Florida Lawmakers Approve $150,000 Homestead Tax Break as State Population Growth Slows to 0.9%
Updated
Updated · The Conversation · Jul 8
Florida Lawmakers Approve $150,000 Homestead Tax Break as State Population Growth Slows to 0.9%
3 articles · Updated · The Conversation · Jul 8
Summary
Early June action by the Florida Legislature put a November ballot measure before voters to expand the homestead exemption on primary residences to $150,000 in 2027 and $250,000 in 2028.
That tax cut leans on continued in-migration to offset lost local revenue, but Florida’s population growth slowed to 0.9% in 2025 from a 2.5% peak in 2022.
Just 22,000 more people moved to Florida from other states in 2025, down from an average 208,000 during 2020-2022, while deaths exceeded births and immigration from abroad also fell sharply.
County data shows the slowdown is uneven: Sumter fell to 2.3% growth from 7.4% in 2022 and Collier to 0.1%, while St. Johns led at 3.9% and lower-cost Marion grew 3.4%.
The shift matters beyond taxes because Florida officials are also redrawing political maps around migration patterns, even as the state’s long-running growth model looks less reliable.