All posts by : Jared Jones

Orange County charges a 6% Tourist Development Tax on stays of six months or less, including homes. Returns are due monthly to the Comptroller.

City of Orlando home sharing allows stays under 30 days only when the host lives on site, with half the home rented and one booking at a time.

Florida policies must cover catastrophic ground cover collapse when all 4 legal conditions are met. Full sinkhole coverage is optional and costs extra.

My Safe Florida Home offers free wind mitigation inspections and grants of $2 for every $1, up to $10,000, for eligible homesteaded homes built before 2008.

File Form DR-501 with the Orange County Property Appraiser by March 1. Own and live in the home on January 1. Homestead can cut up to $50,000 of assessed value.

Florida portability lets you move up to $500,000 of Save Our Homes benefit to a new Florida homestead if you set it up within 3 years and file DR-501T by March 1.

Florida has no age when property taxes stop. Orange County owners 65+ with 2025 household income of $38,686 or less can apply for up to $50,000 more off county taxes.

Most exterior work on a home in one of Orlando’s 6 historic districts needs a Certificate of Appropriateness first. Minor review is free; major review is $250.

How house flipping works in Florida, from profit targets and hard money to permits, contractor licensing and taxes. Jared Jones explains the low-risk method.

As of November 2026, see which 5 pre-sale repairs help a Florida home sell: paint, lighting, flooring, countertops and maintenance, with real cost ranges.

CDD assessments, HOA and condo dues, insurance and older-home systems can add thousands a year to an Orlando home. See 2026 ranges and public sources.

A plain-English guide to reading your Florida TRIM notice: market vs assessed vs taxable value, the Save Our Homes cap, exemptions, and the 25-day VAB appeal deadline.

Orange County agreed to pay $13 million for the 200-room Baymont by Wyndham hotel near John Young Parkway and plans to convert it into one-bedroom apartments.

Brightline’s 2026 Chapter 11 bankruptcy covers 17 parent entities, not the operating company. What it means for Orlando to Miami trains and planned Tampa line.

Florida HB 803 lets single-family homeowners skip a building permit on work under $7,500 from July 1, 2026. See what still needs a permit and what to check.

The Orlando STAR Plan is a 2026 feasibility study to bring rapid transit to 8 Orange County corridors. See the routes, modes, funding and timeline.

OUC DemandLevel pricing starts November 2026 with $5 to $15 monthly demand charges and a 12.5% lower kWh rate. See how Duke Energy and FPL bills change for 2026 too.

Most Florida Citizens policyholders with wind coverage must carry flood insurance by January 1, 2027, in any flood zone. See the schedule, exemptions and rules.

Where should you buy a home in Orlando with a $700K to $1.3M budget? Census data and tradeoffs for Winter Garden, Lake Nona, Oviedo and Winter Springs, Lake Mary, and Winter Park.