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Pinellas County Real Estate Update – Property Tax Amendment 5 Ripped from November Ballot

Pinellas County Florida – Well all home owners, investors and others got some bad news today – Leon County Circuit Court ripped Amendment 5 off the November ballot.  We still have a chance because the State will appeal the ruling and it will ultimately be decided by Florida’s Supreme Court. 

Govenor Crist Weigh’s In on Court’s Ruling

In the Florida Capital News Crist weighs in. Crist said Cooper’s ruling “doesn’t mean anything” because whichever side lost was certain to kick it up to the Supreme Court. “I was disappointed but not dismayed. It will be appealed – I think everybody knows that,” said Crist. “I hope it stays on the ballot because I like the will of the people. I want them to weigh in. I want them to have that power because they’re the boss.”

The Florida Association of Realtors, which supported the amendment, decried Cooper’s ruling saying “Homeownership is a fundamental right, and Floridians deserve a say on how their property is taxed,” said Chuck Bonfiglio, president of the Florida Association of Realtors, in a prepared statement. “We are shocked that the court decided to deny property owners’ the ability to dramatically lower their property tax rates.”

We as Clearwater Realtors and home owners we are definitely planning to Vote YES for Amendment 5 Property taxes. We believe it’s good for Clearwater Real Estate buyers, residents and renters because everyone should experience savings.  We also believe it will help home sellers since it will make homes more affordable and more appealing to buyers who do not qualify for homestead exemptions.     

Did you know that Florida property taxes have doubled over last 6 years?

Amendment 5 is proposing a sales tax 1% or less to fund education.

If approved it is predicted that Florida property owners could see 25-40% property tax deduction in 2010 if Amendment 5 had passed. This would help local Floridians across the board by sharing the cost of education with all local residents and tourists.  

One of the most important things Amendment 5 will do for our clients (people buying vacation homes or invests in Clearwater Beach and the Clearwater area)  is provide a  5% annual property tax cap on all non-homestead property (which was set at 10% this past February)  It’s important for Florida home owners to understand what’s at stake.  

Additional aritcles discussing Amendment 5 being removed from the ballot:

 

Amendment 5 creates these projected savings for Tampa Bay property owners

Amendment 5 Property Tax Details

  You can get more details on the Amendment 5 proposal at Give Me 5 Florida and the actual Amendment 5 property tax proposal.  Benefits: Amendment 5 would have provided much-needed tax relief to Florida’s seniors, many of whom fear losing their homes because of an inability to pay higher property taxes on a fixed income.  

Amendment 5 proposal built on what Ammendment 1 already gave us: 

Other articles of interest

                       ** CLICK ON PHOTOS BELOW TO SEE CLIENT VIDEO TESTIMONIALS **

Buyers and Sellers tell us that selecting the best Clearwater Beach real estate agents especially online or from a distance, can be a challenge. Some of our past clients agreed to share their experiences and tell you why they think you should work with us. 

Click on the photos below and meet some of our clients and now friends…wed love to be YOUR choice too!   Video photo noreen cathy collins daughter  Video photo francine sinclairVideo photo cathy collinsClearwater Real Estate Agents Get Kudos from Vacation Golf Home Buyers

 

 

 

 

The above information and images are Copyright © 2007 Jack and Cyndee Haydon,  Clearwater  REALTORS and your Clearwater Real Estate Consultants serving Pinellas County and may not be copied, reproduced, distributed, transmitted, displayed or published. All rights reserved. Plagiarism will be detected and is punishable by law.

Call us Today at (727) 710-8036 to hear more about how we can help you sell your home or buy a new one! 

About Cyndee Haydon

Cyndee Haydon, Realtor with Future Home Realty specializing in luxury waterfront and beach homes of Clearwater Beach - St Pete - Tampa Bay area with her husband and partner, Jack Haydon Cyndee's Google Profile

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Pinellas County Schools Assignment Update at Pinellas Realtor Organization

Presentation to Pinellas RealtorsClearwater Florida – Wednesday I was one of about 50 Pinellas County REALTORS (out of 9000 members of the Pinellas Realtor Organization) who attended a special session with Jim Madden from Pinellas County Schools.  

