Buying a Fixer-Upper in Florida: Permits, Insurance, Loans, and Rules

Q: Does buying "as is" mean the seller doesn't have to disclose problems?

No. Under Johnson v. Davis, Florida home sellers must disclose known facts that materially affect value and aren't readily observable, and courts have held an "as is" clause doesn't remove that duty. You should still use your inspection period.

Permits, Insurance, Financing, and Renovation Rules

A fixer-upper can be the most affordable way into a Central Florida neighborhood you otherwise couldn’t afford, or a way to build equity with your own work. Florida adds hurdles a fixer-upper buyer elsewhere might not face. Older roofs and systems can make a home hard to insure. Open permits and code liens can follow the property. In a flood zone, a large renovation can trigger elevation requirements. And state law sets specific rules for contractors, deposits, and doing the work yourself. This guide walks through each step, from before you make an offer to after the work is done.

Short version: Before you offer, check the permit history, open permits, and code enforcement liens, and get an insurance quote, since insurability can make or break the deal. Citizens requires a 4-point inspection on homes over 20 years old, and older roofs need proof of at least five years of remaining life. Florida sellers must disclose known defects that materially affect value even in an “as is” sale. In a flood zone, improvements costing 50% or more of the building’s value can require bringing it up to current flood rules, often meaning elevation. FHA’s 203(k) and Fannie Mae’s HomeStyle loans can finance repairs, with the Limited 203(k) capped at $75,000. During the work, hire licensed contractors, record a notice of commencement for jobs over $2,500, get lien releases before paying, and know that a contractor taking more than a 10% deposit must apply for permits within 30 days. Owners can pull their own permits as owner-builders, but only for a home they’ll live in.

How big a project is it?

“Fixer-upper” covers everything from dated paint to a home that needs a new roof, rewiring, and structural repairs. The category decides your budget, your loan, your insurance, and how much risk you’re taking on.

Level	Typical work	Florida-specific concerns
Cosmetic	Paint, flooring, fixtures, landscaping	Lead paint in pre-1978 homes; flooring and interior work may still need permits locally
Systems	Roof, AC, electrical, plumbing, water heater	These are the 4-point items insurers check; roof age rules; permits and licensed trades usually required
Structural	Foundation, framing, termite damage, additions	Engineering, permits, possible flood-zone 50% rule, sinkhole and termite history

Most Central Florida fixer-uppers need at least some systems work. Price it before you commit, not after closing.

Before you make an offer

These checks cost little or nothing and can save you from a house you can’t insure, finance, or legally finish.

Permit history: Search the county or city permit records for the address. Look for open or expired permits, and compare what’s there against the house. An added room, converted garage, or enclosed porch with no permit is a red flag.
Open permits: Under Florida Statute 553.79(17), a local building department can’t deny a permit to a buyer just because a previous owner left a permit open. The open permit can still mean unfinished or uninspected work you’ll have to deal with. A property owner can close an old permit by hiring a licensed contractor or acting as an owner-builder, and a building department may close a permit after six years if it finds no apparent safety hazard.
Code enforcement liens: Florida Statute 162.09 lets local code boards fine owners up to $250 a day for a first violation, more in larger counties and cities, and a recorded fine order becomes a lien on the land. Ask your title company for a municipal lien search, and make sure any liens are paid or resolved at closing.
Flood zone: Check the FEMA flood zone. If the home is in a high-risk zone, the 50% rule below can limit how much renovation you can do without elevating the house. See Florida flood insurance.
Insurance quote: Call an agent with the address, year built, and roof age before you write an offer. See the insurance section below.

The flood-zone 50% rule

Under the National Flood Insurance Program, “substantial improvement” means work whose cost equals or exceeds 50% of the building’s market value before the work starts. “Substantial damage” uses the same 50% test for repairs after a disaster. When either applies in a high-risk flood zone, the building must be brought into compliance with current floodplain rules, which can mean elevating it, relocating it, or tearing it down and rebuilding.

The local floodplain administrator makes the call, not FEMA, and some communities add up improvement costs over several years. For an older, lower-value home in a flood zone, a full gut renovation can cross the line quickly. Ask the county floodplain office how it calculates the threshold before you budget the project.

