Why Florida property taxes jump after you buy
If you buy a home in Florida, the tax bill in the listing is almost never the bill you'll pay. It belongs to the seller, and it may reflect years of capped assessments. Florida resets the assessed value when a home sells, so the jump comes in your second year. Then your mortgage escrow account catches up with it, which can cost about twice as much again. This guide works through one house step by step, using the same calculators that run the rest of this site.
Why the seller's bill is lower than yours will be
A homesteaded owner's assessed value can rise by no more than 3 percent a year, or by inflation if that is lower. This is the Save Our Homes cap (Fla. Stat. §193.155). After ten or fifteen years of rising prices, a seller's assessed value can be far below what the home is worth. Tax is charged on the assessed value, not the market value.
When the home sells, the cap ends. The law says a home that changes hands is reassessed at just value (market value) as of January 1 of the next year (§193.155(3)). The seller's low assessment doesn't carry over to you.
The year of the sale: you pay the seller's bill
Property status in Florida is set on January 1. A home bought in 2026 is taxed for all of 2026 on the seller's January 1 status: their capped value and their homestead exemption. You pay that November bill. The seller credits you at closing for the part of the year they owned the home (see the proration calculator). The first year often looks cheaper than the house really is.
One house, worked through
An Orange County home sells for $400,000. The seller has owned and homesteaded it for years, and their assessed value is $190,000. Orange County's countywide average millage is 17.41 mills. The figures below are annual estimates from the homestead exemption calculator's engine:
| Situation | Assessed value | Estimated annual tax |
|---|---|---|
| Year of sale (seller's capped value, seller's homestead) | $190,000 | $2,583 |
| Next year: buyer files homestead by March 1 | $400,000 | $6,239 |
| Next year: buyer misses the homestead filing | $400,000 | $6,964 |
| Next year: buyer files homestead and ports a prior Florida homestead | $250,000 | $3,628 |
The buyer who files on time still sees the bill rise by $3,656 a year. Nothing went wrong: the cap the seller built up simply ended. A buyer who misses the filing pays another $725 on top.
The table assumes just value equals the price, which is the worst case. Section 193.011(8) tells appraisers to account for the usual costs of sale, so in many counties the appraiser's just value comes in somewhat below the price paid. The August TRIM notice is where you see the actual figure.
It's not just Orange County
Run the same sale through other counties' average millage and the jump changes with the local rate:
| County | Average mills | Seller's bill (year of sale) | Buyer's bill (next year) | Jump |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Miami-Dade | 18.49 | $2,738 | $6,620 | $3,883 |
| Broward | 19.86 | $2,924 | $7,096 | $4,171 |
| Palm Beach | 17.49 | $2,591 | $6,264 | $3,673 |
| Hillsborough | 18.86 | $2,781 | $6,740 | $3,960 |
| Orange | 17.41 | $2,583 | $6,239 | $3,656 |
| Duval | 17.89 | $2,647 | $6,405 | $3,758 |
| Pinellas | 18.49 | $2,729 | $6,613 | $3,884 |
| Lee | 14.00 | $2,080 | $5,020 | $2,939 |
| Polk | 15.44 | $2,279 | $5,521 | $3,242 |
| Brevard | 14.77 | $2,213 | $5,314 | $3,101 |
These are countywide averages. Your parcel's actual rate depends on its city and special districts. The buyer property-tax estimator works it out for a specific price and county.
The escrow shortage that follows
Most buyers with a mortgage pay taxes through an escrow account. The lender sets the first year's deposits from a tax figure at closing. If that figure was the seller's bill, the account is funded for $2,583 a year and then has to pay a $6,239 bill.
The annual escrow analysis then does two things at once. It collects the shortage, about $3,656 (less any cushion already in the account), and it raises deposits so the next bill is covered. For the year after the analysis, the buyer's escrow deposits run about $7,312 higher than the year before, roughly twice the jump. Then they settle back to the new bill.
Federal escrow rules (Regulation X, 12 CFR 1024.17) soften the hit. If the shortage is at least one month's escrow deposit, the servicer must let you repay it over at least 12 months. The cushion it may hold is capped at one-sixth of a year's escrowed charges.
Three ways to shrink the jump
- File for homestead by March 1. Apply with the county property appraiser by March 1 of the year after you buy (§196.011). In the example, missing the deadline costs $725 for that year. Late filing is allowed in limited cases (§196.011(8)), but don't count on it.
- Port your old homestead. If you're moving from another Florida homestead, you can carry up to $500,000 of its Save Our Homes difference to the new home (§193.155(8)). File Form DR-501T along with your homestead application, generally within three years of leaving the old home. In the example, a prior home worth $350,000 with a $200,000 assessed value carries $150,000, saving $2,612 a year. The portability calculator runs your own numbers.
- Escrow for the real bill from day one. Ask your lender what tax figure the escrow is based on. It appears on the Loan Estimate as "Estimated Taxes, Insurance & Assessments." If it's the seller's bill, ask for your estimated post-sale bill instead. Your deposits are a little higher in year one, but there's no shortage to repay later.
Your calendar after closing
| When | What happens |
|---|---|
| November 2026 | You pay the seller-status 2026 bill, 4 percent off if paid in November (discount schedule). |
| January 1, 2027 | The reassessment date: your home is valued at just value, and your homestead status is set for 2027. |
| March 1, 2027 | Homestead (and portability) filing deadline. |
| August 2027 | The TRIM notice shows your new value and proposed taxes, with 25 days to petition the Value Adjustment Board (TRIM guide). |
| November 2027 | The first reset bill is due, and the escrow analysis catches up around this time. |
A caution about 2027. These figures use current law. Amendment 3 is on the November 3, 2026 ballot. If at least 60 percent of voters approve it, the non-school homestead exemption changes starting in 2027, and that would change the buyer's numbers above. Amendment 3, explained works through the amounts.
Quick answers
Why did my property taxes go up after I bought my Florida home?
Florida caps a homesteaded owner's assessed value, and the cap ends at sale. The home is reassessed at market value on January 1 of the year after the sale (§193.155(3)), so the first bill is the seller's and the second reflects the reset. In this guide's Orange County example the bill rises from $2,583 to $6,239.
Do I pay the seller's property taxes in Florida?
You pay the year-of-sale bill in November, but the seller credits you at closing for the days they owned the home. That bill uses the seller's January 1 status, including their homestead exemption.
Why did my escrow payment go up so much in year two?
If the escrow was set from the seller's lower bill, the account runs short when your reset bill is paid. The next analysis collects the shortage and raises deposits for the new bill at the same time, so for about a year the increase is roughly twice the tax jump.
Data verified as of October 2026.