Canadian Landlords in Fort Myers: Tax & Rental Guide

Fort Myers offers a more diversified Southwest Florida rental market than the pure-snowbird (Naples) or pure- waterfront (Cape Coral) alternatives.

• Historic downtown revival. The River District has been substantially restored over the last decade — restaurants, art galleries, walkable urban core. Drives both long-term professional and short-term tourism demand.
• Fort Myers Beach / Estero Island. A distinct sub-market — beach short-term rentals with high seasonal pricing. Substantially affected by Hurricane Ian (2022), with reconstruction ongoing.
• Sanibel / Captiva access. Premium beach destinations adjacent to Fort Myers; many Canadian buyers use Fort Myers as a more affordable base while accessing Sanibel/Captiva beaches.

Fort Myers proper (the city) is inland enough to have materially lower hurricane insurance than Fort Myers Beach or Sanibel. Lee County property tax matches Cape Coral at roughly 1.0-1.3% of assessed value.

Three sub-markets to know:

• Downtown River District — condos and historic homes, walkable, restaurant/arts cluster. Mix of long-term and short-term demand.
• South Fort Myers / Gateway / Pelican Preserve — suburban golf-course and gated communities, retiree- heavy long-term rentals.
• Fort Myers Beach (Estero Island) — distinct from Fort Myers proper. Beach short-term rentals, high seasonality, high insurance and reconstruction complexity post-Ian.

The federal IRS treatment of Fort Myers rental property is identical to any US state — non-resident Canadian owners file Form 1040-NR with Schedule E attached, claim deductible expenses, and apply the Section 871(d) election to avoid the default 30% gross-rent withholding.

Florida has no state income tax — federal IRS is the only US income tax obligation. Short-term rentals (under 6 months) are subject to Florida sales tax (6%) plus county discretionary surtax plus county tourist development tax — typically 11-13% combined.

On the Canadian side, you report Fort Myers rental income on Form T776 attached to your T1, converted to CAD using the Bank of Canada annual average rate for the tax year. If your foreign property cost base exceeds CAD $100,000, you also file Form T1135 — use our T1135 Threshold Checker to confirm.

When you eventually sell, FIRPTA withholds 15% of the gross sale price at closing — file Form 8288-B Withholding Certificate at least 90 days before closing to reduce the withholding to your actual estimated capital gains tax. See our FIRPTA Complete Guide for the full process.

Fort Myers property management runs 9-11% for long-term residential, 25-30% for short-term vacation. Fort Myers Beach short-term management can run higher (30-35%) due to operational complexity of beach turnover and weather risk.

Fort Myers-specific notes:

• Inland vs beach insurance differential is stark. Inland Fort Myers single-family: $1,800- 3,500/year hurricane coverage. Fort Myers Beach equivalent: $5,000-15,000+ and limited carrier availability.
• Post-Ian Fort Myers Beach reconstruction is ongoing. Pricing and rental performance on Estero Island remain in flux as inventory rebuilds. Canadian buyers should verify property-specific rebuild status carefully.
• Growing professional employer base. FineMark Bank, Lee Health, Hertz HQ in Estero — supports long-term rental demand in the broader metro.