Retirees Who Rented in Florida for a Year Before Buying Say It Was the Best Money They Ever Spent

Florida retirement plans often start on vacation. A couple spends two weeks there in February, falls for a screened lanai, and closes on the house before pricing a wind mitigation report, living through August humidity, or reading a condo reserve study. Retirees who rented for a full year first usually describe that year as a low-cost way to test the decision. Renting gives you a genuine feel for daily life in a way a vacation never can, and it also illuminates a property tax detail that makes the timing of a purchase in 2026 matter more than usual.

What a Year of Renting Costs Next to a Bad Purchase

An average two-bedroom apartment in Orlando rents for about $1,981 a month, or roughly $23,800 for a full year. Compare that with buying too early. In June, the median condo or townhome in Sarasota County sold for $343,750, down 7.5% from a year earlier. That decline erased about $25,800 in value within 12 months, before commissions and closing costs.

The wider market gives renters time to wait. Existing home sales ran at a 3.98 million annualized rate in August, the slowest reading of the past year and squarely in the 3.5 million to 4.5 million range that analysts typically describe as soft. Insurance is the other major unknown: average premiums with wind coverage run from $2,105 in Sumter County to $7,863 in Monroe County, a gap of $5,758 every year depending on location alone.

Budget and Portfolio Target for a Couple at 65

Start with average household spending of $78,535. Florida’s cost-of-living index is 103.414, so the adjusted working budget is about $81,200. The table below assumes the couple pays cash for Sarasota County’s median single-family home at $492,450.

The tax line uses Florida’s income-adjusted state and local burden of $5,110 per person. Florida has no individual income tax and ranks 1st on that measure nationally. Part B costs $202.90 per person per month in 2026, a 10% jump from the prior year.

If both spouses collect the average retired worker benefit of about $2,089 a month, Social Security covers roughly $50,136 a year. That leaves about $31,080 for the portfolio to fund. At a 4% withdrawal rate, the portfolio needs roughly $777,000. At a more conservative 3.5%, the target rises to about $888,000 (we made the case for retiring the 4% rule in favor of an income-first approach in a free report). When the higher earner delays claiming past full retirement age, the benefit rises 8% for each year of delay up to 70. The SSA officially announced the 2027 COLA at 3.6%, the largest annual increase since 2023.

January 1 Deadline and a November Vote

Florida’s homestead exemption requires owning the home and living in it as a permanent residence on January 1. A buyer who closes in February pays the full non-homestead rate for the rest of that year, and the sale resets the assessed value to market. Once homestead is in place, Save Our Homes limits annual assessment increases to 3% or CPI, whichever is lower.

The calendar matters more this year because Amendment 3 goes to voters on November 3, 2026, and needs 60% approval. If passed, it would raise the homestead exemption on non-school taxes to $150,000 in 2027 and $250,000 in 2028, up from the current $50,000. Each mill of non-school millage applied to the additional exempt value works out to $200 in annual savings per $200,000 of new exemption. There is a critical caveat for anyone relocating: people who were not Florida residents on December 31, 2026, would start with the existing $50,000 exemption upon qualifying and would not receive the larger exemption until their fifth year of Florida residency. Renting through the vote reveals which tax rules actually apply before you commit to a county or a price point.

What It Takes to Make the Rental Year Pay Off

For a couple collecting average Social Security, the full plan needs roughly $1.29 million to $1.41 million in liquid assets. That covers the house bought with cash, the year of rent, and a portfolio sized for a withdrawal rate of 3.5% to 4%. A diversified mix of index funds returning about inflation plus 3.5% can carry it. A short treasury ladder can cover the rent and the first few years of withdrawals, keeping a down market from forcing stock sales while the couple is house hunting.

Signing a lease that runs past a January 1 closing and past the November vote gives the couple a known tax situation, verified insurance quotes, and a soft market to buy into, all for about one year’s rent.

Editor’s note: This article updates the average Social Security retired worker benefit to $2,089 per month based on the SSA September 2026 monthly snapshot, corrects the 2027 COLA to 3.6% following the SSA’s official October 14, 2026 announcement, refreshes the Orlando two-bedroom average rent to $1,981 per month from RentCafe’s September 2026 data, and adds the five-year waiting period that applies to new Florida residents under Amendment 3 if it passes.

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