Tax break pitched for affordable rentals

BY TRACI RORK

Citizen Staff

KEY WEST — State Rep. Ron Saunders wants to give a tax break to landlords who agree to keep rents low enough that the local work force can afford them.

He will take his proposal to Tallahassee when the 2007 legislative session begins in March, and the Key West City Commission will vote Tuesday on whether they support the measure.

Mayor Morgan McPherson said he supports the plan, which would allow property appraisers to assess affordable rental properties at a lower value and reduce annual property taxes. Homeowners are protected from skyrocketing tax assessments for their primary residences under Florida law, which caps annual assessment increases at 3 percent and gives a homestead exemption of $25,000. Rental, investment and commercial properties are not offered those protections.

McPherson said he hopes the Legislature establishes a different criteria for property tax appraisals of deed-restricted affordable housing in the state of Florida. This will result in tax assessments based on the affordable deed restriction and not on the market-rate value of the property. The proposal suggests that the government create incentives for those who deed-restrict their properties.

"This will not only benefit Monroe County and the city of Key West, but it will also set a mark for the state of Florida," McPherson said. "We want to encourage individual property owners to rent to locals and if they do, and can prove they made their housing affordable, they can enjoy the same opportunity as a homesteaded property," he said.

Saunders said that very few people may want to place affordable housing deed restrictions on their property because it means properties sell at a lower market value.

"The ultimate goal is to attack this situation from every angle possible, and if there's a way to give people a benefit, we're willing to give them all the same opportunity," he said.