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Program 03
Ground-Up Construction in Fort Lauderdale
Fort Lauderdale ground up construction loans, dirt through delivery.
Built for spec home builders and developers. We fund the land and the vertical build up to 70% LTV and 85% of cost, with draws that keep pace with the job. Broward sits in the High Velocity Hurricane Zone, so every window, door and roof line is product-approved to it. Business-purpose only, and every structure is set in underwriting.
70%
max LTV
85%
of cost
Most states
funding
$5M
max loan
Typical figures, subject to underwriting and market conditions. Not a commitment to lend.
How it works
We finance both the land and the vertical construction, with a draw schedule built around your timeline. Experienced builders can access higher leverage on cost.
Who it's for
Spec home builders
Developers and operators
Lot purchase or teardown
Build-to-rent strategies
Typical terms
Loan amountUp to $5M
LeverageUp to 70% LTV / 85% LTC
Term12 to 24 months
DrawsPer build schedule
RateFrom 10.00%*
UseSpec or build-to-rent
*Typical terms, subject to underwriting and market conditions.
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Local FAQ
Ground-Up Construction in Fort Lauderdale, answered.
What does the High Velocity Hurricane Zone actually require on a new build in Broward County?
Broward and Miami-Dade are the only two counties in Florida's High Velocity Hurricane Zone, and it is the strictest wind design and product-approval regime in the Florida Building Code. It governs windows, doors, shutters, roofing and other opening protection on new construction, not just replacement work. We don't have a citable dollar or percentage premium for building to HVHZ standard versus the rest of the state, so budget the product-approved materials and the design review as a real line item and get a current quote from your GC rather than relying on a statewide average. If your project also carries a fix and flip rehab scope alongside new construction, the same opening-protection rules apply to that work too.
Sources: up.codes
Does Florida's new $7,500 permit exemption help a Broward builder?
Not if your parcel touches a flood hazard area. HB 803, effective July 1, 2026, exempts work under $7,500 on a single-family dwelling from a building permit, but the enrolled text carves out "work on a property that is partially or entirely located in a flood hazard area as defined by the Florida Building Code," plus any electrical, plumbing, structural, mechanical or gas work. We don't have a sourced figure for what share of Broward parcels sit inside a mapped flood hazard area, so don't assume the exemption applies until you've checked the specific parcel's flood zone with the local building department.
Sources: flsenate.gov
How long does permit review take for a new build in Fort Lauderdale or elsewhere in Broward?
Florida sets a statutory backstop, not a courtesy target: 30 business days for a single-family permit under 7,500 sq ft, and 60 business days for a larger residential project or multifamily up to 50 units. The local government must give written notice of anything missing within 5 business days, and the permit fee drops 10% per business day of delay if the clock is blown. That's the statewide floor under Florida Statutes section 553.792. Fort Lauderdale permits run through the LauderBuild portal. No Broward jurisdiction publishes its own observed review times, so budget to the statutory clock and confirm the working timeline with the building department before you set a draw schedule.
Sources: flsenate.gov
Is construction labor getting tighter or easier to find in Broward right now?
Construction employment in the Fort Lauderdale metro division has been flat to slightly down, not tightening further. Mining, logging and construction stood at 54,000 jobs in June 2026, down from 54,100 a year earlier and 55,300 two years earlier, while total nonfarm employment in the metro fell to 909,100. That's a real signal for anyone underwriting labor-driven cost overruns on a build schedule: the trade pool isn't shrinking fast, but it isn't expanding to meet new demand either, as of mid-2026.
Should I factor flood risk into a new build even if the parcel isn't in a mapped high-risk zone?
