Palm Beach County taxable property values increased about 7% over the past year, according to preliminary estimates released May 27 by Property Appraiser Dorothy Jacks.
“Somewhat similarly to 2025, we are seeing value increases focused in the new construction space, particularly in residential new construction,” Jacks said.
“Almost 4,000 new residential units — including single-family homes, condominiums and townhomes — were added to the tax roll this year. This is new property value that was not taxed before.”
The data released pertains solely to taxable value. Market value is much higher.
Taxable value is lower because it does not take into account homesteaded properties that are limited in how much their assessments can rise. It also does not include tax-exempt properties, such as those owned by houses of worship or by public entities.
County appraisers calculate values as of Jan. 1 each year, meaning the latest numbers are based on sales data from calendar year 2025.
Every municipality reported higher taxable values compared to the previous year, except South Palm Beach, which saw a 1% decline. Six smaller municipalities — Briny Breezes, Cloud Lake, Lake Park, Loxahatchee Groves, Mangonia Park and Westlake — recorded double-digit increases. The increase for the county’s 39 municipalities was 11%.
The estimates of taxable values help the county, municipalities and other taxing authorities project their budgets and tax rates. Once the taxing authorities have determined their budgets and proposed tax rates, the Property Appraiser’s Office will mail the Truth In Millage, or TRIM, notice of proposed taxes to every property owner in August.
The taxable value for the county’s 39 municipalities totals $265.2 billion, an increase of $15 billion. More than $3.9 billion in new countywide construction helped raise the county’s overall taxable value to $365.7 billion.
At $42.6 billion, Boca Raton once again led the county with the highest estimated taxable value, an increase of 8.5%. Other municipalities with $20 billion or more in taxable value include:
Lake Park had by far the largest percentage increase in taxable value at 39%, driven largely by a record $419 million in new construction. Only three other municipalities recorded more new construction activity than Lake Park, a town of about 9,000 residents.
The surge reflects major redevelopment projects such as Nautilus 220, a luxury high-rise waterfront condominium project.
The Nautilus project alone generated a taxable value of more than $400 million. The condos at Nautilus currently start at $1.3 million. The community is along the Intracoastal Waterway.
Westlake, a city incorporated in 2017, experienced a 22% increase in taxable value. Much of that growth was also attributable to more than a quarter-billion dollars in new construction. Its taxable value now stands at nearly $2 billion.
Unlike Lake Park, development in Westlake isn’t piecemeal. It’s a full-scale rollout of a new municipality. Multiple neighborhoods have been built, and more are planned.
The increase in property values is most likely to result in assessment caps coming into effect. In most cases, state law limits assessments on homesteaded property to increases of no more than 3%, while nonhomesteaded property may increase by no more than 10%.
Those caps, however, do not mean lower tax bills. That will depend on tax rates that local officials adopt.
Gov. Ron DeSantis has called on county and local governments to roll back their tax rates to provide relief to homeowners. He argues that the surging value of real estate has allowed local officials to collect unprecedented amounts of revenue from homeowners.
His chief financial officer, Blaise Ingoglia, is likely to call on county officials to lower the county tax rate, given the increase in property values.
Mike Diamond is a journalist at The Palm Beach Post, part of the USA TODAY Florida Network. He covers Palm Beach County government and transportation. You can reach him at mdiamond@pbpost.com. Help support local journalism. Subscribe today.
This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: Nearly 4,000 new homes fuel spike in county’s taxable property value
Reporting by Mike Diamond, Palm Beach Post / Palm Beach Post
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
