Broward County Property Appraiser's Network

Florida law is very clear: you will lose your homestead exemption if you rent out all (or substantially all) of your homesteaded residence. Section 196.061 of Florida Statutes sets forth that rental of the homestead “shall constitute the abandonment of [the] dwelling as a homestead.“ Even engaging in brief seasonal rentals of your homestead each year can forfeit your ability to claim exemption if the seasonal rentals involve any period of time -- no matter how brief -- during two consecutive years. The law does provide an exception for active duty military (and their spouses), who are permitted to rent out a homestead while retaining the exemption. If you have any questions about these laws, please contact our office. Important: Owners who cheat on homestead will have a tax lien placed against their properties for up to ten years of back taxes (as applicable), pay a 50% penalty, and pay interest at a rate of 15% per year. To report homestead fraud, please contact our Fraud Section at 954.357.6900. We investigate ALL reports of exemption fraud.

If anyone named on this homestead exemption renewal receipt has died, you must promptly report it to our office to avoid potential penalties. Any homestead exemption a nowdeceased person claimed must be removed in the year immediately following the year in which the person died. Homestead exemptions do not transfer to family members and do not remain with the property after a homesteaded owner dies. If you are a surviving spouse or otherwise believe you are entitled to an exemption, you must file your own application to receive the benefit. Failure to report the death of a homesteaded owner or homesteaded trust beneficiary can result in a costly back tax lien, plus penalties and interest, for continuing to improperly receive the benefit of an expired exemption. Contact us at 954.357.6830 if you have any questions related to the death of an owner.

To better serve working families, our office will be open from 8:30 am to 5:00 pm on five Saturdays in 2012: February 25, May 5, August 11, August 25, and September 15.

Under Florida law, you may transfer your Save Our Homes assessment benefit -- up to $500,000 maximum -- from a previous Florida homestead to a new 2012 homestead. To be eligible: you must have had a 2010 or 2011 homestead exemption on the previous property; the homestead MUST be entirely cancelled on the previous property as to all owners; and you MUST apply for and receive a new homestead exemption for the 2012 Tax Year. You are not required to sell the previous homesteaded property to claim portability savings. Contact us at 954.357.6830 for more information.

If you purchase a home, you will generally inherit the seller�s exemption status for the current tax year in which you purchased it. Be sure to verify with our office just before the closing that the seller has not already cancelled his/her exemptions -- as this could cause you to receive a much larger than expected tax bill. Review your closing statement carefully, as the seller will likely give you a deduction/credit for the seller�s pro rata share of the current year taxes. However, the buyer is ultimately responsible for making payment of the entire tax bill when it arrives in November. Next year, your home will be reassessed based upon your purchase price (and the sale prices this year of other qualified market sales in your neighborhood). Finally, remember you will need to file for a Homestead Exemption on the new property for next year as the seller�s exemptions will automatically be removed at the end of this year. You can use our online tax estimator to give you an approxmate estimatation of your new taxes.

If your mailing address is incorrect or if the name of an owner is misspelled, please promptly email our (or use regular mail or fax to 954.357.6894) so we can keep our records up to date. Be sure to let us know if your mailing address changes in the future -- including when you file a long-term temporary or seasonal postal forwarding order -- so as to not jeopardize your exemptions.

We know there is quite a bit of confusion about what our office does versus other governmental entities, based upon the emails and calls we receive daily. Hopefully, this 60-second guide will help point you in the right direction:

WHAT WE DO: By law, our office monitors all recorded property sales and uses the data to reassess all property in Broward County every year utilizing mass-appraisal methods (regardless of whether there was a recent sale). We process all applications for property tax exemptions (homestead, disability, seniors, etc.) and agricultural classifications and maintain the integrity of these valuable savings by investigating allegations of fraud and abuse. We maintain the official "tax roll" -- which is a written, computerized inventory filed with the Florida Department of Revenue in Tallahassee identifying and valuing all real property and commercial personal property in Broward. We prepare and mail the TRIM Notice of Proposed Property Taxes every August informing taxpayers of their proposed assessments and tax rates. We engage in extensive public outreach to keep people informed of changes in law impacting property owners. We defend our values in cases heard by the independent Value Adjustment Board and in circuit court

WHAT WE DO NOT DO: We do not set any tax rates or fees (contact your City Commission, School Board, etc.). We do not send the tax bills nor do we collect the taxes (contact the County Revenue Collector at 954.831.4000 or revenue@broward.org). We do not record deeds, liens, mortgages or other documents (contact the County Recording Office at 954.831.4000 or records@broward.org). We do not have information on active foreclosure cases (contact the Clerk of Courts). We do not conduct individual appraisals of specific properties (contact a private appraiser). We do not investigate forged deed signatures or mortgage fraud schemes (contact the police).

Property owners who file false applications to obtain a homestead exemption are breaking the law ... and they’re making you pay more in taxes each year. Why? Because the School Board, the County Commission, your local City government, and the various other taxing authorities must fund their budgets by equitably dividing the tax burden among all the property owners within their jurisdiction. If someone lies to falsely lower his or her own tax bill by claiming tax savings he or she isn’t entitled to, that means someone else has to make up the difference. And -- you guessed it -- that “someone else” is you (and all of the other law-abiding taxpayers). Our aggressive anti-fraud work makes tax cheats pay their fair share ... and that helps keep your taxes down. If you believe you have reliable information about someone engaging in fraud relating to exemptions or special property classifications, please call our Fraud Investigation Unit at 954.357.6900 and we will investigate the property. You may also report fraud online. Simply leave your name and contact information blank on the form if you wish to remain anonymous. Our office's investigators have already successfully added more than $1 billion in assessed value to Broward's tax roll because of your helpful tips!

Dear Broward Neighbors,

We’re constantly working to improve our office. If you have any ideas to make our office even better, please drop me a note or email me at lori@bcpa.net.

Lori Parrish, CFA
Broward County Property Appraiser