Guide · Land value
How much is my Florida land worth? County value vs recent sales
Weigh three numbers: the county's just value, what similar vacant land nearby actually sold for, and any online estimate, which is a model of those same sales. In the eight counties we measured, qualified sales of vacant parcels of an acre or more closed at a median 1.06 to 1.51 times the parcel's 2026 just value, so the county figure usually sits below the price. Recent sales of land like yours are the best guide.
The three numbers, and what each is for
- Just value. The property appraiser's market value for tax purposes, set as of 1 January each year (s. 192.042). Among the factors the law tells the appraiser to weigh is what a seller nets after the usual costs of sale (s. 193.011), so it is not meant to equal a sale price. It is free, on every parcel, and it describes the market as of 1 January, not today.
- Recent sales. What buyers paid for similar land nearby. The Department of Revenue's sales file lists each county's recorded sales and codes each one as qualified (an open-market sale) or not.
- Estimates. A website's number is a model of recent sales. For vacant land, with few sales and big differences between lots, it can be far off. Check it against the sales.
What land sold for, county by county
We took the Department of Revenue's sales file for May 2025 to April 2026, the last 12 months that are complete in these counties, and kept sales the department codes 01 or 02 (qualified), recorded as vacant at the time of sale, of one parcel each, on parcels of an acre or more that the 2026 roll still codes as vacant residential.
| County | Sales | Median acres | Median price | Median price per acre | Median just value per acre | Price ÷ just value |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lee | 119 | 1.74 | $220,000 | $78,947 | $56,008 | 1.51 |
| Marion | 575 | 1.16 | $55,000 | $42,857 | $34,535 | 1.21 |
| Citrus | 569 | 1.17 | $48,000 | $33,841 | $26,128 | 1.25 |
| Charlotte | 103 | 2.50 | $70,000 | $26,000 | $19,125 | 1.45 |
| Polk | 136 | 1.75 | $52,000 | $25,103 | $19,257 | 1.25 |
| Highlands | 145 | 1.14 | $28,000 | $23,714 | $17,107 | 1.29 |
| Levy | 457 | 1.25 | $27,000 | $18,000 | $16,204 | 1.20 |
| Putnam | 302 | 1.30 | $25,000 | $14,853 | $13,725 | 1.06 |
The last column is the median of each sale's price divided by that parcel's 2026 just value. In Putnam the county's figure ran close to the price; in Lee and Charlotte buyers paid about half again as much.
Small platted lots follow the same pattern with smaller gaps. For lots under an acre in the same months: Lee had 5,451 such sales at a median $30,000 (1.12 times just value), Marion 2,481 at $27,000 (1.15), and Charlotte 2,166 at $19,500 (1.20).
How to price one parcel
- Read its values. Note the just value and the land value from the county roll, and the acreage.
- Pull sales like it. Same use, within a mile or two, sold in the last 12 to 24 months, of a similar size. Keep only qualified sales.
- Compare per acre and per lot. Per acre works for tracts; for small lots, compare whole prices, because price per acre climbs as lots get smaller.
- Adjust for what differs. Paved road frontage, the flood zone, the wetland share, the zoning and future land use, and whether water and sewer reach the lot all move land prices. A lot that is mostly wetland is not comparable to a dry one next door.
- For a decision that matters, such as an estate, a divorce or a large purchase, hire a state-certified appraiser.
Where the numbers stop
- Late sales. Sales reach the state file months after closing; in the counties we checked, the file thins out after April 2026, so the latest market is not in it yet.
- Qualification codes. We used 01 and 02, the codes the department counts as qualified. Our comps panel counts a wider set (01 to 06) as arm's-length, so its counts run higher.
- Today's code, last year's sale. We matched on the parcel's use code on the 2026 roll. A lot that sold vacant and has a house now drops out.
- Medians hide spread. Half the sales in each row closed above the median and half below. A lot on water, on a paved road or with utilities can sit far from it.
On Map Views
The parcel report shows the just, assessed, taxable and land values from the county's current roll, the agricultural classified value where there is one, and the parcel's sales on record. Comparable sales finds nearby sales by radius, months, same use and size, gives the median price and price per acre, and exports to CSV. The flood zone, wetlands, zoning and septic record sit in the same report for the adjustments. More on reading sales in comps from recorded sales and a property's sale history; for the tax side, estimating a parcel's tax.
Sale prices and values are public records as the counties and the Department of Revenue published them. They are not an appraisal; a state-certified appraiser's report is the authority on a property's value.