Jim is the man in charge of Pinellas County student school assignments – he joked that “he’s got job security” – I can only imagine :). We recently had changes to the School Choice plan and Pinellas County home buyers and current residents have lots of questions about..

Where will by child go to school?” -That’s why we made sure we were there - up-to-date information is critical to the families we help that are moving to Pinellas County or want to sell their home and move within the county.  The most important thing we took away was the fact that No school is automatic for non-entry level grade students.

If you’re wondering how we got here – School Choice was court-ordered to end the 30 year desegregation ruling / plan in Pinellas County. The 2007/2008 was the first year that the School District didn’t have specific min / max ratios to manage for each school.

When creating a new plan the parents, the community members and the School Board members found people overwhelmingly wanted a Student Assignment plan that included these 3 things:

  1. Give us Predictibility
  2. Still wanted Choice(s)
  3. Diversity

A major issue is the rising cost of transportation.  In the future, Pinellas County will continue to transport students to their school of “Choice” for 4 more years then parents will have to provide transportation to their “non-close-too-home” school.

Note: The new Pinellas County Student Assignement plan doesn’t change anything for Magnet and Fundemental schools          

Key Components of the new Pinellas County School Plan

  1. Transition from the Pinellas County Choice Plan
  2. Getting Back to Close-to-home schools or zoned schools
  3. Predictable feeder patterns
  4. Multiple choice options
  5. Reduce transportation issues and costs
  6. Diversity
  7. Equitable distribution of resources

What Pinellas County Home Buyers / Residents Should know during the Transition Period

  1. All students except those entering Kindergarten, 6th grade and 9th grade – will stay where ever they were last year
  2. Students entering Kindergarten, 6th grade and 9th grade will get their close-to-home school this year (or they can also opt for an older sibling’s school)   
  3. New students (not in one of the 3 grades listed above) are assigned on a space available basis to the close-to-home school or the next closest school. The challenge here is that the Florida Class Size Amendment limits the number of students that can be assigned to a school.
  4. 3 schools were closed this year – South Ward, Largo Central and Riviera Middle that are impacting mid county assignments

Jim Madden explains how new School Assignment will work to Pinellas County REALTORS 

 I’ve included some video of Jim’s presentation so you could hear how Pinellas County School assignments will be handled in Jim’s words:

 

 Jim talks about the new Pinellas County Student Assignment software and interactive map functions that are coming soon (hopefully by mid-September)  

  

 

Got More Questions? 

  1. If you have any questions you can contact Jim Madden directly at 727-588-5186 or email him at maddenj@pcsb.org or
  2. Call the Student Assignment Department at 727-588-6210 or
  3. District Call Center at 727-587-2020
  4. Visit their website at www.Pinellask12.fl.us

What do you need to enroll in school?  Proof of residency – a power bill, rent receipt, cable bill, phone bill, etc. – in some cases a purchase contract to buy a home or a lease agreement will also be accepted. Exceptions handled on a case by case basis.

Pinellas County Real Estate matches up to Pinellas County Schools

Get 25% more Property tax savings in November

Buying Pinellas County Real Estate less Complicated Now

Want more info about all our Pinellas County Real Estate – feel free to call Cyndee and Jack,your Pinellas County Realtors at (727) 710-8035. Want to see all the Pinellas County homes for sale – Feel free to search the Tampa Bay MLS.

Cyndee and Jack Haydon, Clearwater Real Estate Agents,  Charles Rutenberg Realty 1545 S. Belcher Rd Clearwater FL 33764

Call me at (727) 710-8035

About Cyndee Haydon

Cyndee Haydon, Realtor with Future Home Realty specializing in luxury waterfront and beach homes of Clearwater Beach - St Pete - Tampa Bay area with her husband and partner, Jack Haydon Cyndee's Google Profile

Posted by Cyndee Haydon | Currently Comments Off on Pinellas County Schools Assignment Update at Pinellas Realtor Organization