Umatilla, FL Real Estate: Buying & Selling Guide (2026)

The short version: In Umatilla, the tax bill, not the water bill, shows whether the City millage applies; confirm any recent annexation with City Hall. The City adopted 7.3522 mills for 2026, up from 7.2377, per the Lake County Property Appraiser’s final sheet dated October 9, 2026; of the 14 cities and towns on that sheet, only Eustis shows a higher adopted operating rate (Tavares’s figure is general fund only). City water and sewer also serve customers outside city limits, at higher rates. The City’s $40 lien search reports liens, unpaid utilities, open or expired permits and code cases. Umatilla is not in any of The Villages’ residential districts.

Umatilla, FL at a glance

County	Lake County
History	Founded 1856 by Nathan J. Trowell, per the City; incorporation approved by vote on November 8, 1904
City utility billing	Water, sewer and garbageWater drawn from the Floridan aquifer through three wells, per the 2025 water quality report
2026 city millage	7.3522 mills adopted7.2377 in 2025; the 2026 rolled-back rate was also 7.3522
City item on the tax bill	“Fire Residential / Non-Residential,” per the Tax Collector’s taxing-authorities list
Fire service	Umatilla Fire Department, 1 Cassady St., staffed 24 hours a day
Airport	Umatilla Municipal Airport (X23), City-owned, public use, just east of downtown
Villages district inside the city	None listed

From City of Umatilla, Lake County, USDA Forest Service and District Government sources listed below. Checked October 10, 2026.

The 2026 tax line

The Property Appraiser’s final sheet shows Umatilla at 7.2377 mills in 2025. Its 2026 rolled-back rate, 7.3522, was already above that, and the City adopted exactly the rolled-back rate: 0.00% over rolled-back, 1.58% over 2025. Taxable value in the city rose 11.32%. On $200,000 of taxable value, the city line comes to about $1,470 a year. For comparison, Eustis adopted 7.3898, Tavares 6.9610 (general fund only; Tavares also levies voted debt) and Mount Dora 6.3000.

That line sits on top of the county’s 5.0254 general fund mills and the 6.0540-mill school total, among others. The Tax Collector’s taxing-authorities list also shows “Fire Residential / Non-Residential” under the City of Umatilla, which runs its own fire department. Read the assessment section of the bill along with the millage.

City water reaches past city limits

The City’s October 2025 residential rate sheet (Resolution 2025-30) prices two kinds of customers:

Inside city limits: a $15.30 monthly water base charge plus usage from $3.25 per 1,000 gallons, and a $30.86 sewer base plus $6.22 per 1,000 gallons, capped at 20,000 gallons.
Outside city limits: a $19.13 water base and a $38.58 sewer base, with higher usage rates.

The City’s utility page says rates change every October under Ordinance 2008-H, and the October 2025 sheet is the latest posted, so ask for the current one. Its smart meters show hourly use and can send vacation and excess-use alerts. Public Works runs water, sewer and stormwater; electric is not on its list, so ask who sends the power bill.

Bills go out on the 20th and are due the 10th, with a 10% late penalty; an after-hours turn-on after 3:30 p.m. costs $150, per the billing page, so schedule the buyer’s turn-on early on a weekday. Waste Management collects garbage and yard debris on Thursdays.

Order the City lien search before you list

The City Clerk’s lien search reports liens, unpaid water, sewer and garbage charges, open or expired permits and code enforcement violations. It costs $40 (3 to 5 business days) or $80 expedited (1 to 2 business days), and each address needs its own form, mailed with a check to the City Clerk. The City says it does not replace a search of Lake County’s public records.

Open permits matter because the City’s fee schedule (Resolution 2024-04) covers the work inspections look at: roofs ($100 minimum plus $5 per $1,000 of contract value), plumbing, mechanical, windows and doors, generators, sheds, fences and screen enclosures. Work done without a permit carries an after-the-fact penalty of double the permit fee, $100 minimum. Applications go through the City’s online permit portal.

Chickens, sheds and vacant land

The City’s backyard chicken application says Ordinance 2017-A allows chickens in certain zoning categories with a permit: no more than five birds, and a coop or fenced enclosure in the back yard, no taller than 6 feet and at least 25 feet from the side and rear lot lines. The form lists a $25 fee; the 2024 fee schedule also lists a $20 coop zoning clearance and a $45 coop permit. For land or an addition, the maps page posts a 2026 zoning map plus soils, wells and wetlands maps.

Near the Ocala National Forest

The Forest Service places the Alexander Springs Recreation Area on CR 445 in the northeast corner of Lake County, between Astor and Altoona, and calls it one of only 27 first-magnitude springs in Florida. It is about 12 miles, straight-line, from City Hall, measured between U.S. Census Bureau coordinates for 1 S. Central Avenue and Recreation.gov coordinates for the site.

