Florida Save Our Homes Portability

What Save Our Homes portability means

Florida has a homestead exemption for a home that qualifies as your permanent residence. Once a home has homestead, it may also receive the Save Our Homes assessment limitation.

Save Our Homes limits how much the assessed value of a Florida homestead can rise each year after the first year. Under section 193.155, Florida Statutes, the annual increase is limited to the lower of 3 percent or the change in the Consumer Price Index, unless another rule applies.

Over time, the home’s just value may rise faster than its assessed value. The gap between those two numbers is often called the Save Our Homes benefit, cap value, or homestead assessment difference.

Portability is the rule that may let a Florida homeowner transfer, or port, all or part of that assessment difference to a new Florida homestead. The Florida Department of Revenue explains this in its Save Our Homes portability brochure.

The homestead exemption itself does not move. You apply for a new homestead exemption on the new home. Portability is a separate assessment benefit tied to the old homestead and the new homestead.

The pieces people often mix up

Who should check portability

Ask about portability if you had a Florida homestead exemption on a prior home and you are moving to another Florida home that may qualify for homestead.

This can be a move within the same county or to a different Florida county. Portability is a statewide Florida rule, but the county property appraiser handles the local review.

Renters do not have Save Our Homes portability from a rental unit. A renter who buys a first Florida home may be able to apply for homestead, but there is no prior Florida homestead assessment difference to port from a rental. A homeowner moving from another state also does not bring a Florida Save Our Homes benefit from that other state.

Checks to make before you rely on portability

Before you assume portability will apply, check these items with the new county property appraiser.

• Did the old home have a Florida homestead exemption?
• Did you receive homestead on the old property as of January 1 of one of the three immediately preceding years?
• Will the new home qualify as your new Florida homestead?
• Did you file Form DR-501T with, or after, the new homestead application?
• Was there an assessment difference on the old home?
• Were there other owners or co-applicants on the old homestead?
• Does the requested transfer stay within Florida’s portability limit?

Florida law limits the transferred assessment difference to no more than $500,000. The exact amount depends on the old home’s just value and assessed value, the new home’s just value, and the ownership facts.

How the portability amount may be calculated

The simple idea is this: the county looks at the difference between the old homestead’s just value and assessed value. That difference is the starting point.

If the new homestead has a just value that is equal to or greater than the old homestead’s just value, Florida law generally allows a transfer equal to the old assessment difference, capped at $500,000.

If the new homestead has a lower just value than the old homestead, the transfer is usually reduced by a ratio. This is why downsizing does not always move the full dollar amount of the old assessment difference.

For example, if the old just value was $350,000 and the old assessed value was $250,000, the starting assessment difference would be $100,000. If the new home is equal or higher in just value, the transferable amount may be $100,000, if the other rules are met. If the new home is lower in just value, the amount may be reduced.

County calculators can help you estimate. They are not approval. The property appraiser reviews the actual records, ownership facts, and qualifying homestead status.

Forms and where to file

For most homeowners, portability starts with the property appraiser in the county where the new home is located. Florida’s Department of Revenue provides a county official finder to help you reach the right local office.

You usually need two filings:

• Form DR-501: Original Application for Homestead and Related Tax Exemptions.
• Form DR-501T: Transfer of Homestead Assessment Difference.

Form DR-501 asks for the new homestead, owner information, deed information, residency facts, and prior homestead information. It also says permanent Florida residency is required on January 1 and the application is due to the property appraiser by March 1.

Form DR-501T asks for the new homestead, the previous homestead, parcel information, county information, the date the prior property was sold or no longer used as a homestead, and information about co-applicants or owners who are not moving to the new homestead.

If the previous homestead was in a different Florida county, the new county property appraiser sends the portability form and homestead application information to the property appraiser in the county of the previous homestead. The prior county then certifies the transfer information.

Documents and facts to gather

You do not need to know the final portability amount before you file. But you should gather enough information so the county can match your old and new homesteads.

• The address and parcel ID of the new home.
• The address and parcel ID of the previous Florida homestead.
• The county where the previous homestead was located.
• The date you sold the old home or stopped using it as your homestead.
• The names of all owners or co-applicants on the previous homestead.
• Deed or ownership information for the new home.
• Proof of Florida residence for the new homestead, as requested by the county.
• Any notice or worksheet showing the old home’s just value and assessed value.

Do not send original documents unless the official office tells you to. Keep copies of what you file and note the filing date.

The timing rule: three years and March 1

The two timing rules that confuse many homeowners are the three-year portability window and the March 1 application deadline.

Florida law says a new homestead may be assessed below just value when the person establishing the new homestead received a homestead exemption as of January 1 of any of the three immediately preceding years.

The Department of Revenue’s Save Our Homes brochure says that to transfer the SOH benefit, you must establish a homestead exemption for the new home within three years of January 1 of the year you abandoned the old homestead. The brochure also says Form DR-501T must be filed with the homestead application by March 1.

Miami-Dade County gives this example on its portability page: if the previous homestead is abandoned in March 2024, the applicant must establish the new homestead by January 1, 2027. That example shows how Florida counties often explain the three assessment-year rule.

