Homestead FL County: What Miami-Dade Means for Acacia Groves Buyers

Homestead, Florida is in Miami-Dade County. That is the short answer. The longer answer matters more if you are looking at new homes at Acacia Groves, because the homes there carry a Homestead mailing address but sit outside the City of Homestead. This guide explains what that means, which county offices you will deal with, and how to check the facts for any address before you buy.

Homestead FL county: the short answer

Homestead is a city inside Miami-Dade County, at the south end of the county. The U.S. Census Bureau lists Homestead city as part of Miami-Dade County in its 2024 population estimates. Those same estimates put Homestead at about 86,000 people and the county at about 2.8 million.

So if a form asks for your county and your mail says Homestead, the county is Miami-Dade. That part is simple.

What is less simple is the word ""Homestead"" on an envelope. It does not always mean the house is inside the city limits. In South Florida, the mailing city comes from the post office. The city limits come from the county map. They do not always match.

Where Acacia Groves sits on the county map

Acacia Groves is a Lennar community of single-family homes near SW 336th Street and SW 194th Avenue. We checked four of its homesite addresses on Miami-Dade County's own address map. All four came back the same way:

• County: Miami-Dade

• City: Unincorporated Miami-Dade (not inside any city)

• Mailing city: Homestead

• ZIP code: 33034

The county's city-limits map shows the City of Homestead and Florida City both close by. But the Acacia Groves homesites fall outside both of them. That is why you may see the community listed three ways online: Miami on the builder's page, Homestead on a mailing label, and unincorporated Miami-Dade on the county map. All three are pointing at the same place. They are just answering different questions.

If ZIP codes confuse you too, our guide to every Homestead ZIP code and what each one covers lays them out one by one.

Why ""unincorporated"" matters to a buyer

""Unincorporated"" sounds like a big legal word. It just means the area is not part of a city. Miami-Dade County runs the local government there instead of a city council.

Here is what that changes for you day to day:

Some services also change hands at the city line. Water, power and trash are the big ones. We wrote a separate guide on which utility companies serve Acacia Groves homes, because the answer is not the City of Homestead for most of them.

If you want to see the other side of the line, our guide to living inside Homestead city limits covers a Lennar community that does sit inside the city.

The Miami-Dade offices you will actually use

Whether you live inside a city or not, a few county offices touch every homeowner in Miami-Dade. These are the ones most new buyers end up using in the first year.

The Property Appraiser

The Miami-Dade Property Appraiser keeps the official record for every parcel. Its site has a property search, where you can look up values and the exemptions on a home. It is also where you check the status of an exemption application once you file one.

Florida's homestead exemption has nothing to do with the City of Homestead, even though the names match. It is a state property tax break for your main home. Our plain-English guide to the Florida homestead exemption explains who qualifies and when to file.

The tax bill

Property tax in Miami-Dade is set by the county and the other taxing bodies that cover your address. A home in unincorporated Miami-Dade still gets a Miami-Dade bill. For how that bill is built and when it arrives, read our Miami-Dade property tax guide for new home buyers.

Public schools

Miami-Dade County Public Schools runs the public schools for the whole county, inside cities and out. We do not list school assignments, because the district can change them and only the district can confirm them. Instead, put the exact address into the district's School Finder before you sign anything.

Homestead and Florida City, side by side

Two cities sit closest to Acacia Groves on the county map: Homestead and Florida City. Both are separate cities inside Miami-Dade County, and both city lines fall close to the community. The Census Bureau's 2024 estimates show how different they are in size:

Acacia Groves belongs to neither one. It sits on county land between them, which is why you will hear people describe it with either city's name. When you compare homes in this part of the county, look at each address on the county map rather than going by the name in an ad.

What the Homestead area looks like for a new-home buyer

Homestead and the county land around it have new-home communities from more than one builder, including Lennar and D.R. Horton. The home types run from townhomes to larger single-family plans, so it pays to know what you want before you start touring.

Acacia Groves fits on the single-family side. Lennar lists six plans there, from a single-story, three-bedroom home to a five-bedroom home with a separate Next Gen suite. Starting prices on the builder's site begin in the low $500,000s. Prices change often, so call 561-704-0091 for today's numbers.

The community also has a close neighbor with a very similar name, Acacia Parc. It is a different Lennar project with a different home type. If you have seen both names and are not sure which is which, our side-by-side look at Acacia Groves and Acacia Parc sorts it out.

How to check any address yourself

You do not need to take anyone's word for where a home sits. Here is a simple way to check:

1. Get the full street address of the homesite, not just the community name.

2. Look it up on the Property Appraiser's property search. The record shows the parcel and its details.

3. Ask the sales team which city the homesite is in, and compare their answer to the county record.

4. Put the address into the School Finder to see the district's answer for schools.

5. Ask which companies provide water, power and trash for that exact address.

If any answer does not match, ask again before you sign. A two-minute check now saves a lot of confusion after closing.

You can see the community details, plans and photos on the Acacia Groves community page.

Common Questions

Want to see the homes and ask your own questions? Call 561-704-0091 or book your Acacia Groves visit here.

Related reading: All six Acacia Groves plans, from three to five bedrooms