Should collapsed condo residents have to pay property taxes? Absolutely not | Editorial

The letters will go out this year as they do every August, notifying property owners in Miami-Dade County of their estimated taxes. The condo owners at the collapsed and now demolished Champlain Tower South will get those notices, too — no matter that their homes have been reduced to rubble, no matter that they no longer have a mailing address, no matter, even, that they are among the missing or dead.

That’s just not right. Imagine opening such a letter after surviving the collapse or losing your loved ones in that building. Imagine reading that letter knowing that town building officials, despite a series of red flags, had said those condos were safe to inhabit.

The letters are not tax bills. These Truth in Millage, or TRIM, notices simply outline proposed property taxes before they are levied so citizens have time to weigh in with their elected officials. That means our elected leaders have time to do the right thing: they should waive property taxes for these devastated homeowners and their estates.

“It’s an unfortunate situation in light of this horrible tragedy,” admitted Eileen Hernandez, a spokesperson for the Miami-Dade Property Appraiser’s Office. But TRIM notices are going out to everyone in August, including those who lived at the buckled tower at 8777 Collins Ave. Period.

Waive property taxes?

This is not a callous decision by Property Appraiser Pedro J. Garcia or Miami-Dade County. It’s state law. But exceptions should be made, and kindness shown, to the people who lost their homes in the Champlain collapse.

As a way to offer solace to those affected, we think state and local officials should figure out how to waive or reduce the property tax bills on the 135 units at the Champlain Tower South.

The Miami Herald Editorial Board feels this can be fixed — and it must be. It’s the right thing to do.

One possibility: Miami-Dade, the state or Gov. Ron DeSantis, who has shown great compassion during this tragedy, should consider an emergency order to exempt residents of Champlain Tower South from paying property taxes this year, allow the owners to appeal their tax notice with the Value Adjustment Board and charge them $0. Or take their property off the tax rolls — much as their property has been taken off the face of the Earth.

Yes, that means the city of Surfside, Miami-Dade schools and other taxing districts and entities would lose hundreds of thousands of dollars in total taxes from Champlain Towers. Each unit was generally valued at between $600,000 and $1.5 million.

Maybe the state could step up and pay the Champlain Tower South condo owners’ tax bills — to the city of Surfside.

We know this is uncharted territory . But that’s not surprising, as nothing of this scope has ever occurred in any of the state’s 67 counties.

Researching property tax law

We asked Florida’s Department of Revenue via email if it is possible to suspend property taxes for the Champlain Tower South property owners this year. Here’s their response:

“The Champlain Tower collapse is an unprecedented disaster, and we recognize that facts pertaining to the cause of the collapse have not yet been discovered. As details surrounding the collapse emerge, we continue to research implications of the property tax laws to assist the property appraiser and other local and state officials in addressing the needs of the Champlain Towers residents and their families. Under current law, TRIM notices are scheduled to be mailed in the coming weeks.”

We’re glad they are researching the implications of this disaster on property tax laws. And we understand that the Florida Constitution requires all property appraiser offices to assess property based on market value as of Jan. 1 of each year. The property value this year will be based on sales of comparable properties near the Champlain Tower that occurred during the previous year, or 2020.

Thanks to our current real estate boom, that means the assessment of the units at the now destroyed 41-year-old oceanfront condominiums will likely be the highest yet.

This is a one-year problem. In 2022, owners of the property, or their heirs, will likely only pay taxes on the land the condo stood on.

Authorities should also examine homestead exemption tax breaks for these residents. Is the exemption only good for the crumpled condo, though it is unlivable, or should residents be allowed to claim another residence, with another exemption?

In a tragedy of this magnitude, it’s hard to find ways to truly help. But when it comes to property taxes, we may actually be able to do something meaningful. We owe it to the victims and their families to use every bit of creativity we can find to figure it out.

This story was originally published July 6, 2021 at 4:23 PM.