Florida Homeowners Will Have to Wait for Property Tax Relief

Florida lawmakers have unanimously approved a measure to permanently reduce the state sales tax from 6% to 5.25%.

Florida homeowners may be disappointed to learn that they will have to wait for property tax relief as the state's House Ways and Means Committee has approved a measure to permanently reduce the state sales tax.

The committee, with unanimous consent, passed the legislation that would decrease the sales tax from 6% to 5.25%. Additionally, the bill aims to lower sales taxes by 0.75% on various goods and services, including commercial rent, new mobile homes, coin-operated amusement machines, and electricity.

The measure, which is estimated to cost the state $5 billion annually, now proceeds to the full House for a vote.

The approval comes as the governor had proposed an alternative plan to provide up to $1,000 in tax relief to each homesteaded property in the Sunshine State. The property tax relief rebates would have been issued in December 2025 if the Florida Legislature granted authority.

According to the governor's office, the measure would have benefited over 5.1 million homeowners. That pitch appears left in the dust as legislators voted instead for a sales cut.

“Property taxes effectively require homeowners to pay rent to the government,” DeSantis said in a statement. “Constitutional protections for Florida homeowners require approval of the voters in 2026. In the meantime, Floridians need relief. I would prefer to see the tax burden on property values get shifted to non-Floridians who vacation here, invest here, or live here part-time.”

DeSantis added that he would like to see more transparency and accountability on how taxes are spent to curb overspending.

“In Florida, we have this great luxury of being able to offload tax burden to non-Floridians because people visit, people invest here, people live here part-time who aren't residents.”

So, what kind of tax cut will Floridians get? Here are some proposals on the table.

DeSantis is planning to abolish property taxes and have the measure on the 2026 ballot.

The governor has expressed support for a proposal that would eliminate property taxes in Florida. However, the bold proposal has roused concerns from economists on the implications this measure would have for state revenue.

As reported by Kiplinger, in Florida, property taxes fund schools, infrastructure for roads and parks, and safety net programs — like firefighters, police departments, and public hospitals. This funding is essential given that the Sunshine State is a no-income state.

According to the Florida Policy Institute (FPI), Florida’s tax on real property makes up 18% of county revenue, 17% of municipal revenue, and up to 60% of school district revenue. They say that eliminating property taxes would be problematic.

“The tax has proved remarkably resilient and capable of being tailored to local interests,” the FPI analysts wrote. “It survives as the most important source of revenue in local governments primarily because of its stability.”

If Florida were to eliminate property taxes, the state would have to raise $43 billion (or $2,015 per person) to keep public services currently funded with property tax revenue afloat.

To get close to getting that funding back, the state would need to double its sales tax rate to 12%. That would generate roughly $40.2 billion annually — that’s only if consumers can keep up with higher costs.

Separately, costs of everyday goods are expected to rise due to President Donald Trump’s sweeping tariff policies on imported goods to the U.S.

“Increasing sales taxes, whether it is at the local level or statewide, is a regressive option that would ultimately make Florida’s tax code more inequitable,” wrote the FPI.

So far, Illinois, Pennsylvania, and Kansas have proposed similar measures to banish property taxes.

Property taxes in some popular areas in Florida have risen sharply in recent years, according to Redfin. In Tampa, the median household paid $2,797 in property tax in 2024, that's up 56.7% from 2019.

Instead of providing $5 billion per year via a statewide sales cut, DeSantis would have preferred the Florida House to provide tax relief on property taxes.

Under DeSantis’ proposal, the cut would have resulted in a rebate averaging $1,000 for each homesteaded property in the state. The rebates would have also covered state-mandated school property taxes, which would guarantee school district funding while offering a tax break to homeowners.

The governor was counting on the legislature to approve the measure to get the rebates delivered to homeowners immediately, as soon as December 2025.

“We want to be as bold as we can be, but we also have a reality that we have to get these things passed by the legislature,” DeSantis said during a conference at the Florida Realtors Association this month. “You gotta convince them.”

While