Moving From Connecticut to Florida: What I Tell Every CT Buyer
The taxes you stop paying, what your Fairfield or Hartford County money buys here, the towns Connecticut buyers actually choose, and the costs that go up. Numbers from Connecticut's own tax agency, the Census Bureau and the Miami MLS, not a listicle.
The one-paragraph version: a Connecticut couple with $300,000 of taxable income stops paying about $15,500 a year in state income tax the day they become Florida residents. Connecticut's estate tax exemption is $13.99 million with a flat 12% rate above it; Florida has no estate tax at all, for any estate. Connecticut's statewide property tax rate, 1.54%, runs well above Miami-Dade's 0.81%. Rent in Stamford runs well above Miami; a Hartford County home costs about half of a Miami-Dade one. What costs more here: homeowners insurance, and property tax on a fresh purchase since Florida resets your assessment to the price you paid.
- $0Florida state income tax. CT couple at $300K taxable: about $15,500 a year saved.
- $13.99MConnecticut's 2025 estate tax exemption, 12% flat above it. Florida has no estate tax.
- $680KMiami-Dade median single-family sale, Aug 2026, vs Hartford County's $375,000.
- ~3h10mNonstop flight, Bradley (BDL) to Fort Lauderdale or Miami.
Related guides: why people are moving to South Florida, the full Florida income tax breakdown, moving from Massachusetts to Florida, moving from Illinois to Florida, and moving from New York to Miami.
The taxes you stop paying
Florida has no state income tax and no estate or inheritance tax. Connecticut has a seven-bracket income tax that tops out near 7% and a separate estate tax on anything left behind above $13.99 million. Those two facts do most of the work when a Connecticut client asks me why the math favors Florida.
| Where you live | $150,000 | $300,000 | $500,000 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Connecticut | $6,750 | $15,500 | $28,000 |
| Florida | $0 | $0 | $0 |
The math: $4,000 base tax plus 5.5% of the amount over $100,000 gets you to $6,750 on $150,000; $9,500 plus 6.0% of the amount over $200,000 gets you to $15,500 on $300,000; $21,500 plus 6.5% of the amount over $400,000 gets you to $28,000 on $500,000. Connecticut's top bracket runs to 6.99% above $1,000,000. Higher earners also face a separate AGI-based phase-out and recapture (Tables C and D) that can add a few hundred to a few thousand dollars on top of the brackets above; none of the three examples here account for that. Florida charges $0 to everyone regardless of where they came from. The full worked table, a calculator and residency rules are on my Florida income tax page.
Connecticut's estate tax has no Florida equivalent
Connecticut repealed its separate inheritance tax for deaths on or after January 1, 2005, so today it runs one unified estate tax. For 2025, the exemption is $13.99 million, matching the federal exemption, and Connecticut charges a flat 12% on everything above that threshold, with no cliff. Florida has never had an inheritance tax and has no estate tax at all, for any beneficiary or any estate size.
Where it goes wrong: the savings only exist once Connecticut agrees you actually left. See the residency section below before you assume the Connecticut side of the ledger is closed.
Property tax: the biggest single number on this page
| Area | Median home value | Effective rate |
|---|---|---|
| Capitol Region, CT (≈ Hartford County) | $323,700 | 1.91% |
| South Central CT (≈ New Haven County) | $353,100 | 1.82% |
| Greater Bridgeport (≈ Fairfield Co. shoreline) | $428,800 | 1.65% |
| Western Connecticut (≈ lower Fairfield: Stamford, Norwalk) | $652,900 | 1.17% |
| Broward County, FL | $414,600 | 0.96% |
| Miami-Dade County, FL | $463,000 | 0.81% |
Two Florida rules make the real bill even better for a primary residence: the homestead exemption removes up to $50,722 (2025) from your assessed value, and the Save Our Homes cap limits future increases to 3% a year or the CPI change, whichever is lower (2.9% for 2025) once you are homesteaded. The catch: as a new buyer you are assessed at your purchase price, not the seller's capped number, so never estimate your bill from the current listing sheet.
Cost of living: Connecticut vs Miami
Fairfield County is not Hartford County. Stamford rents run well above Miami; a Hartford County home costs roughly half of what the same square footage runs in Miami-Dade.
| Unit | Stamford, CT | Miami | Fort Lauderdale |
|---|---|---|---|
| Studio | $2,209 | $2,265 | $2,115 |
| 1 bedroom | $2,710 | $2,450 | $2,454 |
| 2 bedroom | $3,573 | $2,995 | $3,073 |
| 3 bedroom | $3,892 | $3,741 | $4,123 |
| All-unit average | $3,044 | $2,773 | $2,861 |
Stamford runs roughly 10% above Miami and 6% above Fort Lauderdale on average rent across unit sizes. Gas ran $4.50 a gallon in Connecticut on AAA's state average the week I pulled these numbers, against $4.33 in Florida from an AAA pull two days earlier; that gap moves with the market and is not something I would build a moving decision around. I could not confirm a current, dated Connecticut-specific car insurance or home insurance premium in this pass; ask me for the current number if you want a side-by-side.
