City of North Port sees biggest jump — 16.04%
The state’s Office of Economic and Demographic Research did not miss it by much.
The preliminary value of Sarasota County property for this year is up 9.86%, compared to the 2023 certified value. The state office had projected an 8.6% uptick.
The county figure is shown in documents that Brian Loughrey, chief deputy property appraiser, released just before the start of Memorial Day weekend, on behalf of Sarasota County Property Appraiser Bill Furst. The county’s preliminary value for this year marks a smaller jump than the 13.3% increase that the Property Appraiser’s Office reported before June 1, 2023.
The preliminary values must be released by June 1 each year, in accord with state law.
For the City of Sarasota, the data show a 9.53% hike, compared to the certified value of the city’s property in 2023. The preliminary June 1 report in 2023 noted an increase of 12.39%, compared to the certified value for 2022.
During an April 15 discussion with the Sarasota City Commission, Kelly Franklin, the city’s financial administration director, reported that state staff had estimated the city’s property value would climb 8.6% this year. Last year, she added, the estimate was that the city would see a 10% jump; the final figure was 13.2%.
If the increase for this fiscal year were the state number, Franklin added on April 15, and the commissioners kept the millage rate at 3 mills, the city would receive about $3.6 million more in revenue.
The City of North Port had the highest hike in the preliminary data that Loughrey provided The Sarasota News Leader: 16.04%. The City of Venice was in second place, with a jump of 11.29%.
Finally, for the Town of Longboat Key, the preliminary uptick is 7.78%.
Revised estimates will be released by July 1 — again, as mandated by state law. All of the local governing bodies in the county use the July 1 figures to determine their maximum millage rates for each coming fiscal year. Then, those millage rates appear in the Truth in Millage (TRIM) notices that the Property Appraiser’s Office mails out in August.
After the governing boards take their millage rate votes prior to the deadline for the TRIM notices, state law allows them to decrease the rates, but they cannot raise them.
As the News Leader has reported, County Commissioner Neil Rainford has called for a drop in the county’s millage rate for the 2025 fiscal year to 3.31 mills, compared to the county staff’s rate of 3.35 mills for this fiscal year. The latter figure does include voter-approved millage linked to paying off bonds that voters authorized during a 2018 referendum to cover the expense of the extensions of The Legacy Trail to downtown Sarasota and to North Port.
One mill represents $1,000 of the value of a piece of property.
Overall, the June 1 estimated taxable value of Sarasota County property is $103,413,943,663, as noted in a chart that Loughrey provided to the News Leader at its request. That figure compares to the 2023 certified value of $94,129,509,413.
Last year, only the Sarasota County School Board had a total property value that exceeded $1 billion. This year, the June 1 estimate puts the School Board’s property value at just 5.05% above the certified 2023 value. The total June 1 estimate is $113,238,634,493. That compares to the 2023 certified value of $107,791,009,284.
The total estimated value of property in the City of Sarasota for the June 1 report is $18,286,060,667. That compares to the 2023 certified value of $16,694,782,552.
The June 1 estimate for the City of North Port is $9,859,753,134. The 2023 certified value was $8,496,865,543.
For the City of Venice, the preliminary estimated property value is $7,356,168,635; the 2023 certified value was $6,610,153,001.
For Longboat Key, the June 1 estimated property value is $6,190,720,719, while the 2023 certified value was $5,743,684,652.
Among other details of the reports that Loughrey released late last week, the School Board has the highest estimated net taxable value of new construction for this year: $3,222,644,603. The total market value of the new construction was put at $3,554,132,119.
The county was in second place, with a net taxable value of new construction estimated at $3,152,606,628; the estimated market value is the same figure as that of the School Board: $3,554,132,119.
For the City of Sarasota, the estimated net taxable value of new construction is $371,025,584. The estimated market value of that new construction is $465,663,300.
The City of North Port came in third, behind the School Board and the county, with a net taxable value of new construction put at $827,641,143. The estimated market value is $913,627,400.
For Venice, the net taxable value of new construction is $368,887,805; the market value estimate is $395,532,400.
Finally, for the Town of Longboat Key, the estimated net taxable value of new construction is $23,599,061, while the estimated market value is $31,227,900.
Among other details in the preliminary reports are the estimated values of property in specific districts within the local governments’ jurisdictions. For example, the total estimated value of the Siesta Key Village Public Improvement District is $103,806,617. That is the area where the county paid for a beautification project that was completed in 2009. The owners of parcels in that district pay an assessment each year to maintain the district. The new total marks a jump of nearly 9.2%, compared to the 2023 preliminary estimate of $95,063,390
For another example, in the City of Sarasota, the St. Armands Special Business Neighborhood Improvement District has a preliminary value of $216,914,141. The June 1, 2023 estimate was $202,520,687. Thus, the new figure is about 7.1% higher.