Property values soar by nearly 50% on Fort Myers Beach as it rebuilds from Hurricane Ian

Property values have soared by nearly 50% on Fort Myers Beach, a community devastated by Hurricane Ian.

The final tax roll for Lee County shows an even bigger jump than the preliminary one – at 47.99%, up from an estimated 36.37% a month ago.

The final report was submitted to the Florida Department of Revenue on July 1, a month after the preliminary roll was released, as required by state law.

Although the numbers have changed a bit, the sharp contrast between Fort Myers Beach and Sanibel Island still stands out most.

On Sanibel, the decline in property values has lessened to -8.95% from -10.44%, with more data crunched over the past few weeks. But it's still a drop.

It's a reflection of the recovery efforts from Hurricane Ian, with Fort Myers Beach much farther ahead in its comeback. More properties have changed hands and there's been more new construction in the town, pushing up market and taxable values. The town's just – or market – values rose to more than $5.34 billion in 2024, up from about $3.6 billion last year.

A big part of the increase is new construction, now estimated at more than $660 million. That includes a myriad of damaged properties that have been repaired and returned to the tax rolls, from homes and condos to hotels and restaurants, said Lee County Property Appraiser Matt Caldwell, in an interview last month.

"That's a huge chunk of it," he emphasized.

While values are up sharply from last year, they're still down by nearly $1 billion from where they stood before Ian hit in September 2022. They were at more than $6.26 billion before the devastating storm left the island in shambles, with a storm surge as high as 15 feet.

"These numbers show Fort Myers Beach is well on its way to recovery, but we still have work to do. With the increased property values our staff is working diligently to ensure we do not have to raise the taxes for our residents. I’m confident we will be able to succeed in that," said Dan Allers, the town's mayor.

By next year, Caldwell predicts Fort Myers Beach could be back to where it was before Ian from a "tax base perspective." Total taxable value rose by more than 54% from 2023 to 2024, topping $3.97 billion.

The assessed value of a property takes into account any limits or caps on taxes. From there, the taxable value is determined by subtracting out any exemptions, and that's used as the basis for the property tax bill.

While it turned out on in the positive, Sanibel's taxable value increased by only 1% to about $4.66 billion.

Many of the resorts, condos and other rental properties remain closed there, with repairs still needed.

"They still have a long way to go in recovering their resort, rental profile there on Sanibel. Hopefully, by next year," there will be a more positive story to tell, Caldwell said.

Earlier:Property values soar on Fort Myers Beach as it redevelops in aftermath of Hurricane Ian

How did others fare?

On the whole, Lee County's property values rose by 5.86% from 2023 to 2024, including the unincorporated area and its cities, towns and village.

Taxable values are up by 12.8% countywide.

Market and taxable values increased more than first estimated in the preliminary roll.

Matthew Simmons, a managing partner with Maxwell, Hendry & Simmons, a commercial and residential appraisal and consulting firm in Fort Myers, explained that hike reflects "a lot of Ian-damaged properties selling, and the capped assessment being lifted."

"For properties that have been owned a long time, the 3% homestead and 10% non-homestead cap really adds up over time and results in a taxable value well below the just value," he continued. "Now that many of those properties are changing hands for the first time in years, the assessment resets and that capped benefit goes away."

With taxable values up across the board, the county and other local governments can generate more money at the same millage, or property tax rate, or choose to raise or lower their rates, with decisions to be made by their leaders over the coming months.

This year the just value for all property rose to more than $215.96 billion countywide, up from about $204 billion in 2023. That included new construction, estimated at nearly $6 billion.

Here's a look at how market values changed over the year in other areas of the county:

• In Fort Myers, they rose 3.77% to more than $20.6 billion.
• In Cape Coral, they edged up 1.16% to roughly $46.52 billion.
• In Bonita Springs, they increased 7.38% to more than $26.42 billion.
• In Estero, they grew 5.08% to about $14.48 billion.

New construction added more than $337.9 million of market value in Fort Myers, $1.7 billion in Cape Coral, $301.5 million in Bonita, and nearly $102.3 million in Estero.

While recovery has been slow on Sanibel, it still gained more than $189.58 million in value from construction.

Every fire district, even on Sanibel, saw their valuations grow. They operate independently, collecting their own share of property taxes, based on assessed values within their borders.

What's next

Now, the property appraiser's office awaits the decisions by the taxing authorities, including the county and cities, as well as the fire districts, on whether they expect to cut, keep or raise their millage rates.

Truth in Millage, or TRIM, notices will be mailed out in August, with proposed taxes for next year.

The notice provides public hearing dates, as well as contact information for each taxing authority, in case property owners want to provide input before a final vote is taken on the proposed rates.

It also gives property owners time to contest their valuations, if they see them as unfair.

The Florida Department of Revenue must approve the roll before it becomes certified. Annual property tax notices are mailed by Nov. 1 each year.