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Tag: taxes

Fire assessment rates set to increase

Fire assessment rates set to increase

Written by SUN contributor on . Posted in Community News, West Manatee Fire Rescue.

MANATEE COUNTY – Fire assessment rates will be increasing for residents and business owners in the West Manatee Fire Rescue district.

Though rates in WMFR’s district could go up as high as 6.7%, the assessment rate for the 2023-24 fiscal year is expected to increase by 4%, or about $13.42 for the average homeowner.

Commissioners and staff met on April 18 for a mid-year budget workshop prior to the board’s regular monthly meeting. During the meeting, Chief Ben Rigney gave commissioners three rate proposals for the new fiscal year set to begin on Oct. 1 – a 0%, 4% or 6.7% increase. Rigney recommended the 4% increase to allow for additional funds to be collected through tax assessment revenue to help fund district needs, primarily the addition of nine new staff members.

The planned new hires include six firefighters – two additional people per shift with one of the new firefighters stationed on Anna Maria Island – two new fire inspectors and a financial clerk who was just hired as support staff for the district’s fire prevention bureau.

The two new fire inspectors would work to help with inspections of vacation rental properties in WMFR’s district, an initiative planned to begin in October. Inspectors will be operating under the Florida Fire Prevention Code and looking for any potential dangers to life or safety on the properties. Fire Marshal Rodney Kwiatkowski said that inspectors will operate independently of any vacation rental inspection or certificate programs already in place on the Island, though he added that they would try to work with all city code compliance/enforcement personnel to not overlap efforts and inconvenience property owners.

The increase in assessment also covers the cost of increases in insurance and planned raises, among other administrative items for the district. The district’s assessment rates are based on the size of a building on a property or a flat rate if the property is vacant, not the property’s value. With a 4% increase, income from assessment rates would increase an estimated $382,482 in the 2023-24 fiscal year from $9,562,071 to $9,944,554.

District property owners will see the increase on their TRIM notices this fall if it is approved by a vote of fire commissioners during the board’s May meeting.

Currently, district property owners with a 2,000-square-foot home pay $336.22 per year for fire and rescue services through the district when they pay their tax bill. With a 4% increase, that amount would rise to $349.63, an increase of $13.42.

The owner of a 2,000-square-foot commercial property paid $753.19 to the district in the 2022-23 fiscal year. That number would increase to $783.32 if the 4% increase is approved, a jump of $20.13.

Commissioners are expected to vote on the proposed assessment rate increase during a May 16 meeting at the district’s administration building.

Castles in the Sand

Florida’s in the tax driver’s seat

Written by Louise Bolger on . Posted in Business, Castles in the Sand, Real estate | Development.

It’s almost tax time again so why not talk again about Florida’s advantageous tax position and the influx of new residents. I like to tie in our growing population with real estate sales statistics since it’s my opinion there’s a direct correlation between the two. I’ll also report the January sales in this column.

But first, it’s been two years since the new tax law was signed and we’re just starting to see the effects. Local economies and housing markets are motivating residents of high tax states to relocate to more tax-friendly states like Florida with no state income tax. Even though the tax overhaul resulted in many people experiencing lower taxes, homeowners in high tax states are being seriously hurt and when many of these high-end individuals move, it has a ripple effect on the economies of that state.

If you remember, part of the new law capped how much homeowners can subtract from their federal taxes for the payment of local property and income taxes. The cap is set at $10,000 which, in states like New York, New Jersey and Illinois to name a few, is far below what most homeowners pay in property tax and state tax combined.

The average property tax in the United States in 2018 was about $3,500 according to a national data real estate firm. However, this is far below what much of the northeastern states pay in property tax. In Westchester County in New York State, the average property tax was more than $17,000, the highest in the country. In addition, the law also lowered the size of mortgages for which new buyers can deduct the interest to $750,000 from $1 million, just adding to the high tax and high property value states’ misery.

