Florida Should Be a Place You Can Afford to Call Home
From the rent check to the insurance bill, the cost of living here has outrun the paychecks of the people who make Florida run.
The plan tackles Florida's affordability crisis by creating a statewide catastrophic insurance fund to dramatically lower homeowners premiums, capping utility profits at the national average to reduce monthly electric bills, scaling workforce and affordable housing construction with down-payment assistance for first-time buyers, offering no-interest state-backed loans to help condo owners cover special assessments, and protecting renters through expanded affordable housing programs. The goal is to leave Florida families with more money at the end of each month.
The Dream Is Slipping Out of Reach
For generations, Florida meant a fresh start, a house with a yard, and the room to build a life. Now young families are watching that promise fade as the typical first-time buyer waits until age 40, and even lifelong Floridians open their insurance bills with dread. This is not just an economic problem. It is about whether working people can still put down roots in the state they love.
Rein In the Insurance Crisis
No family should have to choose between insuring their home and keeping the lights on. Florida pays the highest homeowners premiums in the country, and too many carriers have walked away, leaving people stranded. We will fight for a system that treats hurricane risk as the shared statewide challenge it is, so a single storm season doesn't decide whether you keep your house.
Stop the Runaway Utility Bills
Electricity is not a luxury, and profits for the biggest utilities should not come out of your monthly budget. Florida regulators have let investor-owned utilities earn some of the fattest returns in the nation while families ration the air conditioning in the summer heat. We will push to cap utility profits in line with the national norm and put that money back where it belongs, in your pocket.
Build Homes People Can Actually Afford
You cannot fix a shortage by wishing it away, and Florida is short the homes its growing families need. We will invest in the tools that work, from workforce housing to real down-payment help for first-time buyers, so a nurse, a teacher, or a young couple can find a place they can afford. Building more is how we bring prices back within reach.
Protect Renters and Condo Owners Left Behind
Half of Florida renters now hand over more than a third of their income just to keep a roof overhead, and older condo owners are being hit with special assessments that can wipe out a lifetime of savings. Safety matters, and no one should live in an unsafe building, but families cannot be left to shoulder impossible bills alone. We will stand with renters and long-time owners so the fine print doesn't force them out of their own homes.
Give Families Room to Breathe
When most people can't cover a surprise bill without going into debt, the whole economy is one storm away from crisis. Real affordability means an honest shot at saving, not just surviving the next deductible or rate hike. Every fight on this page comes back to one goal: leaving Florida families with a little more at the end of the month.
Affordable Again
Florida can be a place where hard work still buys a home, a full fridge, and a night's sleep without worry. Let's build that Florida together.
Frequently asked questions
Q. Why can't I afford to buy a home in Florida anymore?
Florida's median home price reached $420,000, mortgage rates sit around 6.36 percent, and insurance premiums are among the nation's highest. Long-term owners pay far less property tax than new buyers for the same house thanks to Save Our Homes caps, and the structural result is that the median first-time buyer age has risen sharply.
Q. How will this plan help me if I rent?
More than half of Florida renters now pay over 30 percent of income on housing. The plan scales workforce and affordable housing targeted near job centers, expands existing state housing programs, and caps utility profits to lower the monthly bills renters pay on top of rent.
Q. What if I own an older condo and got hit with a huge special assessment?
Older coastal condos have been hit hardest by new inspection requirements, with many owners facing assessments of $50,000 or more per unit. The plan offers no-interest state-backed loans so associations can spread costs over time without forcing fixed-income owners to sell.
Q. What if I am a hospitality worker in Tampa or Orlando?
The plan specifically calls for scaling workforce housing based on income and proximity to work, deliberately targeting tourism corridors rather than scattered housing. The utility profit cap would also lower monthly bills, and the proximity to work framing should reduce commute costs.
Q. What are average home insurance premiums in Florida right now?
Estimates range from roughly $5,400 to $15,000 per year depending on home value and coverage level. Every credible analysis ranks Florida at or near the top nationally, with coastal markets like Miami-Dade, Tampa, and Jacksonville seeing the largest increases.
Q. Won't capping utility profit hurt investment in Florida's grid?
The cap would bring Florida's authorized utility return in line with the national average of roughly 9 to 10 percent. Utilities in other states earning that rate continue to invest in grid modernization and storm hardening, there is no evidence that matching the national norm suppresses investment.
Q. Will a state catastrophic insurance fund just be a taxpayer bailout for risky homes?
No, it is a risk-pooling mechanism that lowers costs for everyone by spreading hurricane exposure across all Florida homes. Homeowners still pay for their state hurricane coverage, just at a lower combined cost than today's system where each private insurer prices in huge risk margins.
Q. What about retirees on fixed income in Florida?
Retirees face acute pressures from condo special assessments and rising property insurance. The no-interest state-backed condo loan is targeted directly at fixed-income condo owners who can't absorb a six-figure special assessment, and the catastrophic fund insurance savings would also hit hardest for retirees who often pay insurance directly.