Florida Mortgage FAQ: The Questions Florida Buyers Actually Ask

Florida closing costs and state taxes

Average total closing costs in Florida run about 1.82% of the sales price before any seller or lender credit — higher than most states because Florida taxes the transaction twice. Florida imposes documentary stamp tax of $0.70 per $100 of the sales price on the deed and $0.35 per $100 of the loan amount on the note (Fla. Stat. § 201.02), plus an intangible tax of 2 mills on the mortgage (§ 199.133). Miami-Dade uses a slightly different single-family schedule. On top of those, plan for title and settlement services, appraisal, credit and flood certification, recording, and prepaid taxes and insurance. Our closing costs guide itemizes each line, and every figure becomes binding only on your Loan Estimate.

Insurance: wind, hurricane, and flood

Florida escrow payments are usually driven more by insurance than by taxes. The base homeowners policy typically carries a separate wind or hurricane deductible, and flood coverage is purchased separately when the property sits in a FEMA Special Flood Hazard Area. A wind mitigation inspection can document roof and opening protection that insurers credit. See flood insurance and your mortgage for how a lender treats a required policy, and homeowners insurance for a mortgage for how the premium enters your escrow.

Condominiums in Florida

A Florida condo purchase is underwritten at two levels: you, and the project. Reserves, budget, litigation, investor concentration, and structural inspection status can all affect whether a project is eligible for a given loan program. Start with our Florida condo mortgage guide and the broader condo approval and financing explanation before you write an offer on a unit.

Who closes the loan in Florida

Florida closings are handled by title companies or by attorneys; both are common statewide. That matters because it determines who you sign with and which services on page 2 of your Loan Estimate you are allowed to shop for.

Down payment assistance in Florida

Florida Housing Finance Corporation administers the statewide down payment and closing cost assistance programs, including Hometown Heroes and Florida Assist. Current income limits, purchase price caps, and funding availability are published by the agency itself. County and city programs also exist. See our Florida down payment assistance guide, and note that eligibility is set by the administering agency, not by us.

Loan programs Florida buyers ask about most

Florida buyers most often compare an FHA loan in Florida against a Florida conventional loan, with VA loans heavily used near Jacksonville, Tampa and the Panhandle bases, USDA loans in eligible rural areas, and jumbo loans in the coastal South Florida markets. County conforming and FHA limits decide which of those a given price point falls into.

Nothing on this page is a rate quote, lock, offer, or commitment to lend. Program rules and agency program terms change; confirm them at application. Simply Approved Mortgages LLC is not affiliated with HUD, VA, USDA, or Florida Housing Finance Corporation.

Florida-specific mortgage rules worth knowing before you sign anything

These are the state-level rules that most often surprise Florida borrowers moving from a generic mortgage explanation to their actual closing disclosure.

Program parameters above are published by the agencies and enterprises named in the right-hand column and can change. They describe program rules, not an offer; eligibility, terms, conditions, and availability vary by borrower, property, lender, loan program, and state, and all loans are subject to lender underwriting and approval.

The closing cost items that catch out-of-state buyers

Buyers relocating to Florida from a state without a documentary stamp or intangible tax are often surprised to see these line items on their Closing Disclosure. Both are calculated from published rate schedules maintained by the state, applied to the note amount and the recorded mortgage amount respectively, and they are simply a cost of doing a mortgage transaction in Florida rather than a lender fee or a sign of anything unusual about the loan.

Insurance is the variable that moves a Florida payment the most

In much of the country, homeowners insurance is a minor and stable piece of a monthly payment. In Florida, particularly in coastal and high-wind-exposure counties, windstorm coverage, and flood insurance where applicable, can rival or exceed the property tax portion of the escrow, and premiums have moved considerably in recent years as the state’s insurance market has adjusted. Buyers should obtain a real insurance quote before finalizing a purchase decision, not rely on a generic estimate, since the gap between markets within Florida itself — coastal versus inland, older roof versus newer roof — can be significant.

How homestead status changes the ongoing payment, not the loan

Filing for Florida’s homestead exemption on a primary residence reduces the assessed value used to calculate property taxes and, over time, limits how much the assessment can increase annually under the Save Our Homes cap. This does not affect loan qualifying at the time of purchase, but it does affect the escrowed tax portion of the payment in future years, and it is one reason a home’s property tax bill can look different for a long-time owner than for a recent buyer of a comparable house next door.

How this applies in Florida and Colorado

Florida. This page is Florida-specific end to end: documentary stamp tax, intangible tax, homestead exemption, and windstorm/flood insurance layering are the mechanics that most distinguish a Florida mortgage transaction from a generic one, and every item above is governed by Florida statute or state agency rule rather than federal mortgage guidelines.

Colorado. Colorado does not impose a documentary stamp tax or intangible tax comparable to Florida’s, and its property tax and insurance dynamics — including wildfire exposure rather than windstorm — differ meaningfully; Colorado buyers should refer to Colorado-specific resources rather than applying Florida’s tax and insurance rules to a Colorado transaction.

Simply Approved Mortgages LLC arranges residential mortgage loans in Florida and Colorado, so the two applications above are the ones we can act on for a consumer file. Business-purpose loan products may be arranged in additional states only where permitted by applicable law and pursuant to applicable licensing requirements or exemptions.

How a Florida mortgage transaction typically proceeds

The mortgage process itself follows federal timelines, but these Florida-specific steps are layered in.

1. Get pre-approved with Florida-specific insurance estimates. Ask your loan officer for a realistic insurance estimate for the specific property location, not a statewide average.
2. Confirm flood zone status early. Check FEMA flood mapping for the property before writing an offer, since flood insurance requirements affect the payment and, in some cases, program eligibility.
3. Order title work through a Florida title agent or attorney. Florida closings are typically handled by a title agency or real estate attorney, whose role includes the title search and closing coordination.
4. Review documentary stamp and intangible tax on your Loan Estimate. Confirm these state-specific charges are reflected accurately as your file moves toward closing.
5. Bind homeowners and, if applicable, windstorm and flood coverage. Insurance must be in place before closing, and Florida’s market can require binding well ahead of the closing date.
6. File for homestead exemption after closing. Once you own and occupy the property as your primary residence, file for the homestead exemption with the county property appraiser by the applicable deadline.
7. Monitor your escrow after the first tax and insurance cycle. Florida insurance renewals and tax reassessments can shift your escrowed payment meaningfully after the first year.

Mistakes that cost people money on this

• Budgeting for a Florida purchase using a generic national insurance estimate instead of a property-specific quote.
• Forgetting to file for the homestead exemption after closing, which leaves money on the table on future tax bills.
• Not confirming flood zone status before making an offer on a property near water.
• Assuming documentary stamp and intangible taxes are lender fees rather than state-imposed transaction taxes.
• Waiting until just before closing to shop windstorm and flood insurance in a hard market.
• Overlooking that Citizens Property Insurance eligibility rules apply if private coverage is unavailable.

Is this the right move for your situation?

The honest answer depends on the file. These are the patterns we see on both sides.

Usually a good fit when

• You are buying or refinancing a property physically located in Florida.
• You want to understand the state-specific cost items before they appear on your Closing Disclosure.
• You are relocating from a state without comparable transfer taxes and insurance dynamics.

Usually not the right move when

• Your property is located outside Florida, where these specific state rules do not apply.
• You are looking for information about loan program eligibility rather than Florida-specific transaction mechanics.

None of this is a determination about your file. A Simply Approved Mortgages Loan Officer can run your actual numbers and show you what your disclosures would say.