A two-bedroom condominium in Boca Grande Club Phase II, built in 1980, with 1,168 square feet on the water, carries two different taxable values on its 2026 Charlotte County Property Appraiser record. The county and most other taxing authorities tax it at $1,077,669. The school board taxes it at $1,092,080.
The $14,411 between those two figures is Florida's 10% non-homestead cap at work, and that same parcel card holds the other number a Boca Grande Club buyer should know before comparing it with a village address. Its taxing district is 040. That is a Charlotte County district, and in 2026 it charges about 4.7 mills more than the Lee County district covering Boca Grande's village.
A county line runs up Gasparilla Road
Gasparilla Island has been split between two counties for most of its recorded history, and the Boca Grande Historical Society timeline traces the early division of the island into a southern Lee portion and a northern portion. The line still governs today. Lee County's Gasparilla Island parking ordinance draft describes Gasparilla Road as running "from the Charlotte/Lee County line south to and including 5th Street."
Boca Grande Club, at 5000 Gasparilla Road, is on the Charlotte side. Units there, including a Dunes Chalet condominium at the same street address, show up in the Charlotte County Property Appraiser's records, and the Phase II unit above sits in taxing district 040. If you've read our look at Boca Grande Club as a second home or our piece on what the Marina Village fee gap buys, this is the carrying cost those posts left out. It never shows up in an HOA budget, and it holds steady across the whole community.
Two final rate sheets, one island
Both counties have certified their 2026 rates. The Charlotte County Property Appraiser's 2026 Final Rate Chart lists district 040, with 772 parcels, at a total of 17.3288 mills. The Lee County Property Appraiser's 2026 Taxing District Millage Book, printed October 9, 2026, lists district 005, "Boca Grande Fire / Gasparilla Light," at an actual total of 12.6548 mills.
A mill is one dollar of tax per $1,000 of taxable value. For every $1 million of taxable value in 2026, district 040 comes to $17,328.80 in ad valorem tax and district 005 comes to $12,654.80. The difference is $4,674 a year per million, so a $2 million taxable value carries $9,348 more on the Charlotte side before any non-ad valorem assessments.
Here is how the two 2026 schedules line up.
| Levy group | Charlotte district 040 | Lee district 005 |
|---|---|---|
| County and local districts | 9.0738 | 5.3538 |
| Public schools, state law plus local board | 6.2720 | 5.2710 |
| Water management | 0.1831 | 0.2301 |
| Boca Grande Fire | 1.7605 | 1.7605 |
| West Coast Inland Navigation District | 0.0394 | 0.0394 |
| Total | 17.3288 | 12.6548 |
The Charlotte column follows the district 040 row of the appraiser's 2026 Final Rate Chart, and the office's 2026 Final Ad Valorem Rates sheet, dated October 2, 2026, names each levy. Both counties publish ad valorem rates only. Lee's millage book says outright that the listing "does not include any non ad valorem special assessments," so a real bill on either side will carry line items this table leaves out.
The fire district is identical, so the gap lives elsewhere
The table shows the island's own services are not the source. The Boca Grande Fire Control District levies 1.7605 mills on both sides of the line, and the West Coast Inland Navigation District charges 0.0394 on both. The difference comes from the county, school and water levies each half of the island falls under, including one small Lee-only levy for Gasparilla Island itself.
- County-level levies account for about 3.7 mills. In district 040, Charlotte charges a General Fund rate of 6.1275, a Law Enforcement levy of 2.3578, Lighting at 0.1907, Stump Pass Dredging at 0.1978 and a voter-approved Environmentally Sensitive Lands levy of 0.2000. On the Lee side, General Revenue is 3.7623, the Unincorporated MSTU is 0.8398 and the Library District is 0.4218, and mosquito control, hyacinth control, all-hazards protection and a 0.0320-mill Gasparilla Island MSTU together add about a third of a mill.
