Question 1

Does Jacksonville's consolidated city-county government change how a new build gets permitted?

Accepted Answer

Yes, and it's a genuine simplification. The City of Jacksonville and Duval County merged in 1968, so there is no unincorporated-county track to route around: the Building Inspection Division at 214 North Hogan Street handles permitting for essentially the whole county, and every permit type has to go in electronically through JaxEPICS (jaxepics.coj.net). The exceptions are the four municipalities that stayed separate: Jacksonville Beach, Atlantic Beach, Neptune Beach and the Town of Baldwin run their own permit desks. Confirm which side of that line your lot falls on before you assume Duval's process applies. We fund the build with ground-up construction draws paced to whichever office you're actually filing with.

Question 2

How long does permit review actually take on a new build in Duval, Clay, St. Johns, Nassau or Baker County?

Accepted Answer

Florida sets a statutory floor, not an observed local number: 30 business days for a single-family permit under 7,500 sq ft, 60 business days for a larger single-family or multifamily project up to 50 units, and 60 business days for commercial under 25,000 sq ft. The reviewing office has to flag anything missing within 5 business days, and a blown deadline cuts the permit fee 10% per business day of delay. We don't have observed, jurisdiction-specific review times for any Jacksonville-area county beyond that statewide clock, so budget to the statute and confirm the working timeline with the office you're actually filing with before you set a draw schedule.

Question 3

What are impact fees or mobility fees on a new build in the Jacksonville area?

Accepted Answer

We don't have a citable fee schedule to publish for Duval, Clay, St. Johns, Nassau or Baker County. The City of Jacksonville's mobility-fee pages weren't retrievable when this was researched. What's safe to say: Florida new construction carries impact or mobility fees on top of permit fees, and in Clay County's master-planned subdivisions, Community Development District and municipal service benefit unit assessments sit on top of that on the tax bill, permanently. Get the current fee schedule from the county or city building department for your specific parcel before you finalize a construction budget, and talk to your CPA about how those fees factor into your cost basis.

Question 4

Does the Florida Building Code's wind requirement change what I'm building in Jacksonville versus South Florida?

Accepted Answer

Duval and the surrounding counties build to the same statewide code, the Florida Building Code 8th Edition (2023), that governs the whole state. We don't have a Jacksonville-specific wind-speed design map or a High-Velocity Hurricane Zone comparison to cite here, and Duval's coastal exposure and litigation environment already read differently from South Florida's: Jacksonville-area claims sit in FLOIR's lowest litigation bucket, 8.16% of closed claims litigated versus 27.27% in the Miami-Dade, Broward and Palm Beach tri-county region. Confirm your specific wind-design requirements with the Building Inspection Division for your parcel's location before pricing the shell.

Question 5

Do I need to budget for flood elevation on a new build in Jacksonville?

Accepted Answer

We don't have a local substantial-improvement threshold or freeboard requirement above base flood elevation to cite for any Jacksonville-area jurisdiction, so we can't state the specific rehab or elevation rule here. What is sourced and dated: any Citizens-insured residential property in the metro, at any value, has to carry flood insurance by January 1, 2027, regardless of flood zone, under the state's phased mandate. Duval's flood history is riverine and storm-surge, driven up the St. Johns River, with Hurricane Irma in 2017 as the benchmark event at 2,050 claims; St. Johns County carries nearly four times Duval's flood-claim rate per resident and is the metro's more flood-exposed county. Confirm the parcel's flood zone and elevation requirement with the local floodplain administrator before you finalize the build budget.

Question 6

Where in the Jacksonville metro is new construction demand actually concentrated?

Accepted Answer

The population data points away from Duval County and toward its suburbs. St. Johns County absorbed roughly half the metro's population growth in the year to July 2025, almost all of it people moving in from other states, and has grown 26.7% since the 2020 Census. Nassau County is up 18.3% over the same period, with Yulee at a $389,164 typical home value in June 2026 as the affordable entry point. Clay County's Fleming Island and Oakleaf corridors carry more than twenty active Community Development Districts, itself a sign of where builders have been active. Duval's own net domestic migration was essentially flat, +101 people, so the county's growth runs on births and international arrivals, not people moving in.

Question 7

How much of a Jacksonville build do I have to fund myself?

Accepted Answer

At least 15% of cost, and often more once the value test binds. We fund up to 85% of total cost and up to 70% of value, whichever comes in lower. On a $1,000,000 all-in Jacksonville build that is up to $850,000 from us and $150,000 from you (1,000,000 x 85% = 850,000), and if the finished value does not support it, the 70% LTV test sets the number instead. Land counts in the cost basis, and the vertical draws release per the build schedule, not up front. Subject to underwriting.

Question 8

My credit is not a bank's idea of clean. Can I still build in Jacksonville?

Accepted Answer

Probably, because there is no minimum credit score on this program. We run credit, but a ground-up loan is asset-based, so the lot, the budget and the finished value do the work that a score does at a bank. A weaker file usually means lower leverage rather than a decline, so you come in under the 85% of cost ceiling. There is no hard credit pull to start, and we qualify off the project rather than W-2s or pay stubs. Subject to underwriting.

Question 9

Is a first Jacksonville spec build too little experience for you?

Accepted Answer

No, but experience moves the leverage. Experienced builders can access higher leverage inside the up to 70% LTV and up to 85% LTC range, so a first-time builder should plan to come in below the ceiling and put more of their own money in. Build the statutory permit clock into the schedule either way: Florida gives the reviewing office up to 30 business days on a single-family permit under 7,500 square feet and up to 60 business days on a larger project, which is real time inside a 12 to 24 month term. Subject to underwriting.

Question 10

How large a Jacksonville construction loan can you write?

Accepted Answer

Up to $5,000,000. That covers a single spec house in Duval and it reaches into build-to-rent work in the suburban corridors where the metro's growth actually is, St. Johns and Nassau County. The binding constraint is usually not the ceiling but the two leverage tests, up to 70% LTV and up to 85% LTC, whichever produces the smaller loan. Subject to underwriting.

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