Moving to Florida from Ontario

What owning a Florida home does and does not let you do

There is no citizenship, residency or visa requirement to buy real estate in Florida. A Canadian can hold title personally, jointly with a spouse, or through a trust or company, each with different tax results. What ownership does not do is change your immigration status.

• Visitor stays: Canadian visitors can generally stay up to about six months a year. The 182-day figure is a U.S. border practice rather than a written guarantee, and officers look at your total time in the U.S. over the past 12 months.
• Living in Florida full time requires a U.S. immigration status such as a work visa, family sponsorship or investor visa. EB-5 requires $800,000 in a targeted employment area or $1,050,000 elsewhere, invested in a job-creating enterprise; buying a house does not qualify.
• Ontario side: OHIP has its own physical-presence rules for keeping coverage while you winter abroad. Check the current Ontario rules before you plan a long stay, and buy out-of-country travel medical insurance for the time you are south.

The U.S. tax side for Ontario snowbirds

The IRS uses a substantial presence test: a weighted count of days over three years (all of this year's days, one-third of last year's and one-sixth of the year before) that can make you a U.S. tax resident at 183 days. Many snowbirds who cross that line file Form 8840, the closer connection exception statement, to show their ties remain in Canada. Missing it can create U.S. filing obligations you did not expect.

• Florida has no state income tax, so the state itself does not tax your Canadian income.
• U.S. estate tax can apply to U.S. property owned by Canadians at death. The Canada-U.S. tax treaty provides relief, and how you hold title affects the result.
• Canadian tax still applies to your worldwide income as an Ontario resident, including any gain when you eventually sell the Florida home.

This isn't legal or tax advice. A cross-border accountant who files both Canadian and U.S. returns is worth consulting before you choose how to hold title.

Property tax for a non-resident owner

Florida's homestead exemption (up to $51,411 off assessed value in 2026) and the 3% Save Our Homes cap are for a permanent Florida residence. A Canadian who lives in Ontario and winters in Florida does not qualify. Instead:

• The home is taxed at full assessed value, reset to market value the year after you buy.
• Increases in the assessment for non-school levies are capped at 10% a year; school levies have no cap.
• Millage is set locally, so two condos at the same price in different cities can have quite different bills.

Ask the county property appraiser for an estimate based on your purchase price before you commit. The seller's bill may reflect years of homestead protection you will not get.

Paying for it: cash, Canadian equity or a U.S. loan

• Cash is the simplest route and the most common among snowbirds. Plan the currency conversion ahead, since the exchange rate on the day of the wire changes the real price.
• Equity from an Ontario home through a Canadian line of credit or mortgage keeps the debt in Canadian dollars.
• U.S. mortgages for non-residents exist. Lenders treat many Canadians as foreign nationals and typically ask for 30% to 40% down. Some Canadian banks have U.S. arms that use your Canadian credit history.
• Closing costs for a financed buyer include $0.35 per $100 doc stamps on the note and 0.2% intangible tax on the mortgage. Deed stamps of $0.70 per $100 are usually the seller's cost.

Selling later: FIRPTA withholding

When a foreign owner sells U.S. real estate, the buyer must generally withhold 15% of the price for the IRS under FIRPTA. Lower rates apply when the buyer will live in the home and the price is under $1 million (10%) or under $300,000 (0%). You can apply for a withholding certificate to reduce the amount to the tax actually expected, and you file a U.S. return to recover any excess. Plan for this money to be held back when you sell, especially if you need the proceeds quickly.

Florida also has a rule worth knowing on the buying side. Under a 2023 state law (SB 264), buyers domiciled in certain countries face limits on buying near military sites and critical infrastructure. Canada is not on that list, but if a co-buyer or family member holds citizenship and domicile elsewhere, check before signing. On the closing day itself, nothing requires you to be present: Florida closings can be done by mail with documents signed in front of a notary, or remotely where the title company offers it.

Condo or villa for half a year in Florida

Most Ontario snowbirds leave before hurricane season peaks. A home that sits empty from spring to late fall favors buildings where someone else handles the exterior.

• Condos: the association insures the structure and maintains the roof. Since the 2022 condo law, buildings three or more habitable stories tall need milestone inspections and a Structural Integrity Reserve Study every 10 years, and older buildings may raise fees or levy assessments to fund repairs.
• 7-day review: resale condo buyers can cancel within 7 days, weekends and legal holidays excluded, after receiving the association documents.
• Building rules differ. Check rules on pets, guests while you are away and approval of buyers.
• Villas and single-family homes give more space, but you carry the roof, wind insurance and storm prep. Arrange a home watch service.

Insurance quotes matter for both. The hurricane deductible is 2%, 5% or 10% of dwelling coverage, applied once per calendar year, and flood insurance is a separate policy.

Where Ontario buyers look, by budget

Zillow's condo index gives a feel for the entry point in snowbird markets:

• Under $200,000: Deerfield Beach condos at $148,030, Sunrise at $135,732, and Largo at $160,055.
• About $200,000 to $250,000: Pompano Beach at $245,906, Hollywood at $249,577, Boynton Beach at $218,496, Fort Myers at $216,573 and Kissimmee at $209,651.
• Higher: Fort Lauderdale at $403,495 and Miami Beach at $460,054.

On the Gulf side, Clearwater condos sit at $194,891 and St. Petersburg at $199,382. Statewide, condo values fell 3.9% over the past year. If you tell me which coast and which budget, a shortlist of buildings with their fees, reserves and rules side by side is the right next step.