The City’s Black Bear Festival, on January 30, 2027, celebrates the black bear as part of Umatilla and the surrounding area, and the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission advises putting trash cans out the morning of pickup, not the night before. For yard waste, the state burn rules linked from the City’s Residents page allow burning without an authorization only when the pile is under 8 feet across; is at least 25 feet from forests and from your house, 50 feet from paved public roads and 150 feet from other occupied buildings; and is lit after 9 a.m. Eastern and out an hour before sunset. Check local restrictions with the Florida Forest Service first. Near the airport, which has a 2,876-foot runway, check where the house sits relative to it.

Flood maps, drainage and storm orders

Lake County’s Floodplain Management section says the county’s flood map was last updated in 2012, with later FEMA revisions loaded. It offers an elevation certificate finder by address, written floodplain determinations and, on request, an “Altoona / Umatilla / Dona Vista Comprehensive Drainage Plan” from 1980. Its Class 7 Community Rating System discount, 15% on NFIP policies in Special Flood Hazard Areas, is described for unincorporated areas, so ask your insurance agent what applies inside the city; the City’s fee schedule lists its own flood zone determination at $100. Florida law requires the seller’s written flood disclosure at or before the contract is signed.

Lake County’s emergency management FAQ says hurricane evacuation orders are typically voluntary and specify who must evacuate, and that, among registered applicants, public shelters are allocated to people who live in insecure housing, such as a mobile or manufactured home, and who are not electrically dependent. Buying a manufactured home? The City’s fee schedule includes a $100 used mobile home inspection.

Records offices for an Umatilla address

Property records, sales and exemptions: the Lake County Property Appraiser (homestead filing deadline March 1).
The tax bill and payment: the Lake County Tax Collector. Questions about a millage rate or an assessment, such as the City’s fire item, go to the authority that set it.
Deeds and notices of commencement: the Lake County Clerk, which keeps the county’s official records.
City liens, utilities, permits and code cases: City Hall, 1 S. Central Avenue, 352-669-3125.

No Villages district reaches Umatilla. Across the District Government’s residential district pages, the Lake County pieces are District 11 in Fruitland Park, District 14 in Leesburg and the Lady Lake/Lake County area, and none of the pages names Umatilla.

How I’d price and sell an Umatilla home

Settle city limits.
The tax bill shows whether the City millage and fire item apply, which changes the buyer’s monthly number.
Order the lien search early.
Open permits, unpaid utilities and code cases belong in front of us before photos, not in the inspection period.
Document the services.
City water and sewer or well and septic, the power company, recent bills, roof and A/C permits.
Build comps by setting.
In-city homes, outside-city homes, acreage and homes near the forest or the airport each get their own set, then adjustments for age, roof, systems and condition.
Price from your net.
Work back from the seller net sheet before choosing a list price.

Lake County proof

40140 Palm St, Lady Lake: listed $299,999, sold $307,000.

Closed July 22, 2026 for an owner who lived out of state. A Lady Lake house, not an Umatilla one, but the deed, the value and the tax bill ran through the same Lake County offices. Read how it sold.

Questions people ask about Umatilla, FL

What is the Umatilla city millage for 2026?

7.3522 mills, up from 7.2377 in 2025, per the Lake County Property Appraiser’s final millage sheet dated October 9, 2026. Parcels inside city limits pay it on top of county, school and other levies.

Does City of Umatilla water mean a house is inside city limits?

No. The City’s October 2025 rate sheet has separate, higher residential water and sewer rates for customers outside city limits: base charges of $19.13 and $38.58, against $15.30 and $30.86 inside. The tax bill shows whether the City millage applies.

What does a City of Umatilla lien search show?

Liens, unpaid water, sewer and garbage charges, open or expired permits and code enforcement violations in City records. It costs $40 (3 to 5 business days) or $80 expedited (1 to 2 business days), one form per address, and does not replace a search of Lake County’s public records.

How far is Umatilla from the Ocala National Forest?

Umatilla City Hall is about 12 miles, straight-line, from the Forest Service’s Alexander Springs Recreation Area on CR 445, measured from U.S. Census Bureau and Recreation.gov coordinates.

Is Umatilla part of The Villages?

No. Umatilla is not on any of The Villages’ residential district pages. Their only Lake County areas are District 11 in Fruitland Park, District 14 in Leesburg and the Lady Lake/Lake County area.

Sources

Checked October 10, 2026. I confirm the parcel’s own bill, lien search and utility account before anything goes in a listing or an offer.

Next step

Selling or buying in Umatilla?

Send the address. I’ll check city limits on the 2026 bill, read the lien search and tell you what I’d list it at or offer.

Get my home’s value → Book a 15-min call

Mo Mufti, REALTOR® · LPT Realty, LLC · 352-298-8602 · [email protected]

Umatilla, FL: confirm city limits, then order the lien search.