Florida has a lot to offer those who are looking to invest in commercial properties or luxury oceanfront real estate. In addition to having some great beaches, a diverse economy, and wonderful cities such as Miami, those who invest will also find that it also has some favorable tax laws. With some of the recent tax changes that have come to New York and Connecticut, things are looking quite sunny for Wall Street players.
Tax Changes Brings a Change of Thought
The federal tax overhaul put caps on the amount of state and local deductions that individuals can take. Those who are in New York and Connecticut and who want to find ways of avoiding some of the financial fallout have fond that Florida could be a good option. In the past, many of those same individuals would simply write off their state and local taxes when they filed their federal returns. The change to the laws made it far more difficult for them. In fact, currently, they are only able to deduct a maximum of $10,000. This is simply not enough for the hedge fund managers and many of the other wealthy elite in the Northeast.
In Florida, there is no income tax, and the property taxes are low. Those in the Northeast always knew about this, but they had always been able to rely on simply increasing the deduction in the past. The property taxes in the Northeast are some of the highest in the United States. In addition, the cap includes properties in the Northeast. So, purchasing real estate there would not make as much financial sense as in Florida. Now, they are starting to take a renewed interest in the Sunshine State thanks to their taxes. There are some nice advantages to this.
Could NY Firms Be Moving Too?
While most of the attention is on buyers from New York and Connecticut buying and investing in property to help shelter their money and to make the best of the new tax situation in their own state, other changes could be coming, as well. In fact, the change in the taxes could cause some firms from the north to decide to take some of their operations south to Florida. Already, there have been an additional 14,700 jobs created in Florida in the financial sector over the course of the last year. During that same timeframe, Connecticut lost more than 500 jobs.
There are some companies and firms that are looking into moving to Florida very seriously. They have not made a full move yet, but some of the companies are starting out small with some satellite offices to see how things go. Florida could see a nice economic boom that is somewhat unexpected if these changes continue, and if more firms do decide to make the change to Florida.
The advantageous tax situation in Florida is not only helpful for hedge fund managers, of course. Anyone who is looking to buy property, whether it is purely for investment or for a new home will find that the tax situation in Florida can work out in their favor.
