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Property appraiser outlines Hurricane Milton damage, tax-refund process and counts of affected homes
Summary
Martin County property appraiser staff reported damage counts from Hurricane Milton, described the state law limits tied to the Jan. 1 assessment date, and summarized a new residential tax-refund process; 27 refund applications totaling $15,783 had been submitted by February.
The Martin County property appraiser’s office told the board on March 25 that Hurricane Milton’s tornadoes and related storm damage in October 2024 left dozens of homes with damage and that a state refund process is available for some residential properties.
“We are required by law to reassess property values every year at market value considering allowable cost of sale based on conditions as of January 1 of that tax year,” Property Appraiser Jenny Fields told the commission, explaining why damage occurring after Jan. 1 generally cannot change that year’s assessed value.
The explanation was followed by Chief Deputy Carl Anderson’s review of the office’s assessment map and damage counts. “Destroyed, we had a total of 30 properties,” Anderson said, and the office counted 31 properties with major damage, 92 with minor damage and 285 affected with minimal damage. Anderson said damage clusters started in Doubletree and The Preserve off Sea Branch, moved through Mariner Village, Mariner Sands, Salerno Estates, New Monrovia, Dixie Park, across A1A to Sandy Ridge and Rocky Point.
Why Jan. 1 matters: Fields said the law requires assessors to “take a picture” of market conditions on Jan. 1 each year; changes after that date generally apply only to the following tax year. Fields added that a new state law provides a residential tax-refund route for homes rendered uninhabitable for at least 30 days, but it applies only to living area and to residential (not commercial) properties. She said applications for that refund must be filed with the property appraiser’s office by March 1 following the catastrophic event.
The appraiser’s office said it mailed 49 letters on Nov. 1 to owners of properties classified as major or destroyed (40 homestead, nine non-homestead) explaining the refund process and documentation needed (photos, utility records, FEMA or insurance documents, permits). By February the office had received 27 refund applications totaling $15,783 (22 homestead applications totaling $11,248; five non-homestead applications). Anderson described the refund calculation as proportional to the share of improvement market value that was uninhabitable and to the portion of the year affected.
Staff explained damage-assessment workflow: an initial “windshield” field phase to drop FEMA-category points, a desktop review for accuracy, follow-up inspections by field appraisers and import of the data into the appraisal system (Canvas) so valuations for the following tax roll year reflect the damage. Anderson said the office also planned outreach letters to properties with minor damage to determine whether adjustments were needed for the 2025 tax roll.
Commissioners and staff urged property owners to contact the appraiser’s office before applying building permits so legitimate storm repairs are not recorded as new construction on the subsequent roll. Fields reiterated that if a property is rebuilt within five years, homestead protections and a 10% calamity rebuild rule may preserve the assessed value cap for a rebuilt home in the year after rebuilding.
The presentation did not request board action; commissioners thanked staff for the briefing and asked that the office continue outreach to affected property owners.
