Florida is one of the most exciting and lucrative destinations for people looking to get into the bail bondsman and bounty hunting career fields. This is because Florida has the highest per capita crime rate in the entire United States and is also one of the most populated states in the country. When those two facts are combined, it becomes pretty obvious that Florida has a lot of people who qualify for bail, and subsequently many people who have jumped their bail and are on the run from the law. Both of these things bode well for bail bondsman and bounty hunters, as it gives them plenty of opportunity to build a business and be successful. There is no doubt that Florida is one of the premier destinations for these types of businesses.
Bounty Hunter Salary in Florida
According to the United States Bureau of Labor Statistics, private investigators and detectives (which is the career category that bounty hunting falls under) is projected to experience growth of about 21 percent over the next decade, which is faster than average job growth projection for other career fields. Bounty hunters are not paid a traditional salary that is based on hourly wages, rather they are paid a percentage per fugitive capture that they make, thus the earning potential is quite high. The following is a breakdown of the average annual salary for bounty hunters in the largest cities in Florida:
- Jacksonville: $54,000
- Miami: $56,000
- Tampa: $52,000
- St. Petersburg: $58,000
- Orlando: $52,000
Bail Bondsman Salary in Florida
Unlike bounty hunters, bail bondsman typically do make a base, traditional salary if they don’t own their own bail bonds company, and then earn even more through the percentages collected from the bonds they issue (typically 10 percent of whatever the bond is. They typically range between $500 and $100,000.) The following is the average salary for bail bondsman in Florida, without the bond percentages included as reported by indeed.com, which aggregates salaries from current job listings to arrive at an estimate:
- Jacksonville: $24,000
- Miami: $22,000
- Tampa: $25,000
- St. Petersburg: $25,000
- Orlando: $24,000