Florida homeowners lost a median of $10,157 in home value last year
Florida’s real estate market is not looking very sunny. Nine markets are seeing five-digit drops in home value, and the median loss is $10,157 from January 2025 to January 2026, according to Realtor.com® data. While ritzy towns like Manalapan and Palm Beach make headlines for their astronomical prices, the average Florida resident is struggling with loss of equity. [Source: Realtor.com]
Will Florida homeowners get property tax relief? Here's what's moving forward
Proposals aimed at cutting property taxes for Florida homeowners are gaining traction in Tallahassee, but whether any of them will ultimately make it to the ballot remains uncertain. “Property taxes, insurance, it’s ridiculous, and it’s driving people away from South Florida,” one Broward County homeowner said. So far, three joint resolutions addressing property tax reform have cleared committee and are now eligible for a vote on the Florida House floor: [Source: NBC Miami]
As housing prices climb, first-time buyers are purchasing homes with friends
According to the National Association of Realtors, home prices have risen 56% since early 2020. At the same time, first-time buyers now make up just 21% of the market, with the median age of a first-time buyer climbing to 40 . For many, including 24-year-old Indiantown, Florida, residents Jacquelyn Cusumano and Camryn Moody, buying a home together was a way to stop spending money on rent and start investing in their future. [Source: Miami Herald]
3 Florida land purchases that helped save commercial fishing
The time-honored work of commercial fishing continues in some small pockets of Florida, but the state's first industry has nearly vanished amid explosive development. The Treasure Coast once was lined with working waterfront until recreational marinas, resorts and restaurants began making commercial fishers an endangered species. Governments are trying to help buy buying land and leasing it, plus docks, to commercial fishers for an affordable price. [Source: TC Palm]
Florida lawmakers might make it easier to build ‘granny flats’: How and why?
Looking to build a place for your parents to live on your property? Or maybe convert that cluttered garage into a rental to bring in some extra cash? The Florida Legislature may be about to make that much easier. The Florida House of Representatives is debating legislation that would require local governments to allow single-family homeowners to build accessory dwelling units — commonly known as efficiencies or granny flats — on their properties. [Source: Miami Herald]
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A timeless home on Lake Pickett moved quickly with a special feature appropriate to recent weather but unusual for Central Florida: five fireplaces. [Source: Orlando Sentinel]
› Orlando couple plan a 400-acre neighborhood for disabled adults
Tim and Marie Kuck, founders of the Orlando nonprofit Nathaniel’s Hope, which offers respite care to families with disabled children, have purchased close to 400 acres in east Orlando that they plan to transform into a home for about 200 adults with disabilities. The goal is to provide those adults with a place to live and work and give families the peace of mind that their loved ones will be well cared for. The plans for Hopetown include independent and group homes, a skilled nursing facility, a cafeteria, a town center with event space, recreational land and businesses where residents can work.
› Buying or selling your home? Tampa Bay real estate trends to watch in 2026
Since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, navigating the Tampa Bay housing market has felt like riding a roller coaster. The initial highs of skyrocketing population growth and soaring home prices faded into a years-long hangover that left sales in a slump. But real estate agents and economists are hopeful that we’ll return to a more balanced market in 2026.
› Miami Realtors set to sign 300th international partnership
The Miami Association of Realtors, the largest local realtor association in the nation, is working toward enhancing its programming, participating in major real estate events along with expanding its partnerships and global reach. The association was chartered by the National Association of Realtors in 1920. Composed of six organizations, it represents more than 60,000 professionals in real estate sales, marketing and brokerage.
› Jacksonville’s 60-year-old federal building could be sold
Downtown Jacksonville’s oldest federal office building could be for sale. A six-member government panel will look at the benefits of selling the Charles E. Bennett Federal Building and nine other older structures across the Southeast to private developers. The move would save the government millions of dollars in estimated repairs. Jacksonville Today thanks our sponsors. Become one. Any decision about the building at 400 W. Bay St. would not happen until at least the end of this year, after the Public Buildings Reform Board discusses all 10 federal properties in Jacksonville; West Palm Beach; Savannah, Georgia; and Charleston and Columbia, South Carolina.