Naples Florida Real Estate News - 08/16/07
HOMEOWNERS INSURANCE - Florida insurance regulators have been turning down rate increase requests and are now rejecting proposed decreases as not low enough. Rate reductions proposed by Cypress Property & Casualty, First Floridian Auto and Home and Travelers Indemnity Company of America have been denied. In spite of increases in homeowners insurance premiums a prospective buyer of Naples real estate can expect to pay about 0.65% of the purchase price of the home. Of course, this estimate can vary according the year of and type of construction.
DISASTER PREPARATION - After the hurricanes of 2004 and 2005, many small Naples, Bonita Springs, and Estero businesses have worked to make themselves less vulnerable to hurricanes and other disasters. However, hurricanes aren’t the only threat: All small businesses need to be prepared to ride out a disaster following fires, vandalism and power outages.
TRIM NOTICES OUT - REAL ESTATE TAXES TRIMMED DOWN - Check it out – your property taxes probably went down. Naples, Bonita Springs, and Estero residents will soon receive their “truth in millage” statements, or TRIM, that give property owners information on next year’s property taxes. But this year, almost 94 percent of Floridians will see some savings thanks to a new law passed during July’s special session of the Florida Legislature. For many, it’s not the savings generating the excitement, it’s what they don’t see – an increase. Counties in which property taxes rose the most over the past few years will see the greatest reduction of 9 percent. TRIM notices can be detailed and hard to decipher, however. To calculate your personal savings, compare two columns. “Your Property Taxes Last Year” tells you how much you paid in 2006, if you took advantage of the discount; “Your Taxes if PROPOSED Budget Change is Made” tells you how much the city or county plans to charge in 2007. Just subtract the former from the latter. Additional information about your property’s assessed value is also on the TRIM statement.
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