10 Tips for Building in the Florida Keys

The time has come, you have secured your parcel in the Florida Keys; you have your building allocation; you paid for your permit and impact fees. Finally, you are ready to move on to the next adventure of building a home in the Florida Keys!

Here are some tips to help make that journey less hectic.

Tip 1 –

Get at-least 3 quotes from each type of contractors.  I promise you, they will all come in at different prices.  Also, negotiate with them.  Ask for a little bit better price and see what they say.  Or you can tell them  – “ABC Contracting said they would do for $X.XX, but I like you better will you match their price?”

TIP 2  –

Know what you need at Home Depot! There is not a Home Depot on every island, so having a well thought out list can save you time and money. Also, stock up on things you know you will use. It is the worse feeling when all you need is one more roll of painters tape to get the job done and now you have to drive 30 minutes to the store. Did I mention Home Depot has a great return policy? If you don’t use it, just return it!

TIP 4 –

Plan ahead for the NEW FLOOD maps that are coming out.  With the new flood maps there is about a foot and a half difference in elevation.  If you are planning to build a home on the ground but above flood make sure you plan for the extra 18 inches in elevation.  The extra fill to bring the home up will be a bit costly.  To check out what your new Flood Zone and elevation will be follow this link.

TIP 5 –

Building within the designated set-backs. If your property extends beyond the setbacks, you will have to ask for a variance, which could cost time and money. If you do have to ask for a variance, make sure to have a good standing with the neighbors and commission.

Tip 6 –

Order your materials as soon as you can. With Covid and supply chain issues, some items can take a while to come in. For example, we wanted solid doors for our home; the estimated time to get them was 6 months!

Tip 7 –

To save money on dumpsters, don’t just throw everything in there all chaotic. It takes a little extra time, but if you can stack the garbage in some kind of order you will get more in the dumpster. 

Tip 8 –

Don’t over build.  It’s easy to go over board with finishes.  Make sure you pick out what you like, but don’t spend so much that you over build and your costs are too much.

Tip 9 –

Have a good window plan. Everyone likes natural light. Make sure there are windows in every room and as large as possible. Also, plan ahead where the TV will go.

Tip 10 –

Anticipate the unanticipated. This is the Florida Keys and getting anything done takes time. Have a back-up plan just in case. Remember, there are no problems, only solutions.

Understanding Market Rate Building Rights Vs. Affordable Building Rights

I know building in the Florida Keys is complicated!  Often you will see real estate listings that say, “Market Rate Building Right or Affordable Building Right.”  So what are they and what’s the difference?

If you know nothing about the Florida Keys and building down here.  Please read this blog first, “What Does Rogo Stand For? – All the Essential you need.” 

So a real simple explanation of the differences is that market rate building rights, do not have any restrictions on them in terms, of income, sale price and rent.

Affordable Building Rights have a whole set of rules, on how much the house can be sold for, how much income a person can make that occupies them, and how much rent can be charged.

Both Affordable Rights and Market Rate Rights are obtained the same way, through the ROGO Process.

Now here is where it can get a little crazy. Sometimes in Marathon there are smaller properties that can only charge  so much rent because they are just small, for an example a 1 bedroom 1 bath home or a small efficiency.  On these types of properties where owners have felt that they would always be able to charge a rent rate  in the range of the affordable limits, owners have swap out the market rate building rate and replaced it with an affordable building right.  The extra, market rate building right can be sold off and transferred to a receiving site.

 The cost of a Market Rate Building in the City of Marathon right now is around $200,000.  The transfer fee in the City of Marathon is currently at $40,000.  The transfers of the allocations must all be done simultaneously.  You can’t just have a building right sitting around with no place to go.

Tip –  For Sellers of an Affordable Deed Restricted Property

If you are a seller and own a house with an affordable deed restriction on it, you are only able to sell the home at the set price.  See the table below.

If you, the seller, wants to work with a highly qualified real estate agent like myself to get your home sold, one of the things you can do is ask that the buyer pays for all the closing costs and commissions. This way you can walk away with the maximum amount of money. Now you can only do this if the market will allow it. Meaning housing values are high enough and if it justifies the costs.

Tip –  For Buyers of an Affordable Deed Restricted Property

Check the length of time left on the deed restriction. I have seen some homes only have deed restrictions for 20 years and when it expires; it will make the home worth a lot more money!

