By Coral Gables Gazette staff

Coral Gables’ taxable property value rose an estimated 6.5 percent this year to $27.70 billion, outpacing Miami-Dade County’s 5.5 percent increase as the broader post-pandemic surge in taxable values continued to cool.

According to estimates released by the Miami-Dade County Property Appraiser last month, Coral Gables added about $1.69 billion in taxable value from 2025 to 2026. Existing property accounted for $27.44 billion of the city’s estimate, up 5.5 percent, while new construction added $261 million.

That growth now underpins the city’s proposed $318.44 million fiscal 2027 budget. Coral Gables is proposing to hold its property-tax rate at 5.559 mills for the twelfth consecutive year, but rising taxable values would generate about $8.9 million more in property-tax revenue than the current year.

Growth outpaces the county

Last year, Coral Gables trailed countywide growth. This year, the positions flipped. The city outpaced Miami-Dade not only in total taxable value but in existing property, which the appraiser measures separately from new construction: values of existing Coral Gables property rose 5.5 percent, against 4.5 percent countywide. Across the county, the 5.5 percent estimated gain marked a marked slowdown from the 8.5 percent Miami-Dade posted a year earlier.

The county’s deceleration is broad. Property Appraiser Tomás Regalado, whose staff conducts the market research behind the report, described the slowdown in plain terms. “There is a downward trend. It is unmistakable,” he told the Miami Herald, pointing to slower new construction and homes that sit on the market longer than in years past.

Less exposure to the condo slump

One factor that may have helped Coral Gables is its limited exposure to the older-condominium weakness weighing on parts of Miami-Dade. The county’s cooling has been driven in significant part by a softening condominium market, especially in aging, non-luxury buildings. Since the 2021 Champlain Towers collapse in Surfside, state laws requiring more frequent inspections and larger reserves for repairs have left some condo owners with costs they cannot afford, prompting sales at a discount that have pulled values down.

That drag shows in the numbers. Countywide, condominium values fell 1.2 percent this year, with steeper declines in condo-heavy cities such as Aventura, down 4.2 percent, and Sunny Isles Beach, down 3.5 percent. Coral Gables moved the other way. The value of its condominiums rose 1.9 percent, and condos represent only about 1.6 percent of the county’s condo market, a small share of a city tax base that leans heavily on single-family homes and commercial property. That mix appears to have insulated the city from the condo weakness weighing on some of its neighbors.

New construction adds $261 million

New construction added an estimated $261 million to Coral Gables’ taxable value this year, more than double the roughly $114 million the prior year. The increase reflects a fuller year of completed development on the tax roll, and it arrives amid continued political scrutiny of growth, with the scale and pace of construction a recurring theme in city elections and commission debate.

How Coral Gables compares

At 6.5 percent, Coral Gables did not lead the county. Affordability-driven suburbs and ultra-luxury enclaves grew faster: Florida City rose 11.7 percent as buyers sought cheaper housing, and Indian Creek, the county’s wealthiest village, rose 10.3 percent. But among the affluent municipalities Coral Gables is most often measured against, it stood out. It outgrew Miami Beach, up 3.5 percent, Key Biscayne, up 4.2 percent, Pinecrest, up 5.8 percent, and Aventura, which at 0.8 percent was nearly flat. At the other end of the scale, a few small municipalities lost ground, with El Portal down 3.4 percent.

From estimate to certified

The June 1 figures are estimates. State law requires the appraiser to certify the tax roll by July 1, and Regalado has since submitted the preliminary certification. The certified countywide value came in slightly lower than the June estimate, at $540.1 billion, a 5.4 percent increase, according to the Property Appraiser’s July 1 certification. In releasing it, the appraiser said the county’s market has begun to stabilize after several years of extraordinary growth, with older, non-luxury condominiums showing a noticeable slowdown. City-by-city certified figures were not yet available in the same form as the June estimate, and final values can shift further through the appeals process.

What it means for the budget

Because Coral Gables is holding its rate flat while taxable values rise citywide, the city would collect more property-tax revenue even though the millage is unchanged. Individual bills will vary depending on each property’s assessed value, exemptions and the rates set by other taxing authorities. The larger question hangs over the years that follow. A statewide constitutional amendment on the November 3 ballot would enlarge the homestead exemption, and the city projects the change, if approved, would reduce Coral Gables property-tax revenue beginning in fiscal 2028.

What comes next

Taxing authorities will use the certified values to set proposed rates over the summer. Notices of proposed property taxes, which list each property’s taxable value and the proposed rates from all taxing authorities, are mailed to residents in August. Coral Gables will hold two budget hearings in September, on the 15th and the 29th, before adopting its rate and budget for the year that begins October 1.