1, 2016. The absolute deadline to LATE FILE for any 2016 exemption — if you miss the March 1 timely filing deadline — is September 19, 2016. State law (Sec. 196.011(8), Fla. Stat.) does not allow late filing for exemptions after this date, regardless of any good cause reason for missing the late filing deadline.

What You Need When Filing for Homestead

1. Proof of Ownership: In general, the recorded Deed or Co-op Proprietary Lease must be held in the name(s) of the individuals applying for Homestead. In most counties, you may not need to bring a copy of the deed or co-op lease if the document has already been recorded in the Official Records. If the PROPERTY IS HELD IN A TRUST, THE COUNTY MAY ALSO REQUIRE EITHER A NOTARIZED CERTIFICATE OF TRUST OR A COMPLETE COPY OF THE TRUST AGREEMENT. Note: Most taxpayers prefer to use the simple Certificate of Trust form, instead of submitting the entire trust for our review, as it better protects the privacy of your estate planning and other financial matters.

2. Proof of Permanent Florida Residence — preferably dated prior to January 1 of the tax year for which you are filing — is established in the form of:

A. FOR ALL APPLICANTS: Florida’s Driver’s License (or — for non-drivers only — a Florida I.D. Card) is REQUIRED. Note: You must surrender to DMV any out-of-state regular driver’s license. You MUST also have either of the following:
1. Florida Voter’s Registration; or
2. Recorded Declaration of Domicile.

B. FOR NON-US CITIZENS, you MUST have the items listed above AND proof of permanent residency, asylum/parolee status (or other “PRUCOL” status); OR proof you are the parent of a US-born (US Citizen) minor child who resides with you.

3. If you or your married spouse have a Homestead Exemption in any other county, state or country (or an equivalent permanent residency-based exemption or tax credit, such as New York’s “S.T.A.R.” exemption) on another property you also currently own, you will NOT be eligible for a homestead in any Florida county until after you surrender the exemption in that other jurisdiction. (Note: If you know of someone with a Homestead Exemption in a Florida county who also maintains an exemption on another property elsewhere, please report this information to our Fraud Investigations Section at 954.357.6900.)

The State-approved application form requests certain information for all owners living on the premises and filing:
• Current employers of all owners
• Addresses listed on last I.R.S. income tax returns.
• Date of each owner’s permanent Florida residence.
• Date of occupancy for each property owner.
• Social Security numbers of all owners filing.
• Social Security number of any married spouse of the applicant, even if the spouse is not named in the deed and is not filing).

Note: The amount of the homestead exemption protection granted to an owner residing on a particular property is to be applied against the amount of that person’s interest in the property. This provision is limited in that the proportional amount of the homestead exemption allowed any person shall not exceed the proportionate assessed valuation based on the interest owned by the person. For example, assuming a property valued at $40,000, with the residing owner’s interest in the property being $20,000, then $20,000 of the homestead exemption is all that can be applied to that property. If there are multiple owners, all as joint tenants with rights of survivorship, the owner living at property filing receives the full exemption.