At the Douglas Enclave apartment building in Miami’s Little Havana, developer Henry Torres has reduced rents for some of the 199 units without impacting his profits. After completing the project in 2023, Torres lowered annual rents by about $3,000 per unit and offset this reduction through a property tax break of roughly $4,500 per qualifying unit provided by Florida’s Live Local Act. This resulted in approximately $450,000 in savings from his total $950,000 tax bill this year.
Torres noted that the rent cuts helped fill vacancies more quickly during South Florida’s ongoing affordability crisis. “It definitely got a lot more smiles on people’s faces. I can tell you that. People are struggling right now, especially the blue collar class,” said Torres, founder of Astor Companies. “It helped us tremendously to get units rented faster.”
The Live Local Act incentivizes landlords to offer workforce housing by providing property tax abatements for buildings with at least 71 units reserved for tenants earning between 80 percent and 120 percent of the area median income (AMI), as well as full tax relief for those renting to households below 80 percent AMI. According to data from county property appraisers, at least 48 properties across Miami-Dade, Broward, and Palm Beach counties qualified for these breaks this year.
Matthew Scott, an attorney specializing in land use and zoning at Greenspoon Marder, explained how developers are using these incentives amid rising costs: “Developers are looking at projects and saying, ‘Alright, property insurance is going up, property taxes are going up. How do we offset things?’ They run the math and Live Local gives the tax benefit, so that’s less money they have to pay.”
Coral Rock Development Group also made use of the law after completing its Metropolitan project in Coral Springs last year. The company converted what was planned as a market-rate building into one offering workforce housing through Live Local. Michael Wohl of Coral Rock said: “We determined through metric analysis that we would accelerate leasing and not lose money. You need to lease-up faster and stabilize faster, so you can be eligible for permanent financing.”
For many landlords using Live Local benefits, it is important that tax savings cover any lost revenue from lower rents—a scenario more common in suburban areas where market rents are closer to workforce rent thresholds. In Miami-Dade County this year, most properties receiving Live Local abatements were located outside high-rent coastal neighborhoods; Hialeah alone accounted for nine out of 28 such properties.
Carlos Segrera from IMC Equity Group pointed out that higher-income markets like Coral Gables are less likely to benefit from Live Local incentives: “The income demographics are higher,” he said. But “if the market [rent] is at $3,000 and you can lease it at $2,700 … now the pro-forma pencils.” At IMC Equity’s The Upland complex in Hialeah, about 80 units received abatement.
Affiliated Development received tax breaks on four properties without having to lower rents because they were already underwritten below market rates. Nick Rojo of Affiliated commented: “It was necessary because of the dramatic spike in operating cost. Insurance doubled. Materials, for when you turn a unit, skyrocketed… It really helped offset those costs.”
Landlords say accessing these benefits involves challenges such as verifying tenant incomes and dealing with lenders who do not factor Live Local savings into financing calculations. Alex Ruiz of Prestige Companies described difficulties with securing loans: “Fannie and Freddie… do not recognize Live Local savings… If they were going to give me $10 million for a project… it doesn’t matter to them. They [still] give me $10 million.”
Some developers argue that while local governments may lose revenue due to reduced property taxes under this program, it enables them to continue offering needed services without raising rents further.
Lissette Calderon at Neology Group used the abatement after reserving apartments at No. 17 Residences in Allapattah for workforce renters—offering rates she called “unheard of in today’s market.” She said: “This has allowed us to continue to maintain the rents we were hoping to maintain and continue that aspirational living to the engines that drive our community.”
Torres added that despite sympathizing with renters’ struggles—many spending half their income on housing—he must ensure his buildings remain profitable: “I have a lot of sympathy for people struggling but I have to make sure our building makes money,” he said. “We have a business to run too.”