What your money buys
This is the number that turns "we've talked about it" into a showing trip.
| Market | Median sale price | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Fairfield County, CT (single-family) | ~$900,000 | Up 9.8% year over year |
| Hartford County, CT | $375,000 | Up 7.1% year over year |
| Miami-Dade single-family (Aug 2026) | $680,000 | Up 4% year over year |
| Miami-Dade condo / townhouse (Aug 2026) | $410,000 | Up 2.2% year over year |
| Broward single-family (Aug 2026) | $650,000 | Up 4% year over year |
| Broward condo (Aug 2026) | $257,500 | Up 3.96% year over year |
A Hartford County median buys a two-bedroom condo in Aventura or Hallandale Beach, or gets close to a starter home in Broward's family suburbs, with a lot of change left over. A Fairfield County seller who paid off a Greenwich- or Stamford-area house typically shops the $600,000 to $2,500,000 range here, landing on a waterfront condo in Aventura, a country-club home in Boca Raton, or a single-family home with a pool in Weston. The listings strip below pulls what is on the market right now in that range.
Where Connecticut buyers actually land
I have not found a published statistic that names Connecticut's top South Florida destination the way one exists for New York or New Jersey. This is what I see in my own transactions, not a ranking.
- Country club
Boca Raton
Palm Beach County, gated communities and golf, a familiar pattern for Fairfield County buyers who already know the country-club lifestyle from home.
- Walkable + downtown
Delray Beach
A smaller, walkable downtown just north of Boca, popular with Connecticut couples who want restaurants and the beach within walking distance.
- A bit further north
Jupiter
No dedicated Jupiter page yet, but I can pull Jupiter inventory any time. Quieter than Boca, still close to Palm Beach International.
- Building life
Aventura
Planned, quiet, waterfront condos and gated streets, Aventura Mall, a short drive to the beach.
- Boats and yards
Fort Lauderdale
Waterfront homes with a dock, Las Olas, and a lower price per square foot than Miami on the same water access.
- Gated + green
Weston
Planned communities, top-rated schools, and a shorter commute to Fort Lauderdale than to Miami.
The honest part
Homeowners insurance costs more
The latest finalized industry data (NAIC 2022, via the Insurance Information Institute) puts Florida's average homeowners premium at $2,677 a year, the highest in the country. I could not confirm a current, dated Connecticut-specific premium to compare it against in this pass. Current Florida quotes run above that 2022 figure and vary enormously by property age, roof and distance from the water. Get a quote on the specific address before you make an offer; I can introduce you to the brokers my clients use.
Condo buildings have new rules since Surfside
After the 2021 Surfside collapse, Florida changed its condo law. Buildings three stories and taller now face mandatory milestone structural inspections as they age and must fully fund reserves for major components instead of voting to waive them. Older towers that deferred maintenance are passing special assessments now; newer, well-run buildings are stable. Before I let a Connecticut buyer fall for a tower, I pull the milestone inspection status, the reserve study and any recent or pending special assessments.
Hurricanes
Season runs June through November. South Florida has taken eight hurricane landfalls since 2017: Irma (2017), Michael (2018), Ian and Nicole (2022), Idalia (2023), and Debby, Helene and Milton (2024), with zero landfalls in 2019, 2020, 2021 and 2025. Modern towers built to the post-Andrew wind code, impact glass and elevated equipment handle it well; older single-family homes need shutters or impact windows and a roof the insurer likes. The day-to-day reality is more about August heat than storms.
Are people still moving from Connecticut to Florida?
Yes, and the flow is well documented on both ends, though the overall stampede into Florida has slowed a lot since 2022.
- IRS tax-filer data, 2022 to 2023: 7,668 Connecticut tax returns, covering 12,876 individuals and about $1.21 billion in adjusted gross income, moved to Florida. Both states' own filings confirm the identical figure. Florida was Connecticut's #2 destination in that data, behind New York.
- Census Bureau, year ending June 30, 2025: Connecticut's net domestic migration was −5,945, while Florida's was +22,517, down sharply from Florida's +310,892 peak in 2022. International migration into Connecticut, +17,534 for the same period, more than offset its domestic loss, so the state's total population still grew.
What that means for a buyer: Connecticut is still a net exporter of residents to Florida, but the bidding-war years here are over. Inventory has rebuilt and there is real negotiating room, especially on condos and anything that has sat more than 60 days.
Flights, residency and timeline
Getting back and forth
Bradley International (BDL), near Hartford, flies nonstop to Fort Lauderdale in about 3 hours 16 minutes on JetBlue and Southwest, roughly 12 departures a week, and nonstop to Miami in about 3 hours 10 to 36 minutes on American and Frontier, roughly 12 departures a week combined. Westchester County Airport (HPN) works well for Fairfield County buyers: JetBlue flies nonstop to Fort Lauderdale in under 3 hours 10 minutes with about 14 weekly departures, though its Miami service is thin at only a few flights a week on American.
