Florida's Property Tax Amendment Heads to November — Plus What Changes for Insurance on July 1

 

A special session produced a major property tax ballot measure, while a separate slate of insurance rules — including new AI claim-denial protections — takes effect July 1. Here's what investors should have on their radar.

 

The Property Tax Amendment Is Now a Voter Decision

Florida lawmakers convened Special Session F the week of June 1, 2026, specifically to pass HJR 1F, and did so on June 2 by a House vote of 75-26 and a Senate vote of 30-9. Titled "Save Our Homes from Excessive Property Taxes," the measure will now go before Florida voters on the November 2026 ballot, where it needs 60% approval to take effect.

If approved, the amendment would raise the homestead exemption from $50,000 to $150,000 starting in 2027, and to $250,000 in 2028 — a change that, per its own framing, would eliminate non-school property taxes entirely for roughly 60% of Florida's homesteaded owners. It would also cut the maximum annual assessment increase on non-homestead property from 10% down to 5%, establish new guardrails on how local governments can use property tax revenue, and direct the Legislature to build out a general-law framework for further reductions over time. If voters approve it in November, the amendment takes effect January 1, 2027.

For investors, the assessment-cap change is the detail worth the closest attention. Cutting the non-homestead assessment increase limit from 10% to 5% annually would meaningfully slow how fast investment and rental property tax bills can rise in strong-appreciation years — a real, quantifiable benefit for buy-and-hold investors, independent of the homestead exemption debate that's dominating headlines.

 

Insurance Rules Change July 1

Separately from the property tax amendment, a set of insurance-related changes takes effect July 1, 2026:

• AI claim-denial transparency. New rules target how insurers use automated systems in claims decisions, creating a formal avenue for homeowners to challenge a denied or reduced claim if the insurer can't demonstrate that a qualified human actually reviewed the file.
• Extended home-hardening sales tax exemption. The sales tax exemption for qualifying home-hardening products — including impact-resistant doors, garage doors, and windows meeting specific wind-pressure and impact standards — is extended three years, covering purchases made between July 1, 2026, and June 30, 2029.
• Roof-age protection bills died. Two bills that would have expanded roof-age protections to all residential policies and added roof consultants as authorized inspectors (SB 808 and HB 815) both died in committee on March 13, 2026. The existing roof-age rule from 2022-2023 reforms remains in place, barring insurers from refusing or non-renewing a policy solely on roof age when an inspection shows at least five years of useful life remaining.

 

Why it matters:

• Rates keep easing. Citizens Property Insurance has filed for an average 2.6% rate decrease for personal lines — its first cut since 2015 — continuing the stabilization trend that began in 2025. Broader market premiums have reportedly dropped 10-40% over the past two years for many policyholders.
• The AI claims rule is a real investor protection. For owners managing multiple properties and multiple claims over time, a documented right to challenge an algorithm-only denial is a meaningful backstop worth understanding before the next storm season.
• Home-hardening incentives extend the runway. Investors planning capital improvements to reduce insurance costs on older properties now have three more years of sales-tax relief on qualifying upgrades.

Bottom Line: Two very different tracks — a ballot measure that could reshape property tax bills starting 2027, and insurance rules taking effect this summer — are both moving in the same direction: gradually easing the cost burden that defined Florida real estate ownership for much of the past several years.

 

The Investor Takeaway

Investors should track two dates: November 2026, when voters decide HJR 1F's fate (and with it, the future non-homestead assessment cap), and July 1, 2026, when the new insurance claims-transparency rules and extended home-hardening exemption take effect. Neither change is dramatic on its own, but together they continue 2025 and early 2026's pattern of incremental relief on the two biggest recurring costs of Florida property ownership — tax and insurance.

 

Work With Newkirk

Questions about how these changes could affect a specific property or portfolio heading into the November vote? Newkirk Investments tracks Florida real estate policy as part of our investor advisory work. Reach out at 386-290-5356 or hello@newkirk-investments.com.

 

SOURCES

• 2026 Legislative Final Report — Florida Realtors — session outcomes summary
• CS/HJR 1F (2026) - Save our Homes from Excessive Property Taxes — Florida House of Representatives — bill text and vote details
• Florida Property Tax Update: The Amendment Now Headed to Your November 2026 Ballot — Barnes Walker — amendment details and effective dates
• Sales and Use Tax Exemption for Home-Hardening Products — Florida Department of Revenue — home-hardening sales tax exemption details
• Property Insurance Changes — Florida Department of Financial Services — statewide insurance rule changes
• Florida Insurance Law Changes 2026: Critical Updates Every Homeowner Must Know — Black Diamond Claims Solutions — AI claims rule, roof-age bill status