Yes. Broward is exceptionally flat, low-lying and canal-drained. County resilience planning explicitly models compound flooding from king tides, storm surge and heavy rainfall together, not just mapped riverine or coastal flood zones. Fort Lauderdale alone has installed roughly 200 tidal valves to stop seawater backing up through storm drains, and the county commission approved $20 million for canal repairs and drainage upgrades. We don't have a sourced figure for what share of Broward land sits inside a FEMA special flood hazard area, so don't assume a parcel is clear of flood risk just because it's outside the mapped zone; a flood determination is a financing question here, not only an insurance question, and it flows straight into your site work budget.
Sources: resilientbroward.com, theinvadingsea.com
Are impact fees or CDD assessments a factor when I underwrite a new build in Broward?
We don't have a citable impact fee schedule for Broward County or its municipalities to publish here. What's safe to say: Florida new construction carries impact fees on top of permit fees, and Broward is a largely built-out county with far less new master-planned Community Development District development than a corridor like Orlando's, so don't assume an Orlando-style CDD assessment story applies to a Broward parcel. Pull the current fee schedule from the specific city or county building department, and talk to your CPA about how impact fees factor into your cost basis, before you finalize a construction budget.
How much of my own money goes into a Fort Lauderdale ground up build?
Roughly 15% of total cost, and the land counts toward it. We fund up to 85% of cost and up to 70% of value, whichever binds first. On a $1,000,000 all-in Broward project that is up to $850,000 from us and $150,000 from you (1,000,000 x 85% = 850,000), released in draws against the build schedule rather than up front. Leave room on top for HVHZ product approvals, which are a real line item here and not contingency. Subject to underwriting.
Sources: up.codes
Do you check credit on a Fort Lauderdale construction loan?
We run credit, but there is no minimum score on this loan. It is asset-based, so the land, the budget, and the completed value carry far more weight than they would at a bank. Weaker credit generally means lower leverage rather than a decline, and there is no hard credit pull to start. What we do look at hard is the build schedule, because the term runs 12 to 24 months and Broward permit review works to a statutory clock, not a courtesy target. Subject to underwriting.
Sources: flsenate.gov
Do I need a build history to borrow for a Fort Lauderdale project?
Experience changes your leverage, not your eligibility. Experienced builders can access higher leverage inside the 70% LTV and 85% of cost caps, and a first project generally sits lower and leans harder on your GC's record. Line that contractor up early. Construction employment in the Fort Lauderdale metro division was 54,000 in June 2026, flat to slightly down on the year, so the trade pool is not expanding to meet new demand. Subject to underwriting.
More Ground-Up Construction questions, answered on the program page
Resources
Guides for Ground-Up Construction
Fix and Flip · 6 min read
Fix and Flip Loan Requirements: What You Need to Get Funded
Read the guide Fix and Flip · 5 min read
What Is ARV (After-Repair Value) and How Do You Calculate It?
Read the guide Construction · 5 min read
How Ground-Up Construction Loans Work
Read the guide Getting Funded · 4 min read
LTV vs LTC: What's the Difference?
Read the guide More in Fort Lauderdale
Other programs in Fort Lauderdale
Fix and FlipUp to 90% / 100% rehabRental / DSCR30-yr fixed, DSCR from 0.75CRE BridgeUp to $10M, 24-36 moTransactional FundingSame-day double-close capitalBank Statement / No-DocNo tax returns requiredConventional InvestmentNon-owner-occupied investmentPortfolio LoansMultiple properties, one loanCRE PermanentLong-term agency & permSBA Financing7(a) & 504 placement
About the local figures on this page
Local rules move. Every tax rate, fee, ordinance and market figure here comes from a primary source and carries the date we read it, and we correct them as the rules change. Where a number is mid-change or we could not verify it, we say so rather than guess. Before you commit a budget, confirm anything that drives it with the city or county, and talk to your attorney or CPA on questions of law or tax.
Published by USA Mortgage Funding, LLC, NMLS #152588. Researched from primary sources by our team, drafted with AI assistance, and every figure checked against its source before publishing. Where an answer rests on a public record, that record is linked under it. Figures read on 2026-08-13.
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