Inspections: more than the usual

A fixer-upper deserves a full inspection period and several inspections. Common ones in Florida:

General home inspection: The baseline for structure and systems. See the home inspection checklist.
4-point inspection: Covers the roof, electrical, plumbing, and HVAC, and records the age, type, and condition of each. Citizens requires one for homes more than 20 years old, and other insurers may ask for one too. Serious hazards, such as exposed wiring or active leaks, generally need to be fixed before a policy is written.
Wind mitigation inspection: Documents features like roof-to-wall connections and opening protection. Under Florida Statute 627.0629, insurers must offer discounts for qualifying wind mitigation features, so this inspection can lower your premium, before or after you upgrade.
Termite (WDO) inspection: Termite damage is common in older Florida homes. See Florida termite inspections.
Specialists as needed: A structural engineer for cracks or settling, with a look at sinkhole risk where relevant. A licensed electrician or plumber for older systems. A septic inspection if the home isn’t on sewer. A mold assessment where there’s water damage, with Florida mold prevention as background.

Older-home hazards:

Lead paint: For homes built before 1978, federal law requires the seller to give you the EPA lead pamphlet, disclose known lead paint and hazards, share any lead reports, and include a lead warning statement in the contract. You get 10 days to have a lead inspection or risk assessment done, unless you agree in writing to a different period or waive it.
Asbestos: It can be in older insulation and building materials, and you can’t tell by looking. EPA advises having the home inspected by an accredited asbestos professional before remodeling, and leaving suspect material alone until then.

Insurance can make or break the deal

Lenders require homeowners insurance, so a home you can’t insure is a home most buyers can’t finance. Older roofs are the most common problem. Citizens, the state-backed insurer, requires documentation of at least five years of remaining roof life for shingle roofs over 25 years old and tile or metal roofs over 50 years old. Without it, the roof must be replaced before a policy is written.

Florida Statute 627.7011 also limits how insurers can treat roof age:

An insurer can’t refuse to write or renew a policy solely because a roof is less than 15 years old.
For a roof 15 years or older, the homeowner can get an inspection at their own expense. If it shows at least five years of useful life left, the insurer can’t refuse coverage based on age alone.

If you plan to replace the roof right after closing, tell your agent. Lining up the roofer before closing can help coverage start on time. Also ask how the policy treats a home that’s under renovation or vacant during the work, since coverage can be limited. See:

“As is” contracts and seller disclosure

Many fixer-uppers sell “as is,” meaning the seller won’t make repairs. That doesn’t mean the seller can hide problems. In Johnson v. Davis (1985), the Florida Supreme Court held that a home seller who knows of facts that materially affect the property’s value, which the buyer can’t readily observe and doesn’t know, must disclose them. Florida courts have held that an “as is” clause doesn’t override that duty. Sellers must also give the flood disclosure required by Florida Statute 689.302 and, for pre-1978 homes, the federal lead disclosure.

What an “as is” contract usually still gives you is an inspection period, during which you can cancel if you don’t like what you find. Use all of it, and don’t let the disclosure rules replace your own inspections. Sellers have to disclose only what they know. Estate sales, foreclosures, and investor-owned homes often come with sellers who know little about the house. See Florida homebuyer mistakes to avoid.

Financing a fixer-upper

Renovation loans let you finance the purchase and repairs in one mortgage, based on the home’s value after the work. The two most common:

Loan	Repair limits	Timeline	Notes
FHA Limited 203(k)	Total rehab costs up to $75,000	Up to 9 months	Non-structural work; can’t keep you out of the home more than 30 days
FHA Standard 203(k)	Larger projects, including structural work, within FHA loan limits	Up to 12 months	Requires a HUD 203(k) consultant; mortgage payment reserves up to 12 months
Fannie Mae HomeStyle Renovation	Up to 75% of the lesser of purchase price plus renovation costs or as-completed value	Set by the lender	Primary homes, second homes, and investment properties; limited do-it-yourself work allowed

FHA figures are from HUD Mortgagee Letter 2024-13 for case numbers assigned on or after November 4, 2024. Limits are reviewed annually, so confirm current numbers with your lender.

Other routes include paying cash and refinancing later, a home equity loan or line of credit once you own the home, or short-term investor loans. Expect the lender to require bids, a draw schedule, and inspections before releasing repair funds. A home in very poor condition may not qualify for a standard mortgage at all until it’s repaired. See mortgage and financing basics and closing costs in Florida.

Doing the work: permits and owner-builders

Structural, roofing, electrical, plumbing, and mechanical work generally needs a building permit, and so do some window and door replacements. Check with your local building department before starting. See Florida building permits.

