Last Updated: September 7, 2026
Fast answer: Florida Amendment 3 is on the November 3, 2026 ballot. If 60% of voters approve, the homestead exemption on non-school property taxes jumps from $50,000 to $150,000 in 2027 and $250,000 in 2028. St. Petersburg could lose roughly $33 million in fiscal 2028 and another $21 million the year after — money that currently funds police, fire, and transit. For buyers and sellers here, the honest read is: good for existing primary-home owners, a transfer of cost onto renters, commercial property, and second homes, and a real risk to the services that make St. Pete livable.
I am Troy Nowak, a St. Petersburg broker who buys, sells, and manages short-term rentals. This is not a campaign piece. It is the underwriting I am running with my own clients before November.
What Amendment 3 actually does
It is not a full elimination of property taxes, and it is not the original DeSantis plan. The legislature passed HJR 1-F in a June special session, and voters decide on November 3. Confirm the ballot language with the Florida Division of Elections before you treat a social-media summary as the rule.
The core changes:
- Homestead exemption (non-school taxes): $50,000 today → $150,000 in 2027 → $250,000 in 2028 → indexed to inflation from 2029.
- School taxes stay at the current $25,000 exemption. Nothing about school millage changes.
- Non-homestead assessment cap drops from 10% to 5% for rentals, second homes, and commercial property — non-school levies only.
- New residents who move in after December 31, 2026 get a reduced $50,000 exemption for their first five years.
- Spending restriction: remaining property tax revenue can only go to public safety, infrastructure, natural resources, bonds, and employee retirement. Parks, libraries, and arts are not on the protected list.
State economists put the recurring hit at nearly $12 billion a year statewide. There is no state backfill fund.
The St. Pete number
This is the part that matters if you live or invest here.
City administrators estimate Amendment 3 would cut St. Petersburg's General Fund by about $33 million in fiscal 2028 and another $21 million in fiscal 2029, with $2–3 million more each year after that. Councilman Copley Gerdes has cited a range of $50–70 million against roughly $248 million in expected ad valorem revenue. Track the city's own budget notes on stpete.org.
Where that money goes today:
| Use | Share of FY26 tax revenue |
|---|---|
| Police Department | 75.88% ($173.7M) |
| Fire Rescue | 12.54% ($28.7M) |
| TIF transfers (CRAs) | 11.58% ($26.5M) |
Property tax is the city's primary funding for public safety. After required TIF transfers, it first covers police, then fire. The rest of fire's budget and every other service — parks, libraries, streets, arts — runs on fees and other revenue.
The city is already hiring a consultant to design a fire assessment fee as a backstop. That is the substitution argument in plain terms: the tax cut does not disappear, it moves from your property tax bill to a new line item on your bill.
What it means for buyers
If you are buying a primary residence in St. Pete, the exemption math is real. Using the countywide average non-school rate, the Property Appraiser estimates a qualifying homeowner saves about $1,200 in 2027 and $2,400 in 2028. On a $300,000 assessed home at St. Pete's 6.4525 mill rate, the exemption alone is worth roughly $1,100 in 2027 and $1,750 in 2028 before any millage change. Pull your folio on the Pinellas County Property Appraiser and model both outcomes — pass and fail.
But three things cut against the headline:
- Millage can rise. The amendment does not cap rates. A 15–25% combined city-county increase, plus a $400–700 fire fee, can erase the savings — and then some.
- New-resident penalty. If you are moving to Florida after 2026, you get the smaller $50,000 exemption for five years. The full benefit goes to people already here.
- Services follow the money. PSTA, the transit authority, projects losing about $15 million in property tax revenue in fiscal 2028, growing to $22 million the year after. That is bus and ferry service across the county — including the Jolly Trolley and routes that connect St. Pete to the beaches.
For a buyer, the diligence question is no longer just flood and HOA. It is: what does this address cost me in taxes and in the services I am paying for indirectly? Pair the tax model with the Pinellas flood zone guide and the neighborhood shortlist.
What it means for sellers
If you own a primary residence and plan to sell before or after the vote, the exemption is a selling point for owner-occupants — especially long-time St. Pete owners whose assessed value is well below market. It is a headwind for anyone selling to an investor or a second-home buyer, because the 5% assessment cap on non-homestead property slows how fast those values can climb, which pressures the tax base further.
