-Banks, mortgage companies and investors that seize Florida homes in foreclosures also get millions in tax breaks because state law allows them to enjoy the homestead exemption intended for owner-occupied homes.

-Last year in Duval County alone, local governments lost hundreds of thousands of dollars because of that provision, which some officials view as an unjustified windfall.

-Take the 1,922-square-foot Mandarin home at 10556 Rocky Garden Lane, for example. The lending institution for its previous owner, Miami Beach-based Chemtov Mortgage Group, received the title to the house on March 19. The home’s previous owner lived there on Jan. 1 and qualified for the homestead exemption for 2010. Chemtov, which was liable for 2010 property taxes after the transfer date, paid about $570 less in taxes than it would have if the homestead benefit didn’t transfer to non-homesteaders, based on data from Duval County Property Appraiser’s Office records.