Not everyone is moving because of taxes exclusively, some were considering a move already and many were near retirement and just needed a little push. Whatever the reason, Florida is one of the beneficiaries of the movement with increased sales and rising property values.

These are the January sales statistics for Manatee County from the Realtor Association of Sarasota and Manatee: Single-family homes closed 22.4% more homes in January compared to last January. The median sale price was $329,500, an increase of 6.6%, and the average sale price was $420,775, an increase of 8.7%. Condos closed 47.7% more properties this January compared to last year. The median sale price was $210,000, up 7.7%, and the average sale price was $236,687, down 1.8%.

An ongoing problem continues to be a lack of inventory, with 3.4 month’s supply for single-family properties and 4.7 month’s supply for condos. These numbers are either down double digits from last year or even. As the Realtor Association of Sarasota and Manatee headline reads in its press release “Home Sales Out-Pace Supply.” Not a great place to be.

For those who want to change your address to one in Florida, make sure you establish a legitimate residency. States are known to conduct residency audits to verify you’re really leaving their state. This happens a lot when people own two homes in different states and want to move their residency. Florida wants you to get a driver’s license, obtain Florida license plates and auto insurance, file a declaration of domicile, apply for Florida homestead exemption, register to vote and open a bank account. Floridians should get ready for this influx to continue.

As with most changes, there’s always a good and a bad aspect and we’re sure to experience both.

More Castles in the Sand:

The greying of the mortgage market

Credit scores have new meaning

Let’s all just take a breath

Castles in the Sand

Million dollar homes and taxes

Written by Louise Bolger on . Posted in Business, Castles in the Sand.

Three months ago, when I updated my quarterly million-dollar-and-over properties report in our area, I took some pity on wealthy real estate owners around the country who were experiencing a serious slow down in sales. Now I have another reason to empathize with the wealthy or near wealthy, particularly those who live in New York City.

On July 1 the city of New York, which encompasses not only Manhattan but four other New York City boroughs, all with high end properties, increased the so-called mansion tax. The tax escalated from a flat 1 percent for property sales $1 million or more to a progressive tax starting at 1.25 percent on homes between $2 million to $3 million up to a maximum of 3.9 percent on sales $25 million or more.

Technically, the buyers are responsible to pay the tax, but rest assured, it is a highly negotiable item, particularly in today’s slow high-end market.

Keep in mind the state of New York has had a 1 percent surcharge on all home sales over $1 million for many years. This tax stays the same for New York State homeowners, and only properties within the city of New York are subject to the progressive increase. This is in addition to New York State properties, especially within commuting distance to New York City, having some of the highest property taxes and state taxes in the country.

This combined with the cap on state and property tax deductions is the reason New York and other Northeastern states are shedding residents.

So, what does this mean to us low tax carefree Floridians? As I’ve previously stated, it probably means a steady influx of well-heeled buyers escaping high taxes and snow, a lethal combination. If they come to our area, here’s what they’ll find over $1 million based on the August, September and October sales and properties currently on the market as of this writing.

Cortez did not sell any $1 million or over properties this quarter, which is the same as the
previous quarter. The city of Anna Maria sold eight properties $1 million or over, ranging
from $1,000,000 to $1,925,000. Last quarter it closed 13 properties. The combined cities of Bradenton Beach and Holmes Beach closed eight properties over $1 million, ranging
from $1,025,600 to $3,550,000. Last quarter it closed 14 properties.

On the market as of this writing, in Cortez there are two over $1 million properties, residential land for $1,600,000 and a single-family home for $1,375,000. Last quarter
there were six available. The city of Anna Maria has 59 $1 million or over properties available – one listing at $5.5 million, four listed for $4 million or over, five listed at $3
million or over, 14 listed for $2 million or over and 35 listed for $1 million or over. Last quarter, Anna Maria had 48 properties available.

