Property taxes were back in the news last week for another reason. You can now pay your property taxes in Bitcoin. 

Miami-Dade County’s tax collector announced it will accept cryptocurrency as payment for property taxes, although the county will not hold, invest in or manage any crypto directly. Is this a big deal, and if so, why?

The move allows homeowners to use another source of funds to pay their taxes, making the process more convenient. Sam Callahan, director of bitcoin strategy and research at OranjeBTC, the largest bitcoin treasury in Latin America, said it’s a practical way for cryptocurrencies to be more widely adopted without changing how governments and other institutions operate. 

“By automatically converting Bitcoin into dollars, the county can offer residents another payment option without taking on Bitcoin’s price volatility,” Callahan wrote in an emailed response to The Real Deal. 

The move could lead to Miami-Dade County accepting crypto for other payments, like filing fees, and eventually, possibly, building permit fees. Other local governments could follow suit. For the government to accept crypto to pay documentary stamp taxes, which are tied to deed transfers and mortgages, the state would have to sign off on that, said Cory Klippsten, CEO of Swan Bitcoin, a bitcoin financial services firm. 

One thing to note is that most people with mortgages don’t pay their property taxes directly; their lenders do. So this wouldn’t apply. But for any non-mortgaged property owner with a crypto wallet, it offers them another option. 

We’ve covered the crypto real estate deals before — a handful of agents specialize in them — but it’s not mainstream yet. In most cases, the buyers or sellers are converting Bitcoin or other cryptocurrencies to U.S. dollars. But it is something that institutions are becoming more comfortable with, including lenders and condo developers. 

“Bitcoin has gone from an obscure experiment to an asset held by individuals, corporations, and even governments around the world,” Callahan said. “Now we’re seeing more of the infrastructure being developed to make it useful in everyday financial activities.” 

My question is, how many people will actually take advantage of this? 

What we’re thinking about: I counted more than $500 million in new single-family home inventory in South Florida last week, but it’s probably closer to $1 billion thanks to a few more listings I spotted on Friday. Will these properties be snapped up? Are they overpriced? Send me a note at [email protected]. 

CLOSING TIME

Residential: Pro Football Hall of Fame quarterback and Tarkenton Financial CEO and founder Fran Tarkenton paid $51.9 million for the 8,725-square-foot home at 1620 South Ocean Boulevard in Palm Beach. The price equated to $5,950 per square foot. The sellers were Anthony Lomangino and Lynda Lomangino, who bought the property for $12.7 million in 2019.

Commercial: Health and wellness investor Welltower, currently on a South Florida buying spree, bought the Unity Health and Rehabilitation Center in Miami for $74.8 million as part of a bulk deal with seller David Katz of Brooklyn. The nursing home at 1442 Northwest 22nd Street measures about 66,600 square feet, with 294 beds on 2 acres.

— Research by Mary Diduch

NEW TO THE MARKET

The waterfront estate at 30 La Gorce Circle in Miami Beach hit the market for $170 million. Betsy Sherman owns the 18,000-square-foot mansion, property records show. Sherman and her late husband, Miami businessman George Sherman, had the estate built in 2015. It sits on a 1.2-acre lot on the southwest corner of La Gorce Island. Jill Hertzberg of the Jills Zeder Group has the listing. Hertzberg was also shopping the property off-market earlier this year. 

A thing we’ve learned:

Toronto-based Great Gulf put the Mandarin Oriental Residences, West Palm Beach, on hold. The delay came after Great Gulf opted against building a sales gallery on the site and failed to garner significant interest from buyers. Great Gulf launched presales in February, adding to the growing pipeline of branded condos in South Florida. The Mandarin in West Palm is one of three Mandarin-branded developments in the works, including the stalled Mandarin in Boca Raton and the under construction Mandarin towers on Miami’s Brickell Key. 

Elsewhere in Florida

  • Demolition of the former Biscayne 21 condominium building in Miami's Edgewater neighborhood began last week, the Two Roads Development announced. Two Roads finally settled with holdout owners in the building in late August, allowing the project to move forward. 
  • The city of Delray Beach canceled its St. Patrick’s Day parade after it reviewed the state’s new anti-DEI law, Senate Bill 1134, NBC News reported. The law “establishes restrictions on municipal funding, promotion, and official actions involving activities defined under the legislation as diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI).” The city said it determined that it’s legally banned from funding or promoting such activities. 
  • Duval County, which is home to Jacksonville, had the lowest voter turnout among Florida’s urban counties in the midterm elections, according to the News Service of Florida. Voter turnout in Duval was 55.1 percent, while statewide it hit 60.9 percent. 
  • Record-breaking rainfall dumped nearly 2 feet of water across parts of South Florida last week, leaving Palm Beach County neighborhoods flooded. Scientists warn that these extreme rainfall events could become more common as climate change makes the world warmer and wetter, the Miami Herald reported.