COLLIER COUNTY, Fla. — Consumers may not have felt it in their wallets yet, but Collier County's sales tax increased by one percent on January 1.
"What it's going to do is improve the overall infrastructure - help and enhance, and do more beautification," said Tiffany McQuaid, a realtor based in Naples.
With the tax hike paying for improvements to things like roads, bridges and parks, McQuaid said it should impact property values - eventually.
"We're not going to see it in the short-term, but boy, for the long-term, it's going to be great," she said. "The more beautiful the area is, the more property values will go up."
Purchases for groceries, medicine and gas are exempt from the one percent hike, but it will impact retail stores and restaurants.
Short-term rental properties, such as those found using Airbnb, will also face a one percent tax increase.
"Anybody that's doing an Airbnb, just know that you're going to be going from an eleven percent to twelve percent tax," McQuaid said. "That's because of the fact that most of those are way less than six months in terms of the rental."
With tourism strong at the beginning of 2019, realtor Todd Gridley isn't concerned about any negative impacts from the tax increase.
"No one likes a tax increase," Gridley said. "But this is a small one, and if it (improves) the infrastructure, it'll be a good thing for Collier and Naples."
The Collier County Board of Commissioners is expected to discuss the impacts of the tax increase on short-term rentals at their regular meeting Tuesday.
