The Truth about Rogo Points.

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!