Florida's HJR 1-F Lawsuit and the 2026 Residency Cutoff: What Luxury Buyers Must Do Now

⚡ Quick Summary

• The Core Limbo: A lawsuit filed in Leon County by Weston City Attorney Jamie Cole has challenged Florida's historic property tax overhaul (HJR 1-F / Amendment 3), introducing legal debate over ballot language just months before the November general election.
• The Residency Barrier: If approved by a 60% voter supermajority, the amendment imposes a strict five-year waiting period for new residents establishing domicile after December 31, 2026 before they can access the expanded non-school homestead exemptions ($150,000 in 2027; $250,000 in 2028).
• The Carve-Out Risk: Luxury carrying cost projections must isolate school board levies from county assessments; because school district taxes are entirely excluded from the expanded exemption, real-world savings are significantly narrower than current media headlines suggest.

On June 11, 2026, a lawsuit filed in Leon County's Second Judicial Circuit put Florida's biggest property tax overhaul in decades into legal debate — months before voters were set to decide it on the November ballot.

If you're an out-of-state buyer looking at downsizing or rightsizing a luxury home in Winter Park, Windermere, or along the Butler Chain, you now have two clocks running at once: a December 31, 2026 residency cutoff written into the amendment, and a court challenge regarding ballot wording. For a complete market overview, see my Dr. Phillips Snowbird Guide.

I'm Yousef Zeidan, a luxury right-sizing, downsizing, and tax-sensitive relocation specialist with RE/MAX Prime Properties (License #SL3520428). If you're asking if it is time to downsize your luxury home, this brief covers what HJR 1-F actually does, what the lawsuit changes, and how to make a seven-figure purchase decision that doesn't hinge solely on a court ruling.

What Is HJR 1-F, and Why Is It Being Challenged in Court?

HJR 1-F (Amendment 3) is a proposed Florida constitutional amendment that would raise the non-school homestead exemption from $50,000 to $150,000 on January 1, 2027, and to $250,000 on January 1, 2028, if approved by 60% of voters in November 2026.

The amendment also cuts the annual assessment-increase cap on non-homestead property (rentals, second homes, commercial buildings) from 10% to 5%, restricts local property tax spending to core services, and imposes a five-year waiting period before new Florida residents can claim the expanded exemption.

The December 31, 2026 Residency Cutoff: What's at Stake?

The cumulative penalty for missing the cutoff typically calculates to roughly $5,000–$8,000 over the five-year wait, depending on local non-school millage. For seasonal owners, balancing this timeline with local HOA rules for seasonal residents is vital.

Establishing domicile is not the same as closing on a house. Before December 31, 2026, you would need to physically occupy the home and assemble the paper trail: a Florida driver's license, vehicle registration, voter registration, and a formal Declaration of Domicile filed with Orange County. Review our step-by-step Florida Domicile Checklist.

The School Tax Carve-Out Most Downsizing Coverage Ignores

HJR 1-F's expanded exemptions apply only to non-school levies; school district taxes will still be calculated using the existing $25,000 school exemption. Because school millage represents a substantial share of an Orange County tax bill, real-world savings are smaller than headline numbers suggest.

A client comparing a Park Avenue Winter Park home against a Windermere estate will often apply the full exemption against the entire millage rate by mistake. Run the numbers correctly — exemption against non-school millage only — to see your true baseline.

The Assessment Reset Downsized Buyers Rarely Budget For

When a Florida home changes ownership, its assessed value resets to full market value on January 1 following the closing — erasing the seller's accumulated Save Our Homes savings. Buyers who underwrite carrying costs from the seller's current tax bill routinely understate their own year-one taxes.

Two mitigants matter: the 3% Save Our Homes cap begins protecting you after your first homestead year, and if you're moving within Florida, portability lets you transfer up to $500,000 of accrued SOH benefit to the new home. Out-of-state buyers get neither head start — which is why I model the reset for every client. Factor this reset into the true annual cost of staying in a large Orlando home and review our Orlando property tax guide for worked examples.

Should You Accelerate Your Purchase? A Decision Framework

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