A little-known provision in a state law requires property appraisers to ‘recapture’ money lost when values surged in 2021. A referendum to repeal the provision in 2012 was rejected by Florida voters.
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- Palm Beach County property owners are seeing increased property taxes despite some property values decreasing.
- A state law requires property appraisers to “recapture” revenue lost when values did not rise at the maximum capped rate.
- Over 20% of Palm Beach County properties are potentially affected by the recapture rule.
- Property owners can challenge their assessments with the county’s Value Review Board until September 15.
Palm Beach County residents may have thought because the value of many homes steadied or dropped the past year that would equate to some relief on their property tax bills for 2025.
Think again.
Here’s a sampling of a few properties in the county where residents will be paying 3% more in property taxes despite the market values for their homes either falling or staying the same:
- A condominium at the 26-story Palm Beach House in West Palm Beach dropped in market value by 28%, from $352,000 to $275,000.
- A single-family home in Valencia Cove, a high-end development in unincorporated Palm Beach County, west of Boynton Beach, saw its market value fall 8%, from $762,000 to $703,000.
- And Sherwood Plaza, a shopping center in Green Acres, had its market value stay the same — $6.9 million.
Similar scenarios are playing out all over Palm Beach County.
Taxpayers recently received their TRIM (Truth in Millage) notices, which contains changes in market, assessed, and taxable values. The figures are based on values as of Jan. 1, 2025. The notices also show proposed millages, or tax rates, for each taxing authority. Taxpayers have until Sept. 15 to challenge their assessments with the county’s Value Review Board.
So how can property values fall, and tax bills rise?
Explaining the term ‘recapture’ and what it means for your property taxes
A little-known provision in a state law requires property appraisers to “recapture” money lost when values surged in 2021 and 2022.
Values rose as much as 30% during those years. The state’s cap law, though, limited taxable value increases to just 3% or the CPI increase, whichever is less, for homesteaded properties. Non-homesteaded residential properties (owners who do not live in the county) and commercial properties are subject to a 10% cap.
When values level off or even decline — as they are now doing — the recapture provision comes into play, resulting in properties increasing to the cap level of approximately 3%. That will occur every year until the market value equals the taxable value. The result is that assessed value increases even if market value does not.
The law prevents assessed values from jumping but when values flatten, the law requires that the assessed value continue to increase by the maximum cap amount each year until the gap between assessed and market value is closed. Florida voters in 2012 rejected a proposed constitutional amendment to abolish the “recapture” rule.
“It (the recapture provision) is difficult to explain and easily misunderstood,” said Palm Beach County Property Appraiser Dorothy Jacks, noting that her office has been fielding scores of calls from taxpayers wondering how their tax bill could increase when their market value fell. “This is a year where it came into play. In years where values rise, it doesn’t come into play.”
Jacks said that because of the caps, it can take a long time for the taxable value to catch up to the market value. But as long as there is a gap between the two, the taxpayer will see an increase to the cap level until the two meet. To illustrate the recapture part of the law, Palm Beach County Property Appraiser Dorothy Jacks prepared a video on the county website.
“I talk about recapture every time I speak,” Jacks said. “Everyone loves the law when values are rising but not so much when values fall.”
She noted that taxing authorities that keep the millage rate the same still raise more revenue because of new construction and overall rising property values. If they reduced the rate to raise the same amount of money, tax bills might not rise, she noted.
How many properties potentially could be affected by recapture?
According to Jacks’ office, more than 20% of the county’s 653,000 parcels (138,000) could be affected by the recapture rule.
- 45,000 homesteaded properties
- 76,000 non-homesteaded residential properties
- 17,000 commercial properties
Mike Diamond is a journalist at The Palm Beach Post, part of the USA TODAY Florida Network. He covers Palm Beach County government. You can reach him at mdiamond@pbpost.com. Help support local journalism. Subscribe today.