Real Estate with Causes accepts donated real estate anywhere in Florida: houses, condos, platted lots, acreage, farms and commercial buildings, in all 67 counties. A lot of what reaches us in this state is property nobody set out to own. A lot bought by mail in the 1960s. A condo in a building facing its first structural assessment. A parent's house in a county the heirs have never lived in. Florida has no personal income tax, so the deduction that matters here is the federal one. We prepare the deed and record it with the clerk of the circuit court in the county where the property sits.
Federal tax rules are the same in every state. These three are set by Florida statute and by the county where the property sits.
Florida charges documentary stamp tax of $0.70 per $100 of consideration ($0.60 in Miami-Dade). Who pays and how it applies to a gift with no consideration is confirmed when we prepare the deed. Where the tax falls on the grantee, it is ours.
If the property is your Florida homestead and you are married, your spouse generally has to join in the deed even when only your name is on title. Florida's homestead protection also limits how a homestead passes at death where there is a surviving spouse or a minor child. We check both before a deed is drawn.
Deeds are recorded with the clerk of the circuit court in the property's county. Florida also asks for two subscribing witnesses on a deed, in addition to the notary. You sign where you live and we handle the witnesses, the recording and the fee.
None of these is a reason we turn a property away. They are the reasons people call. Foreclosure in Florida goes through the courts rather than a trustee sale, which takes months, and that time is often what makes a donation workable. If a case has been filed against your property, start here.
Each links to the full guide for that type, including how a donation compares to selling.
Florida is six real estate markets wearing one state's name. The deed work is the same everywhere; what sits on the land is not.
Condo country, and the part of the state where documentary stamp tax is charged at the Miami-Dade rate rather than the statewide one. Older oceanfront and intracoastal buildings are where the reserve studies bite hardest.
Cape Coral, Lehigh Acres, Port Charlotte and Golden Gate Estates hold hundreds of thousands of platted lots sold to out-of-state buyers two generations ago. Storm repair backlogs sit alongside them.
Post-war bungalows, small rental houses and mid-century strip retail. Pinellas is dense and largely built out, so the questions tend to be about tenants, flood zones and deferred maintenance.
The vacation belt. Short-term rental condos, fractional weeks and timeshare interests, plus citrus land that has been sitting between uses since greening took the groves.
Acreage, pasture and horse country, with agricultural classification on a good deal of it. Citrus Springs and the inland platted subdivisions are here too.
Coastal cottages and, further inland, timber and pine flats. Bay County still carries buildings that never came back after Hurricane Michael.
Florida charges documentary stamp tax of $0.70 per $100 of consideration ($0.60 in Miami-Dade). Some transfers without consideration are exempt or taxed differently, and we confirm the treatment for your deed. Where the tax falls on the grantee, we pay it.
No. We prepare the deed in the form Florida requires for the county where the property sits, you sign before a notary where you live, and we record it with the clerk of the circuit court.
Generally yes. Florida's homestead protection means a married owner's spouse joins in the conveyance of homestead property even when the spouse is not on title. It is one of the first things we check, because a deed signed without that signature causes trouble later.
Not automatically. Florida counties auction tax certificates on delinquent parcels, and a certificate holder can apply for a tax deed once enough time has passed, so the calendar matters more here than in most states. What decides it is whether the redemption amount is well below what the property can sell for. Tell us the parcel number and the certificate year and we will look at the numbers with you. See donating property with back taxes.
No. It is a number we weigh, not a disqualifier. What we look at is the assessment balance, the unit's value once the work is done and how the association has scheduled payment. Send the association's notice with the rest and we will tell you where it lands.
Often, within the authority the will and the Florida probate court give the personal representative. If the property passed outside probate, the heirs on title sign together. Homestead property has its own devise rules, so tell us where the estate stands and we will tell you who needs to sign.
We do not provide tax or legal advice. State transfer tax rules change; we confirm current requirements when we prepare each deed. Consult your own advisor.
The county and a parcel number are enough to start.