Want More Information : 

Follow the link to the City Of Marathon’s Code – Affordable Housing.

So what does ROGO Exempt mean?  Rogo is an acronym that stands for Rate Of Growth Ordinance. Rogo is a point system that the state of Florida uses to regulate how much NEW construction is allowed in the Florida Keys.  Read more here, on Rogo. 

A vacant parcel that is Rogo Exempt, means that the lot does not have to go through the Rogo process of obtaining a building right. An individual can build a home on a rogo exempt lot once plans and permits have been approved.

Rogo exempt lots are most often the result of an existing structure being torn down due to a hurricane or being an unsafe structure.

The best thing about a Rogo exempt lot is that the “right to build,” never goes away, and there is no specific time frame you have to build by.

This is as opposed to when you receive a “New Building Allocation / Active Permit” 

When an individual receives an ACTIVE building allocation through the rogo point system, the time clock starts on the construction process.  Typically, you have 6 months to do something in relation to building on the lot. With a Rogo Exempt lot, you can build when the time is right for you. 

If you are looking for a vacant lot in the Florida Keys, but want to wait to build, the best option for you is to purchase a rogo exempt lot. 

Don’t forget to check out our Building Page for all the information you Need! 

Prumo & Carden Team 

Amy, a Florida Keys Elite Agent and Diamond Award Winner, has spent over 13 years in the industry. She has successfully guided numerous clients through the intricate process of property transactions, consistently surpassing their objectives and exceeding their expectations. 

Ok, so here is the truth about Rogo points. Any person who is looking to build a new home in the Florida Keys must obtain a building allocation. You can get an allocation by purchasing one on the open market ( transferable building right) or going through Rogo. Rogo is a competitive point system that allocates building rights to the people with the highest points. 

When applying to Rogo, part of the process is the evaluation of the land you are wanting to build on and the type of property you will be building.  Depending on the land and home you want to build,  points are awarded or taken away. 

The Monroe County website said it best.

“The competitive point system guides development toward areas with infrastructure and away from velocity zones and environmentally sensitive areas such as habitat for threatened or endangered species.”

At the end of this article there are some pdf’s of the score sheets.  You can download them and view.

Tier System – MONROE COUNTY ONLY

When looking at the score sheet for Monroe County, you will notice a section that states, Tier. My simple version of what “Tier” means is, it tells you how buildable the land is. 

The Monroe County Website gives a more in-depth look at it:

• Tier I – Environmentally sensitive land
• Tier II – Transition or sprawl reduction area on Big Pine Key or No Name Key
• Tier III – Infill area, not nearly as environmentally sensitive (lots that are 50 percent or more developed) platted subdivisions with adequate infrastructure
• Tier IIIA – Special protection are

Don’t ask me how they determined what lot is what.  Apparently, they did some massive research to determine this. However, sometimes it feels like someone just pushed a button somewhere and made one lot Tier 1 and then another one right next to it, Tier 3.

Back to the Monroe County Score sheet – you will see Tier 1 only gets 10 points and Tier 3 gets 30 points.  Monroe county is telling you, they  prefer you to build on the Tier 3 lots.   With Rogo being so competitive right now, I would suggest going for the Tier 3 lots too. 

Flood Zone 

Another item you should note is the Flood Zone.  If you look at the score you see and the vacant parcel you want to build on is located in a VE Zone, then -6 points will be deducted!  This is huge.  In most cases, VE parcels are located close to the open water. 

If you are wondering what Flood Zone the lot you want to build is in, you can always check it Here. Oh, and not to confuse you too much but Flood Zones are going to change soon, find out more by clicking here.

Money 

Doesn’t it always come down to money?

You can get extra points by making a payment to the Land Dedication Fund. You know the fund is going around buying up land so that the county doesn’t get sued when the end of the building memorandum comes in 2026.  Yeah, that fund.  Or you can purchase a Rogo lot and dedicate it to the county, which again costs money.  Don’t know what a Rogo Lot is?  Well read this post to find out. 

Other ways to get Points

A few other ways to get points are: time in rogo, aggregation of 2 lots, adding a cistern, water and energy conservation, and making the home a primary residence. 

Competition is high in Rogo right now, so you had better do whatever you can to get those points.  There is NO guarantee you will get a building allocation.

Try not to get overwhelmed by the score sheet. You can always call the county or city officials and talk with them.  Also, since we have built homes in the Florida Keys, we can help walk you through it too!