Florida Homestead Services - Florida Homestead Exemption Act Forum
Visit our main website at Florida Homestead Services.com
 | Forums | Sign Up | Reply | Search | Statistics |
General Postings Florida Homestead Services - Florida Homestead Exemption Act Forum / General Postings /  

Is your exemption legal?

Author johnbsims3
Admin Male

#1 | Posted: 27 Sep 2011 17:48 
Is your exemption legal?

Florida statutes are vague when it comes to describing who qualifies for homestead status and Save Our Homes tax breaks.

To qualify, a person must intend for their Florida home to be their permanent residence on Jan. 1 of the tax year. There are no clear requirements, however, for how much of the year that person must live in the home.

Beyond the residency requirement, what is considered illegal homesteading changes from one county to the next depending on how local officials interpret state law.

Questionable practices include:

* Renting out a home you own;

* Applying for homestead status on more than one property;

* Putting one homesteaded property in a husband's name and a second in a wife's.

* A person loses their protected status if they sell their home, give it away or will it to relatives who aren't already listed as owners.

The penalties:

You are breaking the law if you claim a homestead illegally.

But chances are you won't be prosecuted.

Instead, counties typically place a lien on the property to collect the unpaid taxes, fees and interest.

In addition to forcing repayment of any money saved, state law allows for a 50 percent tax penalty and 15 percent annual interest on the illegal savings.

Someone who saved an average of $2,000 a year for five years could be hit with a $16,500 bill.
http://www.floridahomesteadservices.com

General Postings Florida Homestead Services - Florida Homestead Exemption Act Forum / General Postings /
Is your exemption legal?
Top
Your Reply Click this icon to move up to the quoted message
 

 ?
Only registered users are allowed to post here. Please, enter your username/password details upon posting a message, or register first.
 
  Powered by Forum Software miniBB®