Miami sets a historically low property-tax rate. What does it mean for you?
Miami commissioners on Thursday voted to reduce the property-tax rate to the lowest level since the 1960s.
Mayor Francis Suarez touted the rate — the lowest since 1964, when the city began tracking such things — in a press conference after the vote. Despite indications that a recession could soon hobble an economy already pressured by increased inflation, the mayor said it was the perfect moment to give taxpayers a break.
“If you can’t do it in a year like this year, you can’t do it in any year,” Suarez said. “We are fully funded in the government and what we’re doing is using some of the excess revenue to give back to our residents.”
Commissioner Joe Carollo also noted that with swelling property values, the rate reduction might not necessarily mean a lower tax bill for every homeowner, particularly for those with high-value properties.
“The bill that we all get for our property taxes is gonna be higher than in the past because the property appraiser in MiamiDade County, not the city of Miami, is going to value those properties at a higher amount,” he said.
IMPACT ON TYPICAL HOMEOWNER
The practical impact of the lowered rate is a smaller increase on the portion of property taxes paid to the city.
City-controlled property taxes are only one part of a property owner’s overall tax bill, which includes taxes for other local agencies,
including the MiamiDade School Board. In August, property owners will receive a letter called a TRIM notice announcing their proposed tax rate and dates for public hearings.
The Miami commission voted to lower the property tax rate to $7.88 per $1,000 of a property’s assessed value. The vote set a ceiling for a rate that can be lowered before the budget receives final approval in September, but the rate cannot easily be raised.
Under the rate, the owner of a median home valued at $192,916 would pay about $1,171 in property taxes. That marks about a $30 increase from the last budget year, assuming the owner qualified for the standard homestead exresidents
emption and the home’s assessed value increased by 3%, the maximum allowed by law this year for an owner-occupied home.
Last year’s property-tax rate was $7.99 per $1,000 of a property’s assessed value; this rate is 1.2% lower.
IMPACT ON THE CITY
City Manager Art Noriega said the lower tax rate eliminates a little more than $7 million in tax revenue. Commissioners said they do not expect city services to change under the lower tax rate.
“Our residents expect low taxes but high services; we got both right today because in this approval we will not be reducing any services to the
of Miami,” said Commissioner Ken Russell.
Suarez kept referring to the city’s excess in reserves from the budget this year as evidence of the city’s healthy financial standing. Carollo agreed with the other lawmakers that lowering taxes now is the right move but expressed some concern.
“It’s not an easy task because we’ve only left a much smaller amount in reserves than we would’ve normally liked, but we knew the residents of Miami needed that reduction more than ever,” he said.