DeSantis wants to eliminate Florida property taxes. Could he pull it off?
The push to eliminate property taxes has been picking up steam across the country. Florida’s statewide budget mostly comes from the sales tax. Local governments lean on property taxes to help fund services like police, fire, and schools. Now, Gov. Ron DeSantis is weighing on the movement and detailing a way to get it done in Florida. More from WFLA and Click Orlando.
Will climate change dampen demand for Florida residential real estate?
There was a time when an occasional disgruntled resident might not matter to Florida’s booming $180 billion home industry. But that may be changing. After six years of fierce hurricanes and searing summer temperatures, brokers, mortgage bankers and Florida’s entire residential real estate industry have expressed concern that weather patterns influenced by climate change may have wilted the state’s reputation as an idyllic place to live and work. [Source: WUFT]
What bubble? Outrageous $100M+ homes are the new normal in South Florida, experts say
;.There were seven $100 million-plus closings in 2024, the second-highest per year in US history after nine in 2021. And for every shocking list price agents know will get the media’s attention, several more are held secretly off-market. “The values of these properties didn’t quintuple overnight,” Jonathan Miller, CEO of the appraisal firm Miller Samuel, said. “A lot of wealth has poured into Florida and the perception of value has changed.” [Source: New York Post]
A UF report details ongoing struggle for affordable housing for Florida residents
A University of Florida report finds residents are struggling to find affordable housing. UF's Shimberg Center for Housing Studies found housing prices to be stabilizing after many years of growth. However, it says buying a house will still create real financial stress. The report found median home prices range from $250,000 in rural areas to over $500,000 in coastal cities. Renters are also struggling, according to the study, with almost 900,000 low-income renters paying more than 40% of their earnings on rent. [Source: WUSF]
How AI is reaching further into real estate
Real estate agents and businesses know that chatbots using artificial intelligence (AI) can speed up interactions with potential clients and provide answers to the most frequently asked questions, but AI can be leveraged in so many other ways that can improve sales. Using AI to virtually stage a house can declutter homes by deleting images of objects in a house or sprucing up the exterior of a house that needs a little renovation. Other options can analyze a home's photos and provide a detailed outline of renovation costs and offer an estimate of the profit potential for each project. [Source: Florida Realtors]
8%
Apartment rents in the Tampa metro area fell 8% year over year according to a new report. That’s the second biggest drop in the country, preceded only by Austin, Texas, where rents decreased 16%. [Source: Tampa Bay Times]
› Judge rules against Florida brokerage accused of scamming homeowners
A South Florida real estate brokerage accused of trapping vulnerable homeowners into predatory contracts will no longer be able to enforce those agreements in Florida thanks to a ruling by a Hillsborough County judge on Wednesday. The state sued MV Realty in 2022 for using deceptive business practices that impacted over 9,000 Florida homeowners.
› Miami Digital Real Estate Summit explores digital twins as key to climate-resilient cities
The summit, produced by Magma and Logos Capital with a number of supporters, brought together 150 leaders from the tech industry, government and the community at the Phillip and Patricia Frost Museum of Science on Tuesday to discuss how digital twin technology could be the key to creating a smart city model and artificial intelligence-driven improvement plan for the county.
› Chicago 'hot dog king' lists 3 Naples properties for $58.6M
The founder of the famed Portillo’s restaurant chain has partnered with a Southwest Florida builder on three luxury properties — units he is now selling through a prominent real estate broker with ties to both Chicago and Naples. The properties are all in Naples and include an 11,698-square-foot penthouse priced at $27.9 million; a 6,500-square-foot house priced at $16.99 million; and a 5,000-square-foot house priced at $13.75 million.
› Why do so many St. Petersburg homes have open code enforcement cases?
St. Petersburg officials have opened nearly 11,000 code enforcement cases on properties that may have been damaged by last year’s hurricanes, and many of the owners may not know it. The city says it is doing so as a proactive measure to keep track of whether the properties are repaired properly to protect current and future owners. But the blanket approach is frustrating many property owners who say that energy should be put toward issuing permits for repair work or at least accurately identifying damaged properties.