Homebuyer Programs for Firefighters & EMTs in Florida
A home that works for the family while you are on shift
BreakThru Realty helps Florida homebuyers find the homeownership programs worth asking about, understand how each one shapes the home search, connect with participating lenders, and find homes that fit. For firefighters, paramedics and EMTs, the program is Florida Hometown Heroes, and the search is shaped by a schedule that keeps you away from home a third of the time, often through the storms.
See which programs are worth asking about · Homes within the limits
Who Hometown Heroes Covers in the Fire Service
Florida Housing lists firefighters, certified paramedics and certified EMTs employed full time by a Florida-based fire department, ambulance service or hospital. The employer matters as much as the title: a paramedic on a private ambulance service or an ER technician at a hospital sits in the program’s occupational groups alongside a municipal firefighter. Fire inspectors, dispatchers and other roles may fall under another group, which is why the full lists are worth reading.
Buying Around a 24/48 Schedule
On a 24-on, 48-off rotation you drive to the station about ten times a month, so the distance that suits you is not the distance that suits a daily commuter. Many firefighters trade a longer drive for a larger lot, a newer house or a better school district, and the numbers often favor it. What matters is the drive home after a long shift: measure it at that hour, not in midday traffic. The travel time tool on every listing on this site lets you save your station and check it for each home.
A House That Can Look After Itself During a Storm
Stations stay staffed through hurricanes, which means a firefighter’s family is often at home without them when a storm arrives. That makes the storm features of a house more than an insurance question: impact windows or shutters that one person can deploy, the age and attachment of the roof, a generator connection, the elevation and flood zone, and the evacuation route. We put those on the list at the first showing, and the inspection’s wind mitigation report confirms them.
Quiet Streets and Sleep After a Shift
Sleep after a 24-hour shift often happens in daylight, and a home that is quiet at night can be loud at ten in the morning: school traffic, a commercial corridor behind the fence, lawn crews, or a flight path. Visit a house you are serious about at the time of day you would be sleeping, look at which rooms face the street, and ask the association when landscaping crews come.
Your Address, Your Family and the Public Record
Florida law exempts from public records the home addresses, telephone numbers, dates of birth and photographs of current and former certified firefighters, and extends the exemption to their spouses and children, including the schools the children attend. To keep your new address out of the property appraiser’s and tax collector’s public records, send each a written, notarized request after closing, and when you sell, request the information’s release.
How BreakThru Realty Works With Firefighters
Consult a mortgage lender who participates in Florida Housing’s programs and get pre-approved for Hometown Heroes. Give us your station and rotation and we plan showings on your days off, measure drives at your hours, and put storm readiness on the list for every home. After closing we remind you to file the homestead exemption and the address exemption.
Who Florida Housing Lists for Hometown Heroes
Full-time, current employment with a Florida-based employer. Florida Housing’s examples in each group include, but are not limited to, the titles below.
First responders
Employed by a Florida-based fire department, ambulance service or hospital.
- Firefighter
- Certified paramedic
- Certified emergency medical technician (EMT)
Program Limits by County
| County | Hometown Heroes income limit | FHA loan limit | HFA Advantage and VA loan limit | SHIP purchase price limit |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Broward County | $190,200 | $667,000 | $832,750 | $679,324 |
| Miami-Dade County | $204,300 | $667,000 | $832,750 | $679,324 |
| Palm Beach County | $192,750 | $667,000 | $832,750 | $679,324 |
| Martin County | $153,600 | $603,750 | $832,750 | $619,629 |
| St. Lucie County | $153,600 | $603,750 | $832,750 | $619,629 |
| Indian River County | $153,450 | $541,287 | $832,750 | $544,233 |
Homes for Sale Within the Program Limits
Broward County: at or below $667,000
Homes listed at or below the 2026 FHA loan limit Florida Housing publishes for Broward County, in property types its programs allow. A starting point, not a qualification: your pre-approval sets your own number.
$249,800
761 N Pine Island Road 104, Plantation FL 33324
2 bd · 2 ba · 1,030 sq ft · Condominium
$83,000
7505 NW 5th Court 102, Margate FL 33063
2 bd · 2 ba · 990 sq ft · Condominium
$199,999
204 SW 120TH Avenue 204, Pembroke Pines FL 33025
2 bd · 3 ba · 1,338 sq ft · Townhouse$195,999
2040 NW 81st Avenue 117, Pembroke Pines FL 33024
2 bd · 2 ba · 870 sq ft · Condominium
See every Broward County home at or below this line
Miami-Dade County: at or below $667,000
Homes listed at or below the 2026 FHA loan limit Florida Housing publishes for Miami-Dade County, in property types its programs allow. A starting point, not a qualification: your pre-approval sets your own number.
$515,000
14905 SW 304th Terrace, Homestead FL 33033
4 bd · 3 ba · 1,721 sq ft · Single Family Residence$220,000
677 SW 9th Avenue 205, Miami FL 33130
1 bd · 1 ba · 688 sq ft · Condominium$340,000
1084 SE 13th Avenue, Homestead FL 33035
3 bd · 3 ba · 1,488 sq ft · Townhouse$480,000
10551 SW 141st Drive, Miami FL 33176
3 bd · 1 ba · 1,156 sq ft · Single Family Residence
See every Miami-Dade County home at or below this line
Palm Beach County: at or below $667,000
Homes listed at or below the 2026 FHA loan limit Florida Housing publishes for Palm Beach County, in property types its programs allow. A starting point, not a qualification: your pre-approval sets your own number.