Finally, the combined cities of Bradenton Beach and Holmes Beach have 73 properties
available – two at $5 million or more, three at $4 million or more, two at $3 million or
more, 18 at $2 million or more and 48 at $1 million or more. Last quarter there were 69
available. The statistics for the analysis are compiled from the Manatee County Property
Appraisers Office and available properties from realtor.com.

Although the million-dollar and over sales are down a little and the available properties
are up a little, considering the months analyzed, it’s expected. Everyone is getting ready now for the busy winter season listing their properties and waiting for the Northeast escapees to arrive.

Florida still has the best weather and lowest taxes in the country, and the high-end buyers especially are starting to take notice.

Let’s make sure Florida never has a mansion tax.

Support wanes for returning tourist tax to AMI

Written by Cindy Lane on . Posted in First Place, Special Sections.

SARASOTA – Amending the tourism development tax law to allow one cent of the five cents-per-dollar tax revenues to be repaid to the municipalities that generated them will not be a 2015 legislative priority for the ManaSota League of Cities.

The board decided on Nov. 6 to continue to discuss the issue next year, but declined to include it as one of its legislative priorities.

Manatee County’s 5 percent resort tax is collected from owners of accommodations rented for six months or less who charge the tax to their renters, in most cases, tourists. The majority of the tax is allocated to Bradenton Area Convention and Visitors Bureau tourism marketing efforts, with one of the five pennies allocated to beach renourishment.

First Place

State and Local Tax Reporting

The Florida TaxWatch Award

2014

About 43 percent of Manatee County’s September resort tax revenues (the last month available) were generated in Anna Maria Island’s three cities, according to the Manatee County Tax Collector’s office.

Unfair burden

“Our concern is that none of that money comes back to cities that are affected most by increasing tourism,” said Holmes Beach Commissioner Jean Peelen, also a Manatee County Tourist Development Council member.

“We get one cent for beach renourishment, but that doesn’t necessarily benefit us in handling the burdens,” she said. “Most of the funds go to increasing tourism in our county. But we have increasing issues with the burden, with police, with keeping our beaches clean, with waste management, code enforcement… the burden on our roads is getting ridiculous.”

“It’s about fairness,” she said. “These funds are being generated by our municipalities and we get nothing back to deal with the increased burden.”

“We have to put up infrastructure, we have police problems, we contribute a lot of this money and we have to put up with controlling the crowds,” Bradenton Beach Mayor Bill Shearon said, adding that spectators and participants who come for the 2017 World Rowing Championships at Nathan Benderson Park, near the Sarasota/Manatee county line, will flood the beaches.

“We’re congested, we’re overpacked and we have to handle that,” he said.

The issue does not belong on the priority list yet, League President Jack Duncan said.

“This could be another piece of legislation like vacation rentals. It truly, truly, truly needs revision,” he said, asking members to begin putting together a proposal for 2016.

The Manatee County tourism brochure says “Come to Manatee County,” but lists Anna Maria Island and Longboat Key as the prime attractions, he said.

“We’re the drawing card, but with that comes expense,” he said, adding that a proposal must be worded in a way that supports tourism.

To League members who deny that the issue is a problem, Peelen warned, “There will be an increased need for short term vacation rentals around the whole Bradenton/Sarasota area, and it may be more important to you then than it is now.”

Vacation rental law

The League also decided against including further vacation rental law reform on its priority list.

The state Legislature passed a law in 2011 prohibiting municipal regulation of vacation rentals, including minimum stays and frequency, causing city governments to complain that they could not address noise, parking and trash problems at vacation rental properties.

Last year the Legislature tweaked the law, allowing municipalities to regulate rentals for health and safety.

“None of the cities on the Island have taken advantage of the change made last year,” Peelen said, adding that the League may consider the issue again after cities act.

Duncan congratulated outgoing Anna Maria Mayor SueLynn’s progress on the vacation rental issue, which he said he had “thought was DOA.”

The League also decided not to oppose state support for beach renourishment being linked to beach parking access.