I think I read that they could only raise you taxes 15% a year as long as you own the property.
New buyers (such as myself or those in the market for Florida Real Estate) get the property re-assessed as soon as they buy it. Mine doubled, something I was not prepared for. The value of my property has been going up 22% a year for a few years now. So, the assessed value from the previous owner was much lower, since they couldn't raise it very much. My asssessed value went from $80,000 to 196,000. The homestead exemption is peanuts..... $5,000 is nothing compared to the value of Florida Real Estate.
It is extremely difficult to get Florida homeowners insurance, and will get worse now. Most established Insurance companies already have the quota they can write in Florida. You are put in a pool and really can't shop around. You have to take what you get, and be lucky you have it.
The key to living in Florida at a decent standard of living, is to never sell your house & never change insurance companies.
I love it though, and it just means that I will have to work a couple more years to afford it.:-) or else sell my place up here in Indiana. Owning two homes, just got more expensive.
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