One of the biggest factors affecting home buyers in South Florida (and nationwide for that matter) is how much money they can expect to spend on property taxes once they buy a new home. Although as realtors we are not allowed to quote buyers any figures (because obviously we cannot be sure what they will be, nor would we want to be liable should they be higher than expected) I can show you, as a prospective home buyer, how in five minutes you can go straight to the horse’s mouth(Miam-Dade County) and using their own website, get a good idea as to what that number would be!
First you’ll need the exact address to the property, in question, including Unit#(if a condo) and Zip Code. Next you’ll need the listed price of the property, or the offer you expect to pay for the property (Property Taxes are Ad Valorem, meaning “according to the value” in latin, and are figured on asessed value, which is usually based on how much is paid for a property in the latest sale of record).
Now, armed with this information , go to www.miamidade.gov…
go to “Online Services” and click on “Search Property Records”…once that window opens click on the big green button: “Begin Search”…in the new window you will see “Show Me” you want to click either “Property Information” or
“Property Taxes” (we are actually first searching for the Tax folio #, if you already have the tax folio # skip ahead to “Tax Estimator”)…
then go to “Search By” and bring down the drop down screen and click on address,
enter the exact address of the property and click the big green button “Locate” and you should get all the current property tax info, including the folio # which is what we need. Copy this entire # down on a sheet of paper or print it out.
Now, go back to the main page at www.miamidade.gov, and in the search window in the upper left corner type in the words “Tax Estimator” and click “GO”…
you will get a window telling you there are over 3000 results, click on the first result; “TAX ESTIMATOR Instructions and Disclaimers”…
Next read all the text contained on that page and when you get to the bottom you must check the box that says “I have read, understand and accept the disclosures,considerations and disclaimer listed above”. After reading the whole page and checking that box , click on the box that says: “Proceed to Tax Estimator Worksheet”… NOW we are finally at the Home Property Tax Estimator Worksheet, Yippee! (Don’t get too happy until you see what the taxes are going to be!)
Step#1: Enter Property Value( or what you expect to pay for it.)…
Step#2: Enter Folio # or municipality (I strongly recommend going the extra mile to figure out the tax folio # for a more accurate figure)…
Step#3: Will the Property be A Homestead Property? (Meaning: Will you live there?) Check appropriate box…
(In Miami-Dade County, Homestead property currently receives a $25,ooo tax exemption off of the assessed value, before taxes are figured)… Final STEP: Click on Estimate Property Taxes and you’re finished. Print out a copy for your records, and you now have a figure estimated by the county, on approximately what you can expect to pay in property taxes on your prospective home, given what you are willing to pay for it. .. Good Luck!