What is the 8th criterion in Florida property tax law?

It is the eighth factor in Florida Statutes section 193.011 that a property appraiser must consider when setting just value: the net proceeds of a sale received by the seller, after deducting all the usual and reasonable fees and costs of the sale. It is what makes just value a net figure rather than a gross sale price.

How much is the cost-of-sale deduction in Florida?

It is customarily treated as roughly 15%. The Florida Department of Revenue publishes the cost-of-sale figure used in its ratio studies on form DR-493, and the usual deduction lands near that mark — meaning a correctly assessed building should sit around 85% of what comparable properties actually sold for.

Does the appraiser have to apply the cost of sale?

Florida courts have held the appraiser must consider all eight statutory criteria, including the costs of sale. The line of cases through Walter v. Schuler, Valencia Center v. Bystrom, and Mazourek v. Wal-Mart establishes that the eighth criterion is mandatory to weigh, not optional.

When is the deadline to challenge a Florida commercial assessment?

TRIM notices mail in mid-to-late August, and the petition to the Value Adjustment Board (form DR-486) is due about 25 days later — roughly mid-September. Missing it means waiting a full year, so the assessment review should happen well before that date.

Is the cost-of-sale argument strong for every property type?

It is strongest for ordinary commercial, industrial, and warehouse property valued by sales comparison. It is weaker and more contested for large income-producing property like office or apartment towers, where the income approach dominates and the cost-of-sale deduction draws more dispute.

Florida guide

The 8th criterion: why your Florida assessment ignores the cost of sale

WinningAppeals · 2026-06-07

Most Florida commercial owners read their TRIM notice, see a "Just Value," and assume it means what their building would sell for. It does not. By statute, just value is the net a seller would actually pocket — after the broker, the lawyer, the doc stamps, and the rest of the ordinary cost of closing a deal. That distinction lives in one subsection of the law, the eighth criterion, and it is one of the most reliable arguments a commercial property owner has at the Florida Value Adjustment Board.

The eight criteria the appraiser is required to weigh

Florida Statutes section 193.011 lists eight factors a property appraiser must consider in arriving at just value. They are not optional, and they are not a menu. The statute requires the appraiser to take each into account:

The present cash value of the property.
The highest and best use to which the property can be expected to be put.
The location of the property.
The quantity or size of the property.
The cost of the property and the present replacement value of any improvements.
The condition of the property.
The income from the property.
The net proceeds of the sale of the property, as received by the seller, after deduction of all of the usual and reasonable fees and costs of the sale.

The first seven are the appraisal factors most people would expect. The eighth is the one that quietly reshapes the whole number — and the one mass appraisal most often skips.

Why "just value" is a net concept, not a gross one

The eighth criterion exists because a buyer's purchase price and a seller's take-home are not the same figure. When a building changes hands, the seller does not keep the full sale price. Brokerage commissions, legal fees, documentary stamp taxes, and other ordinary closing costs come off the top first. What the seller actually receives — the net proceeds — is what the statute defines as the measure of value.

Put plainly: just value is supposed to be net of the usual costs of sale, which in Florida are customarily treated as roughly 15%. So a correctly assessed building should sit at about 85% of what comparable buildings actually sold for, not at or above their gross sale prices. This is not a theory we invented. The Department of Revenue publishes the cost-of-sale figure used in its own ratio studies on form DR-493, and the customary deduction lands near that 15% mark.

The case law: the appraiser must consider the factor

Florida courts have been clear that the eighth criterion is mandatory, not advisory. The cost-of-sale deduction traces to the Florida Supreme Court's reasoning in Walter v. Schuler and was reinforced in the line of cases running through Valencia Center, Inc. v. Bystrom and Mazourek v. Wal-Mart Stores, Inc.: a property appraiser is obligated to consider each of the eight statutory factors, and the costs of sale are a legitimate component of arriving at fair market — that is, just — value. An assessment that demonstrably failed to account for the costs of sale has not satisfied the statute.

The point is narrow and it is statutory. The appraiser need not have reached our number. But where the assessment meets or exceeds the gross price comparable buildings sold for, the eighth criterion plainly was not applied — because the cost of sale was never subtracted.

That is a very different posture from "I think my building is worth less." It is an argument the magistrate is bound to weigh against the text of the law, not against an opinion.

How the math becomes the argument

Here is the practical test. We read every commercial parcel in the metro off the county's public roll, then match it to qualified arms-length sales from the state's own sale file — the same data the Department of Revenue uses for its ratio studies. We build a median of what genuinely comparable buildings sold for, and we adjust those comparables for size, age, and location before we say you have a case. Then we apply the statutory cost of sale.

If a property's Just Value lands at or above the gross sale prices of its true comparables — before any cost-of-sale deduction — the assessment cannot reflect net-of-cost just value. That gap is the case. It rests on the county's own records and the state's own sales, not on anyone's say-so. We do not name owners, and we do not guess.

This argument is strongest on ordinary commercial, industrial, and warehouse property valued by sales comparison. It is genuinely weaker — and more contested — on large income-producing towers, where the income approach dominates and the cost-of-sale deduction draws more dispute. We are honest about which is which before anyone files.

What this means for your bill

A reduction in just value is not a dollar-for-dollar tax cut; the tax saved is the reduction multiplied by the millage rate, roughly 2%. We quote conservative, real tax-dollar figures, and every number is public-record-derived — an indicator that the eighth criterion may not have been applied, not a promise of any particular outcome. The model finds the case; a licensed, authorized Florida agent reviews it, files the DR-486 petition, and represents you at the hearing. You pay only if we win (our founding-year rate is 10% of the first year's savings, with no upfront cost).

If you own commercial property in Miami-Dade or any of the metros we cover, the question worth asking before the September VAB deadline is simple: did your assessment ever subtract the cost of sale? Start with the Florida overview, or read the broader walkthrough in our Florida commercial appeal guide.

Common questions

What is the 8th criterion in Florida property tax law?: It is the eighth factor in Florida Statutes section 193.011 that a property appraiser must consider when setting just value: the net proceeds of a sale received by the seller, after deducting all the usual and reasonable fees and costs of the sale. It is what makes just value a net figure rather than a gross sale price.
How much is the cost-of-sale deduction in Florida?: It is customarily treated as roughly 15%. The Florida Department of Revenue publishes the cost-of-sale figure used in its ratio studies on form DR-493, and the usual deduction lands near that mark — meaning a correctly assessed building should sit around 85% of what comparable properties actually sold for.
Does the appraiser have to apply the cost of sale?: Florida courts have held the appraiser must consider all eight statutory criteria, including the costs of sale. The line of cases through Walter v. Schuler, Valencia Center v. Bystrom, and Mazourek v. Wal-Mart establishes that the eighth criterion is mandatory to weigh, not optional.
When is the deadline to challenge a Florida commercial assessment?: TRIM notices mail in mid-to-late August, and the petition to the Value Adjustment Board (form DR-486) is due about 25 days later — roughly mid-September. Missing it means waiting a full year, so the assessment review should happen well before that date.
Is the cost-of-sale argument strong for every property type?: It is strongest for ordinary commercial, industrial, and warehouse property valued by sales comparison. It is weaker and more contested for large income-producing property like office or apartment towers, where the income approach dominates and the cost-of-sale deduction draws more dispute.