2026 PCA Protecting Hotel owners
This update highlights recent developments affecting commercial property taxation in Florida. It reflects analysis prepared by an APTC member firm based on conditions at the time of publication.
The September 8, 2026 per curiam affirmance (“PCA’) in Amy Mercado, as Orange County Property Appraiser v. Walt Disney Parks and Resorts U.S., Inc., No. 6D2024-2140 (Fla. 6th DCA), affirmed the trial court without a written opinion. Accordingly, the PCA itself contains no factual discussion or new legal analysis; its effect is to leave the trial court’s judgment intact. Nonetheless, it is considered a large win for hotel owners.
The underlying dispute concerned the ad valorem valuation of Disney’s Yacht & Beach Club Resort. The central issue was whether the Property Appraiser’s income approach improperly captured nontaxable intangible business value—including Disney’s brand/goodwill, assembled workforce, management expertise, and other business assets—when valuing the taxable real estate.
The trial court held that the challenged assessments were unconstitutional and invalid because the Property Appraiser’s methodology included value attributable to these intangible assets. This followed the earlier published decision in Singh v. Walt Disney Parks & Resorts U.S., Inc., 325 So. 3d 124 (Fla. 5th DCA 2020), which held that the Property Appraiser’s application of the Rushmore method improperly included Disney’s intangible business assets. The Fifth DCA explained that deducting management and franchise fees did not necessarily remove all intangible value embedded in hotel revenues.
Thus, the 2026 PCA does not establish a new valuation rule. Rather, it leaves standing the trial court’s application of the earlier Singh principles: hotel real estate may be valued using an income approach, but the taxable value cannot include income/value attributable to nontaxable intangible business assets.
Daniel Wolfe
Rennert Vogel Mandler & Rodriguez, P.A.
Member Firm, American Property Tax Counsel
For guidance on how these developments may apply to your property or portfolio, please contact the APTC representative listed above.