Florida Weighs Eliminating Property Taxes — What It Could Mean for Rental Owners

Florida may be heading toward one of the biggest shifts in its tax system in decades: a serious, ongoing debate in Tallahassee about scaling back or even eliminating property taxes altogether. The idea has been pushed by Governor Ron DeSantis and discussed by state lawmakers, and it has prompted real estate and housing outlets, including HousingWire, to ask a pointed question: would getting rid of property taxes actually make Florida more affordable, or just shift the cost somewhere else?

For rental property owners in Orlando, Kissimmee and St. Cloud, the headline sounds appealing on its face. Property taxes are one of the largest fixed costs of owning a rental, and any serious reduction would improve cash flow. But the details matter a lot here, and most of the proposals floated so far have centered on homesteaded, owner-occupied homes rather than investment property. Rentals are taxed as non-homestead property, which already means no homestead exemption and no 3% annual assessment cap, only the newer, separate non-homestead cap that voters may revisit through Amendment 3. If a future tax overhaul focuses on primary residences, landlords could end up watching their homeowner neighbors get relief while their own rental tax bills stay largely the same.

There is also the bigger structural question: property taxes fund schools, police and fire departments, road maintenance and local services across every Florida county. Eliminating or sharply cutting that revenue source would require replacing it with something else, whether that is a higher sales tax, new fees, or deep cuts to local budgets. Any of those outcomes could ripple back toward rental owners indirectly, through higher costs of doing business, changes to permitting and inspection fees, or shifts in how local governments set millage rates for commercial and investment property.

It is important to stress that none of this has been enacted. A change of this size would almost certainly require a constitutional amendment and a statewide vote, a process that takes time and broad political support to get right. For now, this is a proposal and a conversation, not law.

What should an owner do with that? Mostly, pay attention and avoid making investment decisions based on speculation. Keep an eye on how any legislative language defines which properties qualify for relief, and watch local budget discussions in Orange, Osceola and Seminole counties for early signs of how officials plan to respond if state funding rules change.

In the meantime, managing the costs you can control, like vacancy, maintenance and tenant turnover, remains the most reliable way to protect your bottom line. KNA Property Management helps owners across Central Florida keep rentals profitable regardless of which way the tax debate goes, and our free rental income calculator can help you see where your numbers stand today.