If you already filed homestead but forgot portability

Contact the new county property appraiser as soon as you notice the problem. Ask whether you can still submit Form DR-501T and what date the office will stamp as received.

Some counties warn that if portability is approved later, prior-year taxes may not be refunded. Because the result can depend on the exact facts and tax year, get this answer from the official property appraiser for your new county.

If the office says your portability was late, denied, or calculated incorrectly, ask for the written decision or notice and the appeal instructions.

What the county property appraiser does

The property appraiser is not the tax collector. The property appraiser values property and reviews exemptions, classifications, and assessment limitations. The tax collector sends tax bills and collects payments.

For portability, the new county property appraiser reviews whether the new home qualifies for homestead, whether the prior home had homestead within the allowed window, and whether the person applying is entitled to transfer the assessment difference.

If the old home was in the same county, the office may already have the old records. If the old home was in another Florida county, the new county and prior county must exchange information. Cross-county moves can take longer to verify, so keep copies of both parcel records.

Shared ownership, divorce, and spouses

Portability becomes more complicated when the old homestead had more than one owner or more than one person receiving homestead.

Florida law has special rules for jointly owned homesteads. In general, the transferable assessment difference may be divided according to ownership shares unless the law allows a different treatment.

Miami-Dade County explains that when spouses abandon jointly titled property, they may use Form DR-501TS to designate ownership shares of the abandoned homestead. The county also notes that the spouses must be married on the date the jointly owned property is abandoned.

If divorce, separation, death, a trust, a life estate, or shared ownership is involved, ask the property appraiser exactly which forms and proof are needed.

Common problems that delay or block portability

• The homeowner never files DR-501T. The county cannot apply portability without the portability application.
• The new home does not qualify for homestead. Portability depends on a new Florida homestead.
• The old home did not have homestead in the allowed window. The prior Florida homestead is the source of the assessment difference.
• There was little or no assessment difference. If the old just value and assessed value were close, there may be little to transfer.
• Ownership changed. Transfers, trusts, added owners, removed owners, and death can affect the review.
• The issue is really value. If you disagree with the new home’s market value, that may be a value appeal issue, not a portability issue.

If portability is denied or the amount looks wrong

Start by asking the property appraiser for a plain explanation. Ask for the values used in the calculation, the old and new parcel numbers, and the reason the transfer was denied or reduced.

Florida’s Department of Revenue says the Value Adjustment Board hears appeals involving property value assessments, denied exemptions or classifications, tax deferrals, portability decisions, and change of ownership or control.

For portability disputes, use Form DR-486PORT, Petition to the Value Adjustment Board – Transfer of Homestead Assessment Difference. This form covers a denial, disagreement with the calculated amount, late-filed portability issues, or a cross-county portability dispute.

The DR-486PORT form says you have the right to an informal conference with the property appraiser. It also says the conference is not required and does not change the filing due date. Do not miss an appeal deadline while waiting for a meeting.

Florida Administrative Code Rule 12D-9.028 says a portability petition is filed with the Value Adjustment Board in the county where the new homestead is located. It also says the petition must be filed during the taxable year on or before the 25th day after the notice of proposed property taxes is mailed.

Bring facts. Useful evidence may include deeds, property record cards, parcel numbers, the homestead approval, the portability application, any denial notice, and correspondence from both counties.

How portability fits with other relief words

• Exemption: Removes part of value from taxation if the property and owner qualify.
• Assessment limitation: Limits how much assessed value can rise. Save Our Homes is an assessment limitation.
• Portability: May transfer part of a prior Florida homestead assessment difference to a new Florida homestead.
• Rebate or credit: Usually pays or credits an amount through a separate program. Portability is not a rebate or credit.
• Deferral or postponement: Delays payment and may involve liens, interest, and repayment. Portability is not a payment delay.
• Appeal: A formal challenge to value, exemption denial, portability decision, or another determination.

This distinction matters because the wrong form can cost time. If you moved and want the old SOH assessment difference reviewed, ask about portability. If you think the new home is overvalued, ask about a value appeal. If you cannot pay the bill, contact the tax collector about payment options or deferral rules.

A short script for calling the property appraiser

Before you submit

• Confirm the new home is in Florida and may qualify as your permanent residence.
• File the new homestead application with the new county property appraiser.
• File Form DR-501T for portability.
• Use the exact prior homestead address and parcel ID if you have it.
• List all co-applicants and owners accurately.
• Ask for a receipt, confirmation number, or date stamp.
• Save copies of everything you submit.
• Watch your proposed property tax notice for the assessed value and portability result.
• If the result looks wrong, ask about the informal conference and VAB deadline immediately.

Official places to start

For state rules and forms, start with the Florida Department of Revenue’s property tax exemptions page, the Save Our Homes brochure, Form DR-501, and Form DR-501T.

For local filing, use the county official finder. County pages, such as Miami-Dade portability and Palm Beach portability, can help you see how local offices explain the same statewide rule.

For disputes, start with the Department of Revenue’s Value Adjustment Board page and DR-486PORT. Your county clerk or VAB office handles local petition filing.

Editorial note