Miramar, Florida: Buying and Refinancing From East to West

Miramar runs 14 miles from east to west across southern Broward, and those two ends feel like different cities. The east side is 1950s and 1960s concrete block homes. The west side is gated lake communities built decades later along I-75. About 141,000 people live in between, and close to seven in ten households own their home.

Miramar has deep Jamaican and Haitian roots, and in 2000 it had one of the highest shares of Jamaican residents of any U.S. city. For buyers and owners, the things to understand are the city’s own homebuyer program, the tax bill, flood ratings and new maps, and how the neighborhoods change as you drive west.

Every source for this page is listed at the bottom.

  • CountyBroward
  • FoundedIncorporated 1955
  • PopulationAbout 141,000
  • FHA limit, 1 unit$667,000 in 2026
  • City buyer programFirst-Time Homebuyer Program
  • Named forMiramar, Havana
  • Width14 miles east to west
  • Water and sewerCity of Miramar utility

East Miramar and west Miramar

A.L. Mailman bought the original land in 1953 and built the first 56 homes: small, flat-roof concrete houses priced for working families. The city incorporated two years later and took its name from Miramar, the seaside district of Havana. By the mid-1960s the eastern quarter of the city was largely built out, and it still looks like it.

Farther west, Miramar is newer. The communities there are built around lakes and golf, many of them gated with a clubhouse and an HOA.

Historic Miramar

Historic Miramar is the original east side, where Mailman’s first houses went up. The city lists Historic Miramar among its neighborhoods, and its concrete block homes date to the city’s first decades.

Silver Lakes

Silver Lakes was built from the 1990s on and holds more than 2,500 homes in over 30 subdivisions around dozens of lakes. It straddles the Miramar and Pembroke Pines line around Silver Lakes Boulevard.

Riviera Isles

Riviera Isles is a gated community of single-family homes and townhomes with a clubhouse and a waterfront pier.

Silver Shores

Silver Shores is a gated golf community with its own course and clubhouse.

Country Club Ranches

Country Club Ranches is one of the city’s named neighborhoods, known for large lots, many of them set up for horses.

In the gated western communities, the HOA dues go into your monthly payment when we qualify you, and some associations have their own rules on rentals and exterior changes. We pull the HOA numbers before you write an offer so there’s no surprise at underwriting.

Miramar’s First-Time Homebuyer Program

The City of Miramar runs its own down payment and closing cost help for very-low and low income first-time buyers. It comes as a 0% deferred second loan over 15 years with no monthly payment, and it turns into a grant if you meet the program’s conditions for the full term. The amount depends on your household income, and the city works through applications first come, first qualified, until the money runs out.

The city has also offered help aimed at moderate-income households who earn too much for the first program. Which tier you fall into depends on household size and income, so we start there and match you to the right one.

Since the city funds files in the order they qualify, call us early and we’ll have your pre-approval ready when you apply.

Miramar’s program pairs with our FHA loan. Broward County’s programs are on our Broward County guide, and statewide Hometown Heroes applies here too whenever the state has it funded.

Taxes and fees on a Miramar home

  • Fire assessment: Miramar charges every residential unit a flat yearly fire assessment on the tax bill, and the city offers a hardship exemption.
  • Stormwater assessment: the commission sets this separate city charge each year.

Miramar runs its own water and sewer utility, with two water treatment plants and a wastewater plant, so your water bill comes from the city. The fire and stormwater lines get paid out of escrow, so they’re baked into the payment we give you up front. Homestead filings go to the Broward County Property Appraiser, with a March 1 deadline for the year after you move in.

Flood zones and the newer Broward maps

Broward County’s updated FEMA flood maps took effect on July 31, 2024. The new maps changed zones across Broward, so look up the current zone on any house you’re considering.

The city reports a Class 8 rating in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which takes a discount off flood insurance premiums for homes in the high-risk zones. If the house needs flood coverage, your lender will require it, and that premium belongs in your budget before you sign.

Buying or refinancing in Miramar with AAA Capital Funding

Memorial Hospital Miramar, the FBI’s Miami field office, Comcast, JL Audio, Carnival and Kellstrom Defense all have operations in Miramar.

FHA and FHA 100%

Put 3.5% down with a 580 or higher score, or use our FHA 100% option to cover the down payment with an assistance second. Seller credits can cover a big share of your closing costs.

Self-employed buyers

If you own a business and your returns don’t show what you take home, a bank statement loan uses your deposits to qualify you.

Veterans and Conventional

Eligible veterans can buy with VA loans and no down payment, and buyers with stronger credit can use Conventional loans from 3% down.

Refinancing

A refinance can lower your payment or pull cash out for a roof, an addition or debt payoff. Tell us what you want the money for and we’ll show you what the payment does.

We’ve been licensed in Florida since 1997 and close in all 67 counties. Call 888-601-8344 or text 954-816-8820 and we’ll go over the house you’re looking at, east side or west.

Our Homebuyers Outreach Program covers Miramar and the rest of Broward. It’s a credit toward your closing costs that most buyers leave on the table because nobody brings it up. Ask us about it before you tour.

Miramar questions we hear a lot

Is Miramar’s homebuyer help a grant or a loan?

It starts as a 0% deferred second loan over 15 years with no monthly payment, and it converts to a grant if you meet the program’s conditions for the full term.

Did the new flood maps change my Miramar home’s flood zone?

They may have. Broward’s updated FEMA maps took effect July 31, 2024. Look up the property’s current zone, and we’ll confirm it when we order the appraisal.

Are Miramar property taxes lower than Fort Lauderdale’s?

The answer depends on the house. The city tax rates, the fire assessments and the hospital district levies all differ between the two cities, so we compare full tax bills on any homes you’re weighing.

Do HOA dues affect how much I qualify for in west Miramar?

Yes, HOA dues count in your monthly debt ratio, just like taxes and insurance. We get the exact dues before you make an offer.

Sources for this page
  1. City of Miramar: Founding the City
  2. City of Miramar: History
  3. City of Miramar: Community
  4. Florida EDR / BEBR population estimates
  5. Data USA: Miramar, FL
  6. Miramar, Florida (Wikipedia)
  7. City of Miramar: First-Time Homebuyer Program
  8. Miramar’s moderate income mortgage assistance program
  9. City of Miramar: Understanding Your Property Taxes
  10. City of Miramar: Floodplain Management
  11. Broward County: Flood Zone Maps
  12. Silver Lakes community profile
  13. Greater Fort Lauderdale Alliance: Miramar

AAA Capital Funding, Inc. NMLS #374739. Jason J. Sarji, NMLS #374700. Licensed Florida mortgage broker serving Miramar and all 67 Florida counties since 1997. Equal Housing Opportunity.

You work with the same person from start to finish, in every county in Florida.

We've been closing Florida loans since 1997, in all 67 counties. If you want to know what's possible in Miramar, call 888-601-8344 or text 954-816-8820. One call, under ten minutes. No application needed to start.

AAA Capital Funding, Inc. · NMLS #374739 · Jason J. Sarji, NMLS #374700