Key facts
- Amendment 3 passed with 62% of the vote, the Associated Press reported.
- Raul Gastesi calculated the expanded exemption saves a homestead owner about $2,085 a year at the statewide average non-school tax rate.
- Gastesi calculated a $50 million homestead's local services tax bill would fall from about $524,000 to about $522,000.
- Gastesi estimated the lower cap saves the owner of a $50 million second home about $15,750 in the first year and roughly $280,000 over five years, assuming values rise 8% a year.
- Owners who are not permanent Florida residents by December 31 start at the current $50,000 exemption and reach the full amount in their fifth year, Gastesi estimated, costing about $8,400 in forgone savings.
Florida voters approved Amendment 3 on November 3, 2026, with 62% of the vote, according to the Associated Press. The measure raises the homestead exemption on non-school property taxes from $50,000 to $150,000 in 2027 and to $250,000 in 2028. Supporters pitched it as relief for everyday homeowners.
Because the exemption is a flat dollar amount, it does less for the wealthy buyers who moved to South Florida. Citadel CEO Ken Griffin moved his firm from Chicago to Miami, and Amazon founder Jeff Bezos moved to Miami in 2023 and has since bought a $237 million compound on Indian Creek. Bezos is also reportedly buying a $69.5 million oceanfront estate in nearby Golden Beach.
Raul Gastesi, a real estate attorney and cofounder of Miami law firm Gastesi Lopez Mestre & Cobiella, calculated that at the statewide average non-school tax rate the expanded exemption will save a homestead owner about $2,085 a year once fully in place. A home assessed at $350,000 would see its local services property tax bill fall from about $3,135 to about $1,050, while a $50 million homestead would go from about $524,000 to about $522,000. "For the typical family it is real money," Gastesi said. "For the mansion owner, it is a rounding error."
Michael Ligon, a strategic capital investor with The Ligon Group in Miami, told Fortune that by 2028 a homeowner with a $400,000 house will see much of the portion of their property tax bill that funds cities, counties and local services disappear. "Proportionally, this is middle-class relief wearing a luxury headline," Ligon said.
Michael Martirena, a South Florida luxury real estate advisor, said the change is not driving his clients' decisions. "Someone buying a $20 million or $50 million home in Miami is coming for no state income tax, the lifestyle, and the business climate," he said. "A few thousand dollars a year, and a five-year wait for the full exemption does not change that math. Where it does register is with clients who hold several properties."
Experts told Fortune the less-noticed part of Amendment 3 matters more for wealthy owners: it cuts the cap on annual taxable value increases for second homes, rentals and other non-primary residences from 10% to 5%. In a market where values rise 8% a year, Gastesi estimated, that would save the owner of a $50 million second home about $15,750 in the first year and roughly $280,000 over five years.
The five-year phase-in applies to anyone who is not a permanent Florida resident by December 31, who will start at the current $50,000 exemption and reach the full amount in their fifth year. Gastesi estimated that costs about $8,400 in forgone savings. "Amendment 3 may influence timing, but likely not destination," Abigail Hall, an economics professor at the University of Tampa, told Fortune. The article was cut off before detailing how local governments would cover the cost.