ORLANDO, Fla. — Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis discussed his goal to eliminate property taxes in the state during a speech in Orlando Monday.

The governor spoke at a meeting of the Florida Association of Realtors, where he argued that property taxes have supported local government budgets at the expense of homeowners.

Instead, he said that foreign tourists could make up for the elimination of property taxes.

DeSantis praised the Florida House for looking to cut the budget by $5 billion, saying those funds should go to property tax relief for homesteaded properties.

He is calling for a constitutional amendment to be placed on the 2026 Florida ballot that will allow for the elimination of property taxes.

If the amendment passes, he said there would be approximately $1,000 in savings per household.

“With that $5 billion, I’m proposing that the legislature direct that to immediate relief for all Florida homestead owners, and if we do that, we would end up with about $1,000 in property tax cut for every homesteaded Floridian, and that would make a big, big difference,” DeSantis said.

The governor also said the state has a budget surplus and can handle shortages if necessary.

He also talked about a possibility for sales tax relief depending on a millage break, saying there was a scenario where he could support lower sales taxes as well.

“How are you cutting taxes? Are you going to focus on what gets you the most bang for the buck to help Florida residents? That is where I think the focus needs to be," DeSantis said. "So, you gotta do property relief. If you want to do sales on top of that, I’m all for that, for sure, but this property stuff needs to be addressed.”

DeSantis said Florida homeowners are suffering from high property taxes and he wants to address this issue.

But some real estate agents say despite the benefit of this move for homeowners, there are some concerns about where this funding will come from and the impact it could have at the local level.

Realtor Cesar Sanchez believes while there could be benefits, there could also be some risks.

“It could be a double-edged sword. I mean, there’s definitely positive things that we can look at it from. The buyer and seller is going to be more affordability in regards to the homeownership. Because if all of a sudden now you’re not paying property taxes, that’s going to be a significant drop on your monthly mortgage payment,” Sanchez said.

Sanchez says it could make homeownership more affordable and allow homeowners to stay at their homes for longer.

“It can also bring longer long-term affordability and encourage longer term staying in the properties for a longer period of time,” he said.

But he worries about what that revenue will be replaced with.

“At the end of the day, the property taxes is used to the infrastructure for the infrastructure of Florida. I mean, with buildings, roads, schools. So, this is a double-edged sword that we’ve got to figure out first, like, okay, where’s the money going to come from now?” he asked.

During his press conference in Orlando, DeSantis said foreign tourists and nonresidents should make up for the elimination of property taxes, taking some of the tax burden off of Floridians. 

Senate President Ben Albritton responded to the call by saying he would support "immediate relief" to voters in the form of a reduction in the state sales tax. 

"On tax relief, I like immediate relief for property owners in advance of an amendment for voters to consider. I also like immediate relief for Floridians who rent, as well as those who own property, via the sales tax. Both are big ideas, worthy of our consideration," he wrote on X. 

Albritton's post shows public support for a proposal first brought forward by Republican Florida House Speaker Danny Perez. That proposal would call for a reduction in the state sales tax from 6% to 5.25%.