"Factually a rolled-up rate." That is how FlaglerLive described the property tax rate the Palm Coast City Council adopted on September 23, 2026. Officially it is the "rolled-back rate" of 4.1387 mills, meaning $4.1387 per $1,000 of taxable value. Last year the rate was 4.0893 mills. The council had to raise it because property values fell.
That one line sums up Palm Coast's 2026 tax year. If you are buying here, it also explains something that matters more than the rate. The property tax figure tied to a home you are considering belongs to the person selling it. Florida law says it does not move to you.
The Tax Bill on a Home Belongs to Its Current Owner
The Florida Department of Revenue explains the rule in its Save Our Homes Assessment Limitation and Portability Transfer pamphlet. When a home changes owners, the seller's built-up Save Our Homes benefit goes away. The property is then reassessed at just value, which is roughly market value, as of the January 1 after the sale. Once the new owner has a homestead in place, Save Our Homes limits how much the assessment can rise each year from that new starting point. If the buyer already has a Florida homestead, they may be able to bring some or all of that earlier Save Our Homes benefit with them. The state calls this porting.
In practice, this matters most with homes that have been owned for a long time. A seller who has kept a homestead for years may have an assessed value well below what the home sells for. Their tax bill reflects that history. Yours will reflect the January 1 just value after you close, minus whatever exemptions you qualify for.
In most years this is a quiet detail. In 2026 it carries more weight, because Palm Coast's values, its tax rate and Save Our Homes are all moving in different directions at once.
How Falling Values Produced a Higher Rate
In May 2026, FlaglerLive reported that average taxable property values in Flagler County fell for the first time in 14 years, not counting new construction. The figures came from Flagler County Property Appraiser Jay Gardner's calculations. Average taxable values fell 1% in Palm Coast, after a 4% increase the year before. Countywide they fell 0.4%.
The rolled-back rate is the rate that would bring in about the same revenue as last year from properties that were on the tax roll both years. New construction is left out of that math. So when existing properties lose value, the rate needed to stay even goes up. For the first time in about 15 years, holding revenue flat meant raising the rate.
New construction is what kept Palm Coast's total tax base growing. It added more than half a billion dollars in value, about the same as the year before. Overall, Palm Coast's taxable values rose 3.81%, down from 9.3% the year before. Gardner put the effect plainly. "Everybody wants to bitch about new construction," he told FlaglerLive. "Well, there's the net benefit of it right there. What is that, like a 4 percent swing?"
The Palm Coast Observer reports that the 4.1387-mill rate is expected to bring in about $45.56 million in property tax revenue. The total city budget is $533.9 million, of which the General Fund is about $88 million. The city had first advertised a maximum rate of 4.2296 mills. FlaglerLive's example: a $300,000 house with a $50,000 homestead exemption would pay about $1,034 in city taxes at the new rate.
The Observer also points out what "rolled-back" does not mean. It does not mean every homeowner's city tax stays the same, because changes in each property's taxable value and exemptions affect individual bills.
Why a Long-Time Owner's Assessment Can Still Go Up
This is the part most out-of-state buyers do not expect. Under Save Our Homes, a homesteaded property's assessment can go up by as much as the yearly cap even when its market value goes down. That happens as long as the capped assessment is still below just value. The assessment can never be higher than just value. For 2026, the cap is 2.7%, which is the lower of the 3% constitutional limit and the change in the Consumer Price Index.
So in a year when Palm Coast's average taxable value fell 1%, two owners of similar houses on the same street can be treated very differently:
| Long-time homesteaded owner | New buyer | |
|---|---|---|
| Starting point for assessment | Capped value built up over years of ownership | Just value as of the January 1 after purchase |
| Effect of a 2026 market dip | Assessment can still rise up to 2.7% if it remains below just value | Starts from current just value, dip included |
| Annual increases after homestead | Limited to the Save Our Homes cap | Limited to the cap once homestead is established |
| Prior Florida benefit | Already built in | May be ported from a previous Florida homestead |
The 2026 roll, which pushed the city's rate up, may also be moving long-time owners' assessments up. A buyer starts at a lower market-based value, without the years of capped growth behind it. How these two forces net out depends on each property's history, which is why the seller's tax bill and a buyer's future bill can differ a lot.