Becoming a Florida resident, and stopping being a Connecticut one
Connecticut uses two tests, and meeting either one makes you a full-year Connecticut resident for tax purposes: domicile, the place you intend to return to whenever you are away, judged on a broad set of factors with no single one controlling; and statutory residency, which applies even if Connecticut is not your domicile if you keep a permanent place of abode there for the whole tax year and spend more than 183 days in the state, the same day-count threshold New York, New Jersey and Massachusetts use. The practical checklist: a Florida driver's license and voter registration, a Florida homestead exemption filed on the new home, doctors and advisors moved, a day count kept, and the Connecticut property sold or clearly secondary.
A realistic timeline
- Month 0: a video call with me on budget, towns and the tax picture; I send a first set of listings.
- Month 1: one trip down, two days, ten to fifteen showings across two or three areas.
- Months 1 to 2: offer, inspection, condo document review (milestone status, reserves, assessments), insurance quote, financing if any.
- Month 3: closing. Florida closings run 30 to 45 days from contract on a financed deal, faster for cash.
- After closing: homestead exemption filed with the county property appraiser (deadline March 1 of the following year), license, registration, the residency paper trail.
Not tax or legal advice. I am a real estate broker. The tax and residency figures on this page come from the state agencies and sources listed at the bottom; your own return depends on facts I cannot see. Confirm with a CPA before you act.
Live listings Connecticut buyers are looking at
Current MLS listings between $600,000 and $2,500,000 in Boca Raton, Delray Beach and Aventura, refreshed as you load this page.
Frequently asked questions
How much do I save on taxes moving from Connecticut to Florida?
Using the 2025 Connecticut rate schedule for a married couple filing jointly, Connecticut income tax is about $6,750 on $150,000 of taxable income, $15,500 on $300,000 and $28,000 on $500,000, before a separate AGI-based recapture that can add a few hundred to a few thousand dollars more for higher earners. Florida charges $0 in every case.
Does Connecticut have an estate or inheritance tax?
Connecticut has an estate tax with a $13.99 million exemption for 2025 and a flat 12% rate above that threshold. It has no separate inheritance tax; that was repealed for deaths on or after January 1, 2005. Florida has no estate tax and no inheritance tax at all, for any estate size.
Where do Connecticut buyers move to in South Florida?
In my practice: Boca Raton and Delray Beach in Palm Beach County, Jupiter a bit further north, Aventura in northeast Miami-Dade, Fort Lauderdale, and Weston in western Broward. I have not seen a published statistic naming Connecticut's top South Florida destination, so treat this as what I see in my own transactions.
Are people still moving from Connecticut to Florida?
Yes. IRS migration data for 2022 to 2023 shows about 7,668 Connecticut tax returns, covering roughly 12,876 individuals and about $1.21 billion in adjusted gross income, moved to Florida. Census data shows Connecticut's overall net domestic migration was negative 5,945 for the year ending June 30, 2025, while Florida's was positive 22,517 in the same period.
How long is the flight from Connecticut to Miami or Fort Lauderdale?
About 3 hours nonstop from Bradley International (BDL) near Hartford: roughly 3 hours 10 to 16 minutes to Fort Lauderdale on JetBlue or Southwest, and about 3 hours 10 to 36 minutes to Miami on American or Frontier. From Westchester County Airport (HPN), JetBlue flies nonstop to Fort Lauderdale in about 3 hours.
Thinking about the move? Let's talk it through.
Tell me your budget, which Connecticut county you are in now and what you want your week to look like here. I will send you homes that fit, with the real property tax, insurance and association numbers for each one, and we can set up a two-day showing trip whenever you are ready.
Kevin Poler · Broker, The Poler Team · Optimar International Realty, 18246 Collins Ave, Sunny Isles Beach, FL 33160Sources
- Connecticut Department of Revenue Services, Form CT-1040 TCS, 2025 Tax Calculation Schedule. portal.ct.gov.
- Connecticut DRS, 2025 Form CT-706 NT Instructions and Estate and Gift Tax Information (estate tax exemption and rate). portal.ct.gov.
- Connecticut DRS, SN 2005-10 and TSSN-32 (inheritance tax repeal, effective 2005). portal.ct.gov.
- Conn. Agencies Regs. § 12-701(a)(1)-1, domicile and statutory-residency rule, via Cornell Legal Information Institute. law.cornell.edu.
- Florida Constitution, Article VII, Section 5; Florida Department of Revenue homestead and Save Our Homes rules. miamidadepa.gov.
- Tax Foundation, Property Taxes by State and County (2024 ACS data). taxfoundation.org.
- U.S. Census Bureau, Vintage 2025 population estimates (NST-EST2025-COMP). census.gov.
- IRS Statistics of Income, Migration Data 2022 to 2023, Connecticut and Florida state files. irs.gov.
- MIAMI Realtors, August 2026 monthly statistics (Miami-Dade and Broward medians). miamirealtors.com.
- RentCafe, Stamford, Miami and Fort Lauderdale average rent, dated 2026. rentcafe.com.
- Insurance Information Institute, homeowners insurance average premiums by state (NAIC 2022). iii.org.
- AAA, State Gas Price Averages, accessed September 2026. gasprices.aaa.com.
- Flight times and frequencies: FlightsFrom.com (BDL-FLL, BDL-MIA, HPN-FLL, HPN-MIA), accessed September 2026.