The tax man cometh and Florida is no different. Although we do pay our fair share of real estate tax the over all tax rate is one of the lowest in the nation.
| Aside from the obvious benefit of Florida’s warm climate, Florida’s beneficial treatment of homestead assets, as well as the fact that there is no State estate tax or nor a State income tax are all major reasons that people choose to relocate to Florida. These benefits are only available to U.S. citizens and green card holders. Florida homestead exemption allows for an unlimited protection of a homesteaded property. The tax benefits center around two primary issues. The first of which, is the fact that Florida has no State estate tax. We have many Florida resident clients who are former New York residents and who still maintain property in New York. Upon their passing, their New York properties will be subject to the New York State estate tax (in addition to the Federal estate tax) and these properties will also be subject to ancillary probate proceedings. This means there would need to be two probate proceedings, one in Florida and one in NY. To these individuals we recommend creating a revocable trust and transferring title of the New York properties into the Florida trust. The second tax benefit is that there is no Florida State income tax, but that only applies to income produced in Florida. If you own rental properties say back in New York or Massachusetts then you will ne to pay that state income tax. |
