The Lauderdale-by-the-Sea Guide — free

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The Lauderdale-by-the-Sea Guide — free. What you get: the town's low-rise beach character, the pier-and-reef life, the Broward cost picture including homestead, and an honest fit test. By Reed Kellough, Douglas Elliman · Eklund|Gomes Team — 200+ closings · 14 years.

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Lauderdale-by-the-Sea is the beach town that kept its character: a low-rise village of mid-century motels turned boutiques, a fishing pier, and a reef you can reach from shore — minutes from Fort Lauderdale and a world away from its high-rises. It draws divers, anglers, snowbirds, and buyers who want the beach as a daily habit rather than a weekend event. It is small by design — no towers on the sand, no big-box strip — and that smallness is both its charm and its honest trade: fewer homes, fewer services, and a quieter social calendar than the bigger cities.

1. The town, honestly

The town is walkable in a way the bigger coastal cities are not: the pier, the beach, and the Commercial Boulevard strip are a short stroll apart, and most daily life happens within a few blocks of the sand. Expect mid-century condos, garden apartments, and small inns alongside single-family streets, with a village feel that rewards buyers who want to know their neighbors. The trade is scale: no large grocery or hospital in town, limited nightlife, and a quieter off-season. Buyers who want the biggest city services look north to Pompano Beach or south to Fort Lauderdale; buyers who want the village choose LBTS on purpose.

2. The water — pier, reef, and the inlet

Anglin's Fishing Pier is the town's front porch: fishing, sunrise walks, and a view down the whole beach. The reef off LBTS is one of the few in South Florida reachable from shore, which makes the town a genuine shore-diving destination — bring fins and a flag, and the reef does the rest. For boaters, the honest note is the Commercial Boulevard bridge: a fixed span with 15 feet of closed clearance between the Intracoastal and the ocean, so larger boats stage from Port Everglades inlet to the south. Dock life here is smaller and more personal than in Lighthouse Point or Pompano; buyers keeping a big boat should weigh that before they buy the house.

3. The housing picture

LBTS homes are defined by proximity, not sprawl: single-family streets a short walk from the sand, mid-century garden apartments and condos, and small inns converted to residences, all within a low-rise town where the beach is the amenity. Distance to the sand, street quiet, and the walk to Anglin's Fishing Pier are the features that move value here more than square footage alone.

4. What it costs

Broward County taxes run roughly 1.5 to 2 percent of value for many homes. Lauderdale-by-the-Sea's total millage is about 18.1215 — about $1,812 per $100,000 of taxable value. For scale, Lighthouse Point is about 18.9, Pompano Beach about 20.4, and Deerfield Beach about 20.3. Three mechanics matter: (1) Your assessed value resets to market value when you buy. (2) File for homestead exemption by March 1 — it removes up to $50,000 from your assessed value and caps annual assessment growth under Save Our Homes. (3) If you are moving from another Florida homestead, portability can carry up to $500,000 of your existing benefit with you.

Insurance is house-by-house: age, roof, elevation, and storm protections drive it more than the town average — get an elevation certificate and a real quote on the exact home.

5. The fit test

Choose LBTS if you want the beach as a daily habit, a walkable village, and shore diving off the reef. Look north to Lighthouse Point or Pompano Beach if dock life and larger boats are the priority, and read the Boca Raton guide for the other half of the coast comparison — polished club city versus low-rise beach town.

Frequently asked questions

Is LBTS a good place to live full time? Yes, if the village scale suits you: walkable, quiet, beach-first living, with Fort Lauderdale's services minutes away. It is not a big-city move — and that is the point for its buyers.

Can I dive from shore? Yes — the reef off LBTS is one of the few in South Florida reachable from shore, which makes the town a genuine shore-diving destination.

What about boats? The Commercial Boulevard bridge has 15 feet of closed clearance, so larger boats stage from Port Everglades inlet. Smaller boats and dock life work well here; big-boat owners should compare Lighthouse Point and Pompano Beach.

Are property taxes different in LBTS? Lauderdale-by-the-Sea's total millage is about 18.1215 — about $1,812 per $100,000 of taxable value — with homestead exemption and portability available as in the rest of Florida.

Your next step

The complete five-city playbook is Move to South Florida Like a Local. For a confidential conversation about an LBTS move, call (954) 242-0441 or find Reed on Instagram @reedtherealtor. Start with a relocation call and a short walk of the pier, the reef, and the streets behind the sand.

About the author

Reed Kellough, Douglas Elliman · Eklund|Gomes Team — 200+ closings · 14 years. Licensed in Florida, license #3274276.

This guide is general education, not tax or legal advice. For your home's assessed value and exemptions, the Broward County Property Appraiser is the final word.