Thanks to Property Appraiser Eddie Creamer on his work to make rich guys pay their damn taxes.
It is expected that the homestead audit will uncover lots of avoided and evaded ad valorem property taxes, including certain coastal McMansion owners from other states falsely claiming Florida residency to avoid and evade substantial taxes in New York, Connecticut and other places with state income taxes.
Before the audit commences, St. Augustine City Commissioner JOHN OTHA VALDES is already under investigation for claiming a homestead exemption for his 343 St. George Street property, which includes a $139/night AirBnB rental apartment.
Thank you, Mr. Creamer, and Property Appraiser staff. Well-run office. Kudos.
From former Mayor George R. Gardner's St. Augustine Report.
70,000 homestead properties
would undergo county audit
"In our county there are just over 70,000 homestead exemptions," County Property Assessor Eddie Creamer told commissioners Monday. "There's never been a comprehensive audit of those exemptions."
Creamer won initial commission support as a taxing authority in the county for an outside auditing firm "to identify properties with improper personal exemptions for the purpose of collecting taxes due on those properties."
Creamer said he needs participation of taxing authorities because audit firm collects fee from recoveries.
If an exemption is improperly claimed a lien is filed for all back taxes, a 50% penalty and 15% interest for time exemption improperly claimed, Creamer said. While the auditing firm has not been selected he expects a 20-30% fee of the total collected.
Creamer said the county has some 9½ billion dollars in property value protected by homestead exemptions.
About 15 counties are currently undergoing the newly developed process.
The property assessor will return to the commission for a later memorandum of understanding once he has visited all taxing authorities.
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