A New Florida Bill Would Give Timeshare Owners A Tax Break
A new law being considered by Florida Lawmakers could result in huge tax breaks for timeshare owners such as Walt Disney World, Westgate Resorts, and others in Central Florida.
Florida House Bill 451, dubbed the Valuation of Timeshare Units bill, was sponsored by Rep. Randy Fine (R-Palm Bay) and would address how timeshare property values are determined.
Photo: Florida Today
The new law would allow timeshare owner’s property taxes to be determined by any number for resales, even if there are only a few to compare to.
How The Current System Works
Under the current state law, property appraisers must first look into the timeshare resale market to ascertain the value of timeshare properties and establish a “fair market value.”
Photo: Westgate
However, in some cases, there are not enough resales to determine that value. In these instances, appraisers decide the value by deducing “usual and reasonable fees and costs for sale” from the property’s original price point. This can sometimes amount to 50% of the original price.
After deducting the fees from the original price point, appraisers come to the market value.
According to representative Fine, however, this is a problem.
Photo: Also Florida Today
“Your [property] taxes should be based on what it’s worth. Timeshares are like a car. We need to do a better job of valuing them. Oftentimes the resale value of timeshares is not substantial and I think that’s the issue,” he said. “[This is a] matter of fundamental fairness and paying the value of what they are worth.”
Opposition to the Bill
Critics of the bill, including the Property Appraiser’s Association of Florida, argue that basing value on the resale market isn’t feasible.
Photo: Property Appraiser’s Association of Florida
According to Loren Levy, general counsel for the association, only 1% of total timeshare sales activity involves resales, while the other 99% is dominated by developer sales.
In one example presented, assessors found four resales within a development across multiple years, while a developer had 600 sales.
Photo: DVC
“When you’ve got 600 good arms-length transactions versus four that come out of a junky market where most of it is transacted for nominal doc stamps. It’s just not a reliable place to gather data. It shows you what a big deal this could be.”
A Win For Disney
While the proposed legislation would constitute a tax break for all timeshare owners, the biggest winners would be corporate owners like The Walt Disney Company who would stand to save millions.
Photo: Also DVC
When replying to criticism that the bill would favor corporate time owners. Fine joked about the ongoing feud between Disney and Governor Ron DeSantis.
“I wouldn’t know anything about buying a timeshare at Disney. Me and none of my Republican colleagues are allowed to do that right now.”
Ron DeSantis
