The Florida Live Local Act property tax exemption
The Live Local Act created one of the largest property tax benefits available to Florida multifamily. For qualifying newer developments that reserve units at workforce-affordable rents, it removes a substantial share of the annual ad valorem tax bill — sometimes the entire assessed value of the qualifying units. The catch is that it must be applied for correctly, certified every year, and defended at the county level.
The "Missing Middle" ad valorem exemption
Enacted as part of Florida's Live Local Act and codified at §196.1978(3), Florida Statutes, the "Missing Middle" exemption applies to the assessed value of qualifying residential units in newer multifamily developments that set aside those units for households at or below defined percentages of area median income (AMI). It is an ad valorem exemption — it reduces the value on which county, municipal, school, and other taxing-authority millage is applied.
The relief comes in two tiers, based on the income level each qualifying unit serves:
On qualifying units serving households between 80% and 120% of area median income.
On qualifying units serving households at or below 80% of area median income.
The exemption reaches the assessed value of the qualifying units only; non-ad-valorem assessments and units that do not meet the rent and income requirements are not exempted. Curious what that could be worth on a specific asset? Try the Live Local tax savings estimator.
Who qualifies
Eligibility turns on the development, the units, and the paperwork. Broadly, a candidate property has:
Scale
More than 70 units in the development.
Recency
Improvements substantially completed within the last five years.
Affordability
Qualifying units offered at or below statutory rent limits, serving households at defined AMI levels.
Certification
Required income and rent certifications completed and kept current.
Timely filing
Applications filed with the state and county property appraiser within the annual window.
Details vary by county and change with legislation. County property appraisers administer the exemption locally, so practice — and posture — can differ from one jurisdiction to the next. We assess each asset individually rather than by rule of thumb.
Why it pays to handle it properly
The exemption is valuable precisely because it is exacting. Qualification is re-established every year — rents, occupancy, and certifications must be maintained and refiled, not set once and forgotten. A missed filing window generally means waiting a full year, and a thin or inconsistent record is where exemptions are lost at audit or renewal.
That is the work we do: sizing the benefit before you commit, preparing the application to each appraiser's requirements, filing on your behalf, and keeping the compliance record that lets the exemption survive year after year.