Florida Lawmakers Eye Property Tax, Housing Affordability
Senior Policy Advisor Jon Steverson and Public Affairs Advisor Tori Deal of Holland & Knight's Florida Government Advocacy Team, along with Miami Real Estate attorney Hugo Arza, were quoted in a Law360 article examining how Florida's 2026 legislative session is likely to shape the real estate market.
Mr. Steverson predicted property tax relief will top the agenda. "The No. 1 issue for real estate this upcoming legislative season will be property tax. Hands down," he said, noting that Gov. Ron DeSantis has continued to push for sweeping tax changes while the Florida House has rolled out multiple proposed constitutional amendments offering different paths to reductions, setting up a debate over affordability, local government revenue and what can pass in an election year.
Ms. Deal emphasized that the process may be constrained by differing approaches between the chambers, particularly if the Senate prefers to delay the debate into a special session rather than advance the House's menu of proposals during the regular session. "What that tells you is that the eight proposals that the House has forward, which are flowing through their committees, it's going to be really hard for those to survive this session if the Senate does not align," she observed.
Mr. Arza added that any reduction in property taxes could influence buyer and investor behavior by easing one of the core costs of owning property, but he added that taxes are only part of the affordability equation. "Ultimately, the reduction in some way, shape or form of those taxes, I think, stands a reasonable chance to maybe incentivize some folks to move and to do some things with their real estate, which is the trickle effect to those of us who practice on the ground," he explained. "Taxes and insurance are two legs of the cost structure for anyone who buys a home or condo or anything. They've got to account for those things."
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