The practical move: if you are listing, get a current tax estimate that models both outcomes — pass and fail — so the buyer is not surprised in underwriting. If the number on Zillow is driving the conversation, read how to fix a low Zestimate and then use a real tax bill, not a portal guess.
The Airbnb and investor angle
This is where my clients feel it most, and it cuts two ways.
The 5% cap hurts rental and commercial cash flow. Non-homestead properties — your STR, your long-term rental, your condo building — can only see assessed value rise 5% a year instead of 10%. On a rising market that means slower tax growth, which sounds fine until you realize the city makes up the gap somewhere else. Fire fees, higher tourist taxes, or service cuts that reduce the guest experience all land on the operator.
St. Pete's STR rules do not change. The city's 3-stay limit on under-30-day rentals in ordinary residential zoning is untouched. Amendment 3 is a tax and spending measure, not a zoning rewrite. If nightly Airbnb was not legal on your parcel before, it is not legal after. If you were underwriting midterm (30+ day) furnished stays, that thesis still stands — but the tax and fee stack around it shifts.
For investors, the honest underwrite now includes a line for "replacement revenue risk": what happens to my net if the city adds a fire assessment, raises the tourist development tax, or cuts the transit that gets guests to my door? Run that next to the STR hidden-risks guide and the St. Pete vs Gulfport STR legality guide.
My read: good or bad?
It depends on who you are.
- Existing primary-home owner, long-term St. Pete resident: mostly good, if you ignore the service trade. You save real money and the assessment cap protects you.
- New buyer or relocating professional: mixed. The exemption is smaller for five years, and you inherit whatever service cuts or fees the city adopts to replace the lost revenue.
- Renter: you do not get the exemption. You get the higher fees and thinner services.
- Airbnb / rental investor: the 5% cap and the replacement-fee risk are a drag. The STR legality question is unchanged — which means the deals that worked before still work, and the ones that did not still do not.
- The city as a whole: this is a transfer from local services to homeowners, dressed up as affordability. The "core services only" spending rule is the sleeper. Libraries, parks, and arts are not protected, and they are the first things to go when the math gets tight.
If you want the cleanest version of the argument: it is a real tax cut for people who already own, paid for by everyone who does not — renters, investors, and the services that make St. Pete the place people want to own in.
What to do before November 3
- Pull your current tax bill from the Pinellas County Property Appraiser and model both outcomes — pass and fail — at your actual assessed value and millage.
- Ask the listing agent or city for the latest fire-assessment proposal status on stpete.org.
- If you invest, re-run the pro forma with a 5% assessment cap and a placeholder for a new fee.
- If you are buying, add "service and fee trajectory" to the diligence list alongside flood and HOA. Start with /flood-zones.
Official tools (bookmark these)
- Florida Division of Elections — ballot language and Amendment 3 status
- City of St. Petersburg — budget, fire assessment, and city services
- Pinellas County Property Appraiser — assessed value, homestead, millage
- Pinellas County STR information — unincorporated county rental rules
- FEMA Flood Map Service Center — zone by address
Internal deep dives: flood zones resource · investor guide · STR hub · home value
FAQs
Does Amendment 3 eliminate Florida property taxes?
No. School taxes stay. The bigger homestead exemption applies to non-school levies only, and cities can still raise millage or add fees.
Does this change St. Pete Airbnb rules?
No. Nightly STR legality is still a zoning and city-rule question. Start with the St. Pete + Gulfport STR guide.
What should I do if I am buying before the vote?
Model both outcomes on the actual folio, not a campaign flyer. Add flood, HOA, and a placeholder fire fee to the same sheet.
What if I already homestead in St. Pete?
You are the group most likely to see a real bill cut if it passes. Still watch millage and any new assessment fee — the savings are not guaranteed net.
Next step
If you want a St. Pete address screened against the tax, fee, flood, and rental-rule stack before you offer or list, contact me. I will run the numbers the way I run them on my own deals — not the way a campaign flyer does.
For the rules side: St. Pete Airbnb rules · STR zoning map · Flood zones · Investor guide.