What the Sales Data Shows About Just Value
Just value follows the market, so recent sales show what a buyer's starting assessment is likely to reflect. According to the Flagler County Association of Realtors, the single-family median sale price across its members' sales in July 2026 was $395,250, up 7.4% from July 2025. For August 2026, FlaglerLive cited association data showing a countywide single-family median of $390,000, which it described as flat. That month, 271 single-family sales closed.
The same August report says homes took about two months to go under contract and 97 days to sell. Inventory was down 20% from a year earlier, to just over 1,000 houses, or about 4.4 months of supply. FlaglerLive also noted that prices adjusted for inflation have dropped sharply. A $390,000 house in 2019 would cost about $509,000 in today's dollars.
Put those numbers next to the tax roll and you get a market where list prices have held roughly steady while assessed values for long-held homesteads keep climbing toward them, one capped step at a time.
The Costs That Ignore Your Assessment
Some recurring Palm Coast costs have nothing to do with taxable value, and several went up on October 1, 2026. The city's announcement lists them:
- Water and wastewater: up 5.1% under the city's annual adjustment tied to the Consumer Price Index. Usage charges are added on top of base charges.
- Stormwater: up from $36.16 to $38.33 per Equivalent Residential Unit each month, as part of a five-year schedule from the city's 2023 Stormwater Rate Study.
- Residential solid waste: $34.37 a month under the city's agreement with FCC Environmental.
The stormwater schedule adopted in 2023 sets the rate at $39.10 in 2027, with changes taking effect each October 1. These charges are the same for a new buyer and a 20-year owner. Next to a reset tax bill, they are the predictable part of the monthly cost.
Amendment 3 and the December 31, 2026 Line
One more variable is on the November 3, 2026 statewide ballot. According to the Florida Division of Elections, Amendment 3 would raise the homestead exemption for all non-school taxes to $150,000 in 2027 and $250,000 in 2028, with inflation adjustments after that. It would also lower the yearly assessment cap for non-homestead properties from 10% to 5%, limit what counties and cities can spend property taxes on, and take effect January 1, 2027.
For people moving to Florida, the timing provision matters most. Under the summary, people who were not Florida residents on December 31, 2026 would receive the existing homestead exemption when they qualify. The larger exemption would begin in their fifth year of exemption, to the extent the U.S. Constitution allows.
The measure has already shaped Palm Coast's budget. FlaglerLive reported that the city had planned to skip all additional sheriff's deputies this year until Amendment 3 is decided. The council later voted to fund two. Whether the amendment passes is up to voters. If it does, the gap between long-time owners and recent arrivals would add a residency date on top of the existing reset-at-sale rule.
Quick Answers
Will my Palm Coast tax bill match the seller's? Not necessarily. The Department of Revenue says the seller's Save Our Homes benefit is removed at sale and the home is reassessed at just value as of the next January 1. Your exemptions and any ported benefit also affect the result.
If values fell, why didn't the rate go down? The rolled-back rate is set to bring in roughly the same revenue from existing properties. When those properties lose value, the rate that holds revenue steady goes up.
What is the 2026 Save Our Homes cap? 2.7%, according to the Florida Department of Revenue.
Does Flagler County have a final 2026-27 rate yet? As of this writing, we could confirm only the county's tentative figures from its September 3 hearing. For the final county number, check the county's budget office.
The tax bill on a Palm Coast home tells you about the seller's history. Your own bill will start from that home's market value. If you're comparing homes in Palm Coast and want help seeing how a property's assessment history, the city's new rate and the October utility changes add up for a particular address, the Noah Bailey Group can go through the numbers with you before you make an offer. Contact Us to get started.
This article is general information, not legal, tax or financial advice. Consult a qualified professional about your situation.
