# After you close > File homestead by March 1, carry your tax savings with portability, see the Amendment 3 estimates, and keep a Florida home insurable. Source: https://moorerealtyapopka.com/academy/home-buyer-bootcamp/after-you-close/ · Last updated 2026-11-12 · Robert Moore, Broker/Owner, Moore Realty Group, Inc. · 352-504-6371 - [Home](https://moorerealtyapopka.com/) - [Learn Moore Academy](https://moorerealtyapopka.com/academy/) - [Apopka Home Buyer Bootcamp](https://moorerealtyapopka.com/academy/home-buyer-bootcamp/) - After you close Lesson 07 of 07 · 7 min # After you close File homestead by March 1, carry your tax savings with portability, see the Amendment 3 estimates, and keep a Florida home insurable. The point Your first deadline as an owner is March 1: file for the homestead exemption with the Orange County Property Appraiser. On a $400,000 Apopka home it cuts the bill by about $655 under 2026 rules, and by an estimated $1,608 in 2027 under Amendment 3. ## File for homestead by March 1 You qualify for a tax year if you own the home and live in it on January 1, and you file by March 1 of that year. Close in 2026, move in before January 1, 2027 and file by March 1, 2027, and the exemption shows on your 2027 bill. Miss January 1 and your first year is taxed with no homestead. - Save Our Homes. From the year after your first homestead year, your assessed value can rise by no more than 3% or the change in the Consumer Price Index, whichever is lower. The cap was 2.7% for 2026. - Portability. If you gave up a Florida homestead, you can move up to $500,000 of its Save Our Homes benefit to the new home. Establish the new homestead within three years of January 1 of the year you left the old one, and file Form DR-501T with your application. ## What Amendment 3 changes Voters approved Amendment 3 on November 3, 2026 with about 62% in favor. The result is unofficial until certified and the implementing law is not yet passed, so everything after 2026 is an estimate. Tax on a $400,000 homestead inside Apopka at the 2026 rate of 16.0079 mills. 2027 and 2028 are estimates and assume the rate does not change. | Year | Exemption from non-school taxes | Tax | | --- | --- | --- | | No homestead | None | $6,403.16 | | 2026, current law | $25,000 plus up to $26,411 | $5,747.70 | | 2027, estimate | $150,000 | $4,794.85 | | 2028, estimate | $250,000 | $3,828.36 | The 2027 math: $375,000 at the 6.3430 school mills is $2,378.62, and $250,000 at the other 9.6649 mills is $2,416.23. Total: $4,794.85. Two cautions. Local governments may raise millage rates in response. And anyone who was not a Florida resident on December 31, 2026 starts with a non-school exemption of up to $50,000: $5,761.34 on this example. ## Your tax and insurance calendar Tax bills are mailed by November 1. Pay in November and you take 4% off; the discount falls to 3% in December, 2% in January and 1% in February, and the bill is delinquent on April 1. The 2026 example, $5,747.70, paid in November is $5,517.79. When the insurance renewal arrives, re-shop it with an independent agent, and keep your wind mitigation report and roof permit on file. Citizens policyholders: the flood requirement starts January 1, 2027. ## First-year maintenance list Fannie Mae suggests budgeting 1% to 4% of a home's value a year for upkeep: $4,000 to $16,000 on $400,000. - Change air filters on schedule and have the HVAC serviced before summer. - Check the roof and clear gutters before hurricane season and after any major storm. - Keep tree limbs off the roof, and re-caulk windows and doors where gaps open. - File every permit, receipt and warranty for the next insurer and the next buyer. Do this now Put March 1 on your calendar and file as soon as you move in. Filing late costs a full year of the exemption. ## Before you go - Read the [homestead and Amendment 3 guide](https://moorerealtyapopka.com/guides/florida-homestead-exemption-amendment-3/). - Model your own bill for 2026, 2027 and 2028 in the [property tax estimator](https://moorerealtyapopka.com/tools/property-tax/). - Bring your questions to Robert through the [contact page](https://moorerealtyapopka.com/contact/). Sources: [Florida Department of Revenue PT-112](https://floridarevenue.com/property/Documents/pt112.pdf), [s. 193.155, F.S.](https://www.leg.state.fl.us/statutes/index.cfm?App_mode=Display_Statute&URL=0100-0199/0193/Sections/0193.155.html), [Ballotpedia, Amendment 3 (2026)](https://ballotpedia.org/Florida_Amendment_3,_Homestead_Tax_Exemptions,_Property_Assessments,_and_Spending_Restrictions_Amendment_(2026)), [Orange County Tax Collector](https://www.octaxcol.com/taxes/about-property-tax/), [Orange County final 2026 millage](https://ocpaimages.ocpafl.org/api/Content/GetContentDynamicFile?contentFileID=418587), [Fannie Mae on maintenance budgets](https://yourhome.fanniemae.com/own/how-build-your-maintenance-and-repair-budget). Checked November 2026. You close in December 2026 and move in before January 1. When must you file for homestead?