Florida housing markets lead nation in all-cash home purchases
Miami, West Palm Beach and Jacksonville metro areas continue to dominate the country in cash-heavy transactions, even as high mortgage rates begin to stabilize. Nationally, just 29% of homebuyers paid in all cash in December, the lowest share for that month since 2020. This decline is largely attributed to the "strongest buyer's market in recent history," where a 47% surplus of sellers has reduced the need for buyers to use cash as a competitive lever. While the national trend is downward, Florida’s major markets are still seeing a massive influx of cash. [Source: WLRN]
Florida bill proposes tax credits for employers to help employees with a down payment on a home
The bill would create a tax credit program to help private companies assist their employees, with down payments and closing costs on first homes, an effort to tackle the state’s chronic housing affordability challenges. The program is geared toward low- and moderate-income workers making less than certain thresholds, and would be capped at $5 million a year for three years beginning in fiscal 2026-27. [Source: Sebastian Daily]
Florida House approves plan to eliminate homestead property taxes; Senate resistance clouds path forward
The Florida House has approved a sweeping and controversial proposal that could eventually eliminate property taxes on homesteaded homes and send the question to voters in 2026. It's setting up a high-stakes clash with the Senate and governor over the future of local government funding. [Source: WPTV]
The pocket of South Florida where sports fans are buying up condos
Sports fans like Rojas are among the home buyers staking a claim in Hallandale Beach, a small, once-gritty city between Miami and Fort Lauderdale. As a new wave of luxury condominiums rises in the city, sports-lovers, athletes and investors are being drawn by the area’s proximity to major stadiums and its own Gulfstream Park horse-racing track, as well as its relative affordability, real-estate agents said. [Source: Wall Street Journal]
Central Florida's slow real estate market may be building momentum
The Orlando Regional Realtor Association's latest statistics show Central Florida’s real estate market was still slow to end 2025, but it may be on the upswing. Overall sales were down 25% from December through January, and homes for sale spent an average of 81 days on the market. That’s the highest number of days on the market in 10 years. But the numbers also reveal new listings rose 59%, and homes under contract with pending sales rose 24% from December through January. [Source: Spectrum News]
93%
Florida may have lost some of its pandemic-era allure as net migration plunged 93% in three years, but Miami remains a powerful magnet for out-of-state professionals moving for new opportunities. [Source: Realtor.com]
› South Florida startup raises $6.5 million for real estate AI expansion
An artificial intelligence-powered South Florida real estate startup has raised millions of dollars in its latest fundraising round. West Palm Beach-based Dono raised $6.5 million in a new seed round led by Link Ventures, a Cambridge, Massachusetts-based venture capital firm. Tel Aviv, Israel-based Lool Ventures and Manchester, New Hampshire-based Alumni Ventures also participated. The new seed round, together with money raised earlier, takes Dono’s total funding to more than $10 million.
› Waterfront Florida home by famed architect sells for record price
A Florida home designed by a renowned architect just sold for a record price. The $2,025,000 lakefront sale in Winter Haven, about 50 miles east of Tampa, marked the highest recorded price for a single-family home in the area over the past year, according to available MLS data and a Michael Saunders & Company press release.
› What will happen to the St. Petersburg office destroyed by Hurricane Milton?
In the heart of downtown St. Petersburg, a gleaming new luxury condo casts its shadow onto the crumbling remains of what was once an office building. The scene is a reminder of the historic 2024 hurricane season, which caused the most destruction the region has seen in a century. Fierce wind gusts from Hurricane Milton sent a crane atop the Residences at 400 Central condo hurtling into the office tower at 490 First Ave. S, leaving behind a gaping hole in the top three floors. With the fate of the office still up in the air, at least one prospective buyer has emerged:.
› Someone is buying up downtown Winter Garden — and residents are in an uproar
Winter Garden’s downtown, the envy of neighboring communities for its successful blend of charm and homegrown commerce, faces an uncertain future as nine commercial buildings, eight on West Plant’s red brick streets, have been sold for millions to a new owner. Some shop owners in the buildings say they’ve been notified by the new owner/landlord that their leases will not be renewed.