NEW for 2013 Property Tax Reform

In November 2012, Florida voters approved amendments to the Florida Constitution granting the following:

  • Amended 2 – Veteran’s Disabled Due to Combat Injury; Homestead Property Tax Discount – This amendment removes from Florida Statute 196.082, the requirement that the veteran must have been a Florida resident at the time of entering the military to qualify for the combat-related disability. The veteran would still need to provide documentation proving the following; age 65 or older as of January 1st, a letter from Veteran’s Affairs stating combat-related disability and that he/she was honorably discharged.

 

  • Amended 9 – Homestead Property Tax Exemption for Surviving Spouse of Military Veteran or First Responder – This amendment grants an ad valorem tax exemption to the surviving spouse of a veteran who died from service-connected causes while on active duty, and to the surviving spouse of a first responder who died in the line of duty. The surviving spouse must provide a letter that the veteran or the first responder died in the line of duty. The veteran must have been a Florida Resident as of January 1st of the year in which the veteran died. The first responder and his/her spouse must have been Florida Residents as of January 1st of the year in which the first responder died.

 

  • Amended 11 – Additional Homestead Exemption; Low-Income Seniors Who Maintain Long-Term Residency on Property; Equal to Assessed Value – This amendment allows an additional homestead tax exemption that will be equal to the assessed value of the homestead property with a just value less than $250,000, if the owner is over 65 years of age, has proven household income did not exceed the yearly income requirements and affirms their permanent residence has been on the same property for at 25 years. This amendment was adopted by Collier County to provide further reduction in your portion of county taxes.

 

For additional information, please contact the Collier County Property Appraiser’s office at 239-252-8141.

 

Sincerely,

Abe Skinner, CFA