The December 2017 revisions to the federal tax bill caps “SALT” (State and Local Tax deductions) at $10,000. Prior to this, these deductions were unlimited. This includes not just income and sales taxes, but also real estate taxes, excise taxes etc. Since Florida has no state income tax, a move to Florida is even more appealing to those wanting to minimize their tax liability and honestly who doesn’t?  Those living in states with an income tax like New Jersey, New York, California and Massachusetts will quickly exceed the new federal itemized deduction SALT cap, without even getting to real estate and other local taxes that one paid. The net result is that one ends up paying a federal tax bill on income used to pay local and state taxes and thus increasing the effective tax rate.

ANYONE WHO ITEMIZES THEIR DEDUCTIONS FOR 2018 SHOULD SERIOUSLY CONSIDER MAKING FLORIDA THEIR RESIDENCE ASAP.

To take advantage of the tax benefits, individuals need to buy a property in Florida, which we here at R&R Realty have been helping Buyers do for 15+ years.  You will also need to:

• CLICK HERE TO CONTACT US AND FIND A HOME.
• Obtain a Florida driver’s license.
• Change your car registrations and insurance locations.
• Change your bank and credit card mailing addresses.
• File for a Florida Homestead.
• Resign your current homestead if you have one. This is an important and often overlooked step. It is also one of the few pieces of information which tax collectors readily share with one another.

Florida has long been considered a tax-friendly state with one of the lowest effective tax rates in the country and now with the cap on SALT deductions it’s more appealing than ever. To most, it really is a ‘no-brainer’ to move to beautiful, sunny Florida and not only escape the long, cold winters, but also save more hard-earned money avoiding high taxes.

Making Florida your official home is a smart move.

Can I put in a pool?

OK, so this one only comes up every time I show a property that does not have a pool.  Can I put one in?  The short answer is most likely yes but how big can it be?  In order to answer this you will need the following answers:

• Do I have a recent survey?  If yes then our work is easy.  If not you will need to use the aerial view from the PB county Property Appraisers site.
• Is it in a municipality (say Palm Beach Gardens) or is it in an unincorporated part of the County? If the first 2 digits of the parcel ID are anything other than 00- then the property is in a municipality.
• What is the land zoning? Residential,
• Is it in a Planned Unit Development or PUD.  If it’s a community like say the Sanctuary then the answer is yes.

Pool setbacks (the distance from the property line to the water) are handles in the zoning ordinance.  If the property is in unincorporated Palm Beach County then they have this very nice graphic but I would still call the county and speak to on duty zoning officer and have them confirm the information below.

If the property is in an area within a municipality but NOT in a PUD or neighborhood then you will need to look up the property set backs in the zoning ordinance which can be found on the municode web site.  North Palm Beach for instance is 7.5′ off the rear property line and 5′ off the sides.  Again, call the city and confirm the zoning designation and set backs.

If the property is located inside a community governed by a PUD agreement then this MAY specify the pool setbacks allowed.  A PUD is a zoning agreement and as such it MAY specify a more lenient or restrictive setbacks for a pool.  For instance in the Sanctuary community in Palm Beach Gardens the PUD specifies a 5′ setback from both the side and the rear property lines.

• Do I have enough electricity for the pump, salt system, electric heater, lights, ect?
• Do I have a way to get machinery in and out to build the pool and remove the dirt?
• How will I provide the required safety barrier, be it a ‘baby barrier’, fence or screen enclosure?
• Will have to add alarms to doors and windows which open up INSIDE of the safety barrier?