In short: In Garcia v. Andonie, 101 So. 3d 339 (Fla. 2012), Honduran parents on temporary visas claimed the homestead exemption on their Key Biscayne condo through their three U.S. citizen children. The Florida Supreme Court agreed: the Constitution allows the exemption where the home is the permanent residence of the owner’s legal or natural dependents.
The Facts
The owners were a married couple, both citizens of Honduras, living in the United States on temporary E-2 visas.
They owned a Key Biscayne condominium where they lived with their three minor children, ages 7, 12 and 14.
The children are U.S. and Florida citizens with no legal barrier to living in Florida permanently.
The family claimed the exemption based on the children’s permanent residence, not the parents’.
The Miami-Dade Property Appraiser denied it. The Value Adjustment Board granted it, and the circuit court and the Third DCA sided with the family.
The Decision
The Florida Supreme Court affirmed in a unanimous opinion by Justice Labarga (Case No. SC11-554, Oct. 4, 2012).
Article VII, § 6(a) lets an owner qualify by maintaining the property as the permanent residence of someone legally or naturally dependent on the owner. The owner does not need to be a permanent resident personally.
The Court struck the statute’s added requirement that the owner also reside there, because it narrowed the class of people the Constitution made eligible.
The dependent must have no legal impediment to living there permanently. Whether a residence is permanent is a mixed question of fact and law.
The Law
Current law (2026): § 196.031(1)(a) now covers property kept as the permanent residence of the owner or of others legally or naturally dependent on the owner, without the old owner-residence requirement.
Homestead tax exemption, homestead creditor protection and homestead devise restrictions are three different things with different tests. Garcia concerns only the tax exemption.
Lessons
- Immigration status of the owner is not always the end of the inquiry. Look at who actually lives in the home permanently.
- Dependents must be able to live in Florida permanently without legal barriers.
- Keep proof: school records, residence documents and the dependents’ status.
- In probate, a home’s exemption status and its status for devise restrictions can differ. Get advice on both.
Source: Opinion, Garcia v. Andonie, 101 So. 3d 339 (Fla. 2012)
Watch the Oral Argument
This is the recording of the Florida Supreme Court oral argument. The video description misspells the respondent’s name; the correct caption is Garcia v. Andonie. What lawyers and judges say at argument is not the ruling; the decision is summarized above.
The Children Live Here, the Parents Are Not Citizens: Who Gets the Homestead Exemption? | Garcia v. Andonie
Go Deeper
- Purge Paid, But Homestead Still Ordered Sold for Child Support? (Pacin v. Granja)
- Divorce Deal vs. Survivorship: Who Gets Joint Property When an Ex Dies? (Ebanks v. Ebanks)
- Testamentary Capacity in Florida: When Dementia Makes a Will, Deed, or POA Invalid
Frequently Asked Questions
Can a noncitizen get a Florida homestead exemption?
A noncitizen owner can qualify through legally or naturally dependent family members who permanently live in the home and have no legal barrier to permanent residence, under Garcia v. Andonie.
Do I have to live in the home to claim homestead through my children?
Garcia holds the Constitution does not require the owner to reside there if it is the permanent residence of the owner’s dependents.
What is a natural or legal dependent?
Typically minor children or others the owner supports. The appraiser will look at the facts.
Does Garcia affect who can inherit a homestead?
No. It addresses only the property tax exemption, not the devise restrictions in Article X, § 4(c).
Talk to a Florida homestead and probate lawyer
Weidner Law, P.A. handles Florida homestead, probate and real estate disputes from St. Petersburg. If you need a probate real estate lawyer, call (727) 954-8752 or email weidner@mattweidnerlaw.com.
Read the law yourself, free: the full Florida Probate Code and Probate Rules and the Florida Trust Code are on floridarules.net.
This article is general information about Florida law, not legal advice about your situation. Reading it, watching the videos, or contacting the firm does not create an attorney-client relationship. Every case turns on its own facts, and past results do not guarantee a similar outcome. The hiring of a lawyer is an important decision that should not be based solely upon advertisements.
