[SoFLGal]

A few things that insurance agents take into consideration when evaluating the home are-the age of the home, style of roof(hip roof is best), how close the home is to a natural body of water or fire hydrant, how the roof is tied on, if the home has hurricane shutters or impact resistant glass, if the home has a Miami-Dade rated garage door, if the home is frame or block. These are just a few of the criteria they use to give an insurance quote. There are more but these are some of the biggies.

It's important to have a wind mitigation report done on the home. This usually costs around $150 and some home inspectors include it in the home inspection. I'll give you an example of how this can effect your insurance. I have a home North Port (southern Sarasota county). My home was built in 2003, has hurricane shutters, 2127 under air, hip roof, concrete block, close to a fire hydrant, no pool. Before the inspection my insurance was $1987 per year and after the inspection it was $727. Big difference.

Sarasota and Charlotte county are really hit or miss when it comes to flood. Generally west of US 41 and on the islands would be more likely to require flood insurance. The only way to determine the amount of the insurance is to have an elevation certificate. This would show the elevation of the home and what flood zone the home is in (if any). If the previous owner had home owners insurance and had a mortgage they probably have an elevation certificate. I always recommend getting flood insurance even if your home is not in a flood zone. If it's not, the price would be much cheaper for the insurance. If you're looking in Sarasota county you can use this website to help to evaluate if the property needs flood insurance or not: https://ags2.scgov.net/sarcoflood/ Here is another handy website for insurance: CHOICES Rate Comparison Search Tools

[jetdoc3037]

Great post, thanks so much.

[retired11]

SOFLGAL is right on point in her first two paragraphs. Florida has very wacky flood zones too. 10 miles inland there are still flood zones on my neighbors home because he lives on a pond. My homeowners is about 1500 year, slightly more than they were in NY.

My taxes here run $6200 a year while in NY they were $11800. Property taxes seem to go up $400 every year no matter where you live. I wish I got $400 in more services,but that never happens anywhere.

After you add in HOA fees and Pasco County water bills the cost of living is the same everywhere. They just hit you in different ways.

[markjames68]

Originally Posted by retired11

SOFLGAL is right on point in her first two paragraphs. Florida has very wacky flood zones too. 10 miles inland there are still flood zones on my neighbors home because he lives on a pond. My homeowners is about 1500 year, slightly more than they were in NY.

My taxes here run $6200 a year while in NY they were $11800. Property taxes seem to go up $400 every year no matter where you live. I wish I got $400 in more services,but that never happens anywhere.

After you add in HOA fees and Pasco County water bills the cost of living is the same everywhere. They just hit you in different ways.

If you have the homestead exemption, tax increases based on the 'save our homes' amendment should be set at the lower of 3% or inflation. 3% of $6200 is $186 so I am not sure where the $400 comes from?

[jetdoc3037]

I have the homestead on my current home and it helps

[Spring Hillian]

$25,000 homestead exemption rule: You must have been a legal resident of the county in which you are filing and made that your permanent legal residence as of January 1st to qualify for a Florida Homestead exemption for the current year.

Originally Posted by SoFLGal

The values are reviewed each year and will change with market conditions, the assessed value may be more or less than the actual value of the property. The tax rolls will also show "just market value" and "taxable value." An owner who has owned homesteaded property for a number of years will have a taxable value that can be much less than the "just market value." The tax will also vary by location of the property, the millage rate on a property in the city limits of Sarasota will be higher than a property located outside the city limits. The actual city limits of the city of Sarasota are quite small, and many properties with Sarasota mailing addresses are actually in unincorporated parts of the county. A Buyer takes over the taxes on the property and will get a new evaluation the next year. The tax rate should be somewhere between 1.5% and 1.8% of the purchase price of the home. The greatest advantage of a homestead exemption is the cap - when you have your home homesteaded, you have a 3% cap on the tax. If you have a second home or an investment property, the tax goes up or down depending on what the market value is.

Property tax is based on the assessed value of the property and the millage rate. The millage rate for Sarasota county is around 13 mills. The millage rate is the rate of tax per thousand dollars of taxable value. To determine the ad Valorem taxes divide the taxable value by 1,000 and multiply the millage rate. For example, $100,000 in taxable value with a millage rate of 13 would generate $1300 in taxes. (100,000/1000 X 13)

There is non advalorem taxes which are based on just having a lot-everybody pays for example- for fire dept, solid waste, road and drainage is all included in that. The ad valorem taxes are based on the homes assessed value. You can't necessarily go on what the previous owner paid for taxes because if they had the home homesteaded, for example, for 10 years, they would get a substantial discount. Keep in mind that the state of FL does not have an income tax but the sales tax is 7%.

[Spring Hillian]

Great info!!

Originally Posted by SoFLGal

A few things that insurance agents take into consideration when evaluating the home are-the age of the home, style of roof(hip roof is best), how close the home is to a natural body of water or fire hydrant, how the roof is tied on, if the home has hurricane shutters or impact resistant glass, if the home has a Miami-Dade rated garage door, if the home is frame or block. These are just a few of the criteria they use to give an insurance quote. There are more but these are some of the biggies.

It's important to have a wind mitigation report done on the home. This usually costs around $150 and some home inspectors include it in the home inspection. I'll give you an example of how this can effect your insurance. I have a home North Port (southern Sarasota county). My home was built in 2003, has hurricane shutters, 2127 under air, hip roof, concrete block, close to a fire hydrant, no pool. Before the inspection my insurance was $1987 per year and after the inspection it was $727. Big difference.

Sarasota and Charlotte county are really hit or miss when it comes to flood. Generally west of US 41 and on the islands would be more likely to require flood insurance. The only way to determine the amount of the insurance is to have an elevation certificate. This would show the elevation of the home and what flood zone the home is in (if any). If the previous owner had home owners insurance and had a mortgage they probably have an elevation certificate. I always recommend getting flood insurance even if your home is not in a flood zone. If it's not, the price would be much cheaper for the insurance. If you're looking in Sarasota county you can use this website to help to evaluate if the property needs flood insurance or not: https://ags2.scgov.net/sarcoflood/ Here is another handy website for insurance: CHOICES Rate Comparison Search Tools

[jetdoc3037]

I have read posts by some people about the COL in Fla, and how people are flocking to SC and NC....I am not sure how accurate these numbers are but this site had them ranked, Tenn, Fla, Ga, NC then last was SC. Just saying. More info for folks. Now they didn't get into bugs or drivers, etc, its about money and taxes, etc.

Cost of Living Comparison | Real Estate Scorecard

[flyboytampabay]

Originally Posted by jetdoc3037

I have read posts by some people about the COL in Fla, and how people are flocking to SC and NC....I am not sure how accurate these numbers are but this site had them ranked, Tenn, Fla, Ga, NC then last was SC. Just saying. More info for folks. Now they didn't get into bugs or drivers, etc, its about money and taxes, etc.

Cost of Living Comparison | Real Estate Scorecard

I lived in NC it is no cheaper there than in Central Florida.

[expatCA]

Originally Posted by flyboytampabay

I lived in NC it is no cheaper there than in Central Florida.

SC is better tax wise, but it still has other issues.