- School millage accounts for about 1 mill. Charlotte County Public Schools levy 3.0240 under state law and 3.2480 by local board, a total of 6.2720. Lee's two school levies total 5.2710.
- Water management runs slightly the other way. One small island falls under two water management districts. The Charlotte side pays the Southwest Florida Water Management District 0.1831. The Lee side pays three South Florida Water Management District levies totaling 0.2301, so Lee is a little higher on this one line.
Charlotte's own rate chart also lists district 042 at 17.1381 mills. It carries Boca Grande Fire but no Lighting levy, so a Charlotte-side Boca Grande parcel isn't automatically in 040. The district code on the individual parcel card is the one that applies.
Why the seller's bill won't be your bill
The millage gap is the steady part of the comparison. The bigger surprise in a transaction comes from which value those mills are applied to.
The Lee County Property Appraiser's 10% assessment limitation FAQ answers whether a prior owner's capped value passes to a buyer in plain terms:
"No. The property will be re-assessed at full market value on January 1 the year following the sale. The 10% non-homestead assessment limitation is then applied to the property the following January 1."
The Charlotte County Property Appraiser describes the same reset for non-homestead property such as vacation homes and rentals. "The benefit is removed when a property changes ownership or changes use." It also adds a detail that matters on the Charlotte side: "The 10% cap applies to all taxing authority millage rates EXCEPT the School Board millage."
That explains the two values on the Boca Grande Club Phase II card. Every levy except schools is applied to the capped $1,077,669. The 6.2720 school mills are applied to the full $1,092,080. The same exclusion applies in Lee County, where LeePA describes the non-homestead cap as excluding school-board levies, but Charlotte's school levy is about a mill heavier. For a second-home owner at Boca Grande Club, more than a third of the 2026 rate tracks full market value every year, cap or no cap.
The longer a seller has owned, the further their capped value can drift below market. A buyer pricing out the annual cost from the seller's most recent bill is reading a number tied to someone else's ownership history. The more useful starting point is a likely purchase price, the district's total millage, and the January 1 reset after closing.
Checking a specific address before you write an offer
Each county keeps the records that settle this for one parcel:
- Charlotte side: The Charlotte County Property Appraiser's parcel record shows the taxing district, the certified just, assessed and taxable values, and a link to the office's Tax Estimator.
- Lee side: The Lee County Property Appraiser publishes the district millage books and the assessment-limitation guidance quoted above.
- Bills and assessments: The Lee County Tax Collector announced on October 30, 2026 that 2026 bills were going out, and final bills include non-ad valorem assessments on top of the millage. Charlotte County's tax collector also says real estate bills combine ad valorem taxes with non-ad valorem assessments that are based on measures like units or square footage rather than value.
Putting a Boca Grande Club unit beside a village or Boca Grande Isles alternative with both parcel cards open usually shows more than the two listing prices do.
FAQ
Does Boca Grande Club pay the same fire district rate as the village? Yes. In 2026 the Boca Grande Fire Control District levies 1.7605 mills on the Charlotte parcels in district 040 and on the Lee parcels in district 005.
Are these 2026 rates final? The Charlotte County Property Appraiser lists the district 040 figures as 2026 final ad valorem rates, dated October 2, 2026. Lee's figures are the "actual" column in the 2026 millage book printed October 9, 2026.
When does a new owner's tax bill reflect the purchase? Under the Lee County Property Appraiser's guidance, the property is reassessed at full market value on January 1 of the year after the sale, and the 10% non-homestead limit applies from the following January 1.
This post is general information about published tax rates and assessment rules. It is not tax, legal or financial advice, so please confirm your own situation with a qualified tax professional or the county property appraiser.
If you're weighing a Boca Grande Club unit against a home in the village, I'm happy to pull the parcel records for both and go through the numbers with you before you make an offer. Maryjo Pigott can help you understand the full carrying cost on either side of the county line. Schedule Your Free Consultation.