Owner-builder permits: Under Florida Statute 489.103(7), you can act as your own contractor on a one- or two-family home, but only one you’ll occupy yourself. You must:

Personally apply for and sign the permit.
Sign a disclosure statement.
Directly supervise all work not done by licensed contractors.

You can’t hire an unlicensed person to run the job. Any unlicensed workers you hire are your employees, which can mean tax withholding, workers’ compensation, and liability if they’re injured. If you sell or lease the home within one year after the work is finished, the law presumes you built it for sale or lease, which the exemption doesn’t allow. That makes owner-builder permits a poor fit for flips.

Hiring contractors without getting burned

Verify the license: Check every contractor’s license through the Florida Department of Business and Professional Regulation’s online lookup or app. Licensed contractors must include their license number in their advertising.
Watch the deposit: Under Florida Statute 489.126, a contractor who takes more than 10% of the contract price up front must apply for permits within 30 days and start work within 90 days after the permits are issued, unless there’s just cause or you agreed in writing to a longer time. Violations are crimes, graded by the amount taken.
Record a notice of commencement: Florida’s construction lien law (Chapter 713) lets unpaid subcontractors and suppliers place liens on your property even if you paid your contractor. For improvements over $2,500, the owner records a notice of commencement with the county clerk before work begins and posts a copy on site before the first inspection. The notice expires, generally after one year unless it states a longer period. Payments made after it expires are considered improper and can mean paying twice.
Get lien releases: Before each payment, and especially the final one, get written lien waivers or releases from the contractor and from the subcontractors and suppliers who sent you notices.
Lead-safe work: EPA’s Renovation, Repair and Painting rule requires anyone paid to disturb paint in a pre-1978 home to be lead-safe certified. The rule generally doesn’t apply to homeowners working on their own home, but it does apply if you rent the home or buy, renovate, and sell homes for profit.

Roof replacements: Under Florida Statute 553.844, a roof replacement must include a secondary water barrier and upgraded roof-deck fastening. If the existing roof was built under the 2007 Florida Building Code or later, repairing or replacing 25% or more of it requires only the repaired portion to meet current code, not the whole roof. Once the work is done, a new wind mitigation inspection can document the upgrades for insurance discounts.

Budget, grants, and taxes after the work

Plan for surprises: Older homes often hide problems behind walls and under floors. Build a contingency into the budget, and count carrying costs during the work: mortgage, insurance, utilities, and taxes. See hidden costs of building a house in Florida for many of the same surprise costs.
Hardening grants: Florida’s My Safe Florida Home program can provide inspections and matching grants of up to $10,000 for qualifying wind upgrades, such as opening protection and roof-to-wall reinforcement. It’s for homesteaded homes built before 2008 with an insured value of $700,000 or less, and it’s subject to income limits and yearly state funding.
Property taxes: Buying resets the assessed value to market value on January 1 of the year after the sale. Under Florida Statute 193.155(4), changes, additions, and improvements are added at full value on the January 1 after they’re substantially completed, even for a homestead. A major renovation can raise your tax bill even with the homestead cap. See the homestead exemption and property tax rates by county.

For the bigger picture on purchase costs, see the cost to buy a home in Central Florida. For older AC systems, see the Florida AC guide.

Frequently Asked Questions

Often, but older roofs and systems are the main obstacles. Citizens requires a 4-point inspection for homes over 20 years old, and older roofs need documentation of at least five years of remaining life. Get a quote before you make an offer.

No. Under Johnson v. Davis, Florida home sellers must disclose known facts that materially affect value and aren’t readily observable, and courts have held an “as is” clause doesn’t remove that duty. You should still use your inspection period.

Yes, as an owner-builder on a one- or two-family home you’ll live in. You must apply for and sign the permit yourself, sign a disclosure statement, and supervise the work. Selling or leasing within a year of completion creates a presumption that you violated the exemption.

If improvements to a building in a high-risk flood zone cost 50% or more of its market value, it’s a substantial improvement. The building then has to meet current floodplain rules, which can require elevating it. The local floodplain administrator makes the determination.

The Limited 203(k) covers total rehabilitation costs up to $75,000 for non-structural work. The Standard 203(k) handles larger and structural projects within FHA loan limits and requires a HUD 203(k) consultant. Confirm current limits with your lender.

It can. Florida adds changes, additions, and improvements to the assessed value at full value on the January 1 after they’re substantially completed, even for a homestead. The purchase itself also resets the assessed value the year after you buy.

Sources

This article is for general informational purposes only and isn’t financial, legal, insurance, or tax advice – for guidance specific to your situation, talk to a licensed professional.