$230,000
206 SPARROW Drive 2, Royal Palm Beach FL 33411
2 bd · 2 ba · 1,000 sq ft · Condominium
$290,000
500 N Crestwood Ct Court 502, Royal Palm Beach FL 33411
2 bd · 2 ba · 1,075 sq ft · Condominium
$270,000
12529 Imperial Isle Drive 205, Boynton Beach FL 33437
3 bd · 2 ba · 1,869 sq ft · Condominium
$489,000
128 E Central Boulevard, Lantana FL 33462
2 bd · 2 ba · 1,108 sq ft · Single Family Residence
See every Palm Beach County home at or below this line
Martin County: at or below $603,750
Homes listed at or below the 2026 FHA loan limit Florida Housing publishes for Martin County, in property types its programs allow. A starting point, not a qualification: your pre-approval sets your own number.
$565,000
7119 SE Twin Oaks Circle, Stuart FL 34997
3 bd · 3 ba · 2,312 sq ft · Single Family Residence
$255,000
6276 SE CHARLESTON Place 102, Hobe Sound FL 33455
3 bd · 2 ba · 1,338 sq ft · Condominium
$340,000
5317 SE ISABELITA Avenue, Stuart FL 34997
2 bd · 1 ba · 987 sq ft · Single Family Residence
$299,900
1950 SW Palm City Road 4-102, Stuart FL 34994
2 bd · 2 ba · 922 sq ft · Condominium
See every Martin County home at or below this line
St. Lucie County: at or below $603,750
Homes listed at or below the 2026 FHA loan limit Florida Housing publishes for St. Lucie County, in property types its programs allow. A starting point, not a qualification: your pre-approval sets your own number.
$350,000
6005 Lantana Drive, Fort Pierce FL 34951
3 bd · 3 ba · 1,702 sq ft · Single Family Residence
$350,000
3162 DAME Road, Fort Pierce FL 34981
3 bd · 2 ba · 1,886 sq ft · Single Family Residence
$550,000
10317 SW Phineas Lane, Port St. Lucie FL 34987
4 bd · 3 ba · 2,747 sq ft · Single Family Residence
$222,500
10320 SW Stephanie Way 7-204, Port St. Lucie FL 34987
2 bd · 2 ba · 1,231 sq ft · Condominium
See every St. Lucie County home at or below this line
Indian River County: at or below $541,287
Homes listed at or below the 2026 FHA loan limit Florida Housing publishes for Indian River County, in property types its programs allow. A starting point, not a qualification: your pre-approval sets your own number.
$333,888
2349 Old Dixie Highway, Vero Beach FL 32962
4 bd · 4 ba · 1,900 sq ft · Single Family Residence
$450,000
5400 A1a Highway A2, Vero Beach FL 32963
2 bd · 2 ba · 1,200 sq ft · Condominium
$435,000
5401 ANTIGUA Circle, Vero Beach FL 32967
2 bd · 2 ba · 1,683 sq ft · Single Family Residence
$399,990
5505 HAMPTON PARK Circle, Vero Beach FL 32966
4 bd · 2 ba · 1,840 sq ft · Single Family Residence
See Which Programs Are Worth Asking About
Tell us what you do, the county you are looking in, your timing, whether you have owned a home in the last three years and your price range. We send back the programs worth raising with a participating lender and homes that fit them. Questions about credit, income and debts belong with your lender, so they are not on the form.
Prefer to talk? (786) 914-1017 · sales@breakthrurealty.com
Frequently Asked Questions
- Do EMTs and paramedics qualify for Hometown Heroes?
- Florida Housing lists certified EMTs and certified paramedics as eligible when employed full time by a Florida-based fire department, ambulance service or hospital. The first-time buyer and county income rules apply as well, and a participating lender confirms eligibility.
- How far from the station should a firefighter live?
- There is no single answer, but on a 24/48 rotation you commute roughly ten times a month rather than twenty, so a longer drive costs less than it would for a daily commuter. Measure the drive home after a shift at the hours you would make it, and check any residency rule your department sets.
- What should firefighters look for in a Florida home for hurricane season?
- Features the household can manage without you: impact windows or shutters one person can deploy, a newer and well-attached roof, a generator connection, a favorable flood zone and elevation, and a clear evacuation route. The wind mitigation report from the inspection documents several of them for insurance.
- Can firefighters keep their home address out of Florida public records?
- Yes. Florida exempts the home addresses of current and former certified firefighters, and of their spouses and children, from public records. Send a written, notarized request to the county property appraiser and tax collector after you close so the information comes off their public records.
- Do hospital-employed EMTs qualify as first responders for Hometown Heroes?
- Florida Housing’s first responder group covers full-time employees of a Florida-based fire department, ambulance service or hospital, so an EMT employed by a hospital falls within it. Hospital employment also counts under the healthcare group for many other roles.
Sources
- Florida Housing Finance Corporation: Hometown Heroes Program
- Florida Housing: Hometown Heroes eligible occupations (July 13, 2026)
- Florida Statutes, section 119.071(4)(d): public records exemption for the home addresses of law enforcement personnel and firefighters
- Florida Statutes, section 196.102: exemption for totally and permanently disabled first responders
- Florida Statutes, section 720.3075: prohibited clauses in homeowners’ association documents
Program figures checked against their published sources on September 23, 2026. Programs, limits and funding change; consult a mortgage lender who participates in Florida Housing’s programs for the current terms.