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Building a house in Florida | Building report, tips & lots of experience
Building a house in Florida is like an adventure in a mangrove swamp – exciting, but you need the right equipment! And that includes lots of permits. These have to be obtained again and again during the entire construction period. And there are plenty of other surprises, just like on an adventure. If you read my building report , you’ll be prepared!
Building report: Experiences from Cape Coral
In Cape Coral a modern detached house is being built that meets the special requirements of building in Florida. The report documents the individual construction phases – from planning and approval procedures through to completion. Particular attention is paid to the construction methods in the individual trades, which differ from those in Germany.
Land purchase & construction planning
The long road to a property in Florida
The adventure of building a house begins with the land on which it is to stand. The search for a plot of land was a lengthy affair. It took almost…
Title company in the USA is the same as a notary’s office in Germany
So we have found our dream of a country. What happens next? The contract goes to the title company. It carries out the purchase in trust. It carries out the…
Construction company wanted Part 1: Property seeks builder
A lot is being built in Cape Coral – a lot now. 1069 building applications for new residential homes (single-family homes) were approved by the city in 2015. There are…
Construction company wanted Part 2: Builder change
Back in Germany, we racked our brains as to how we could turn the floor plan (left), which we didn’t like but contained everything we wanted, into our dream home….
Construction company wanted part 3: I easily can do that
We had a deja vu while we thought we had found the right builder once again. Unfortunately, the estate agent had to go to an appointment and didn’t have the…
The architect and our floor plan
As already mentioned, we wanted a real custom home and not just a house based on a slightly modified existing floor plan. This is due to two facts: Firstly, we…
The building permit: 31 permits to go before moving in
After submitting the work plans to the city of Cape Coral, we were amazed at how quickly the building permit is issued here. It usually only takes about two weeks…
Anyone can do a normal color session Part 1: Just not earth-colored
We experience a completely different kind of color session with our builder, because he and we are probably not the usual kind of builder and builder. This has advantages and…
Anyone can do a normal color session Part 2: Window & door sampling
The next important point is the entry door. If you drive through the residential area of Cape Coral, you will either see ornate doors of all kinds or, in modern…
Kitchen Color Design – Ideas for Florida Homes
The most difficult topic was probably the kitchen, because American kitchens are a bit old-fashioned in our eyes. We also don’t like the country house style, which is characterized by…
The Shell is Built: A Key Phase in Building our Home
Start of the foundation work: It’s finally starting
After all the research, organization and planning, we are finally getting started today. After the ground on which the house will later stand has been heaped up to a predetermined…
Erection of a double-row foundation wall
In principle, the following applies to a property like ours that is located in the flood zone: The higher the stem wall (floor slab) is in relation to the base…
Pay attention to the gradient when laying water pipes
The next step is to lay the supply and waste water pipes, which will later be cast into the floor slab. There is no municipal water here in the north-west,…
Backfilling, compacting and pouring the floor slab
Once the pipe laying in the ground has been approved, the foundation is filled with sand, which is compacted using a vibrating plate. Now it is time again for the…
Building the shell: brick on brick – it will be a house
The long-awaited bricklaying of the outer walls begins. So far, everything has just been a prelude. But when the outer walls are bricked up, the structure takes on the appearance…
Ring beam: shuttering and casting of the tie beam
Creating the tie beam (ring anchor) is a much more time-consuming process than a layman might imagine. When we asked our builder how long the casting of the tie beam…
Erect a roof truss: Wooden puzzle game
A crane is used for the first and last time to erect the roof truss. It seems as if the carpenters are putting the pre-cut wooden segments together piece by…
Roof Sheathing Installation – Plywood Base for Florida Roofs
Once the pipe laying in the ground has been approved, the foundation is filled with sand, which is compacted using a vibrating plate. Now it is time again for the…
Metal Roof Construction in Florida – Durable & Hurricane-Safe
After much deliberation, we opted for a white metal roof – an aluminum roof with concealed fastenings and a light-colored coating, to be precise. It suits the coastal climate, looks…
Building envelope & exterior work
Installing Windows & Doors – Making Florida Homes Weatherproof
We are currently in the largest construction phase, which ends with the so-called “frame rough” inspection. This refers to all woodwork such as roof trusses and walls as well as…
Exterior Plastering – The Protective Skin of a Florida Home
The plasterers arrived at the same time as the drywall builders, who first applied the exterior plaster. We originally wanted a smooth render to match the modern house. However, this…
The Interior Fittings: Making a House a Home in Florida
Florida Home Construction – Wood and Concrete Design for Coastal Safety
The next stage of construction is the so-called framing. It only takes one day to erect the walls. Whereas in Germany you build brick on brick, here in Florida a…
Electrical Installation in Florida – Guide for Home Buyers
German installers would certainly welcome the opportunity to dispense with the laborious task of slitting walls. Here in America, it is so easy to install any type of pipe or…
Two-Zone Air Conditioning – Comfort for Florida Homes
Because we find it somewhat unreasonable and wasteful to cool the whole house down to one temperature, we had already asked various house construction companies during the initial planning phase…
Sanitary Installation in Florida Homes – Water & Plumbing
The plumbers were slightly overwhelmed by our requirements. They had never fitted a German wall-hung toilet set like this before and didn’t want to learn how to do it. So…
Interior Insulation in Florida – Keeping Homes Cool
While the exterior walls and ceilings of houses in Florida are usually insulated, the interior walls often remain completely hollow. Anyone who values sound insulation or additional thermal insulation in…
Drywall Construction in Florida – Efficient and Flexible
After the insulation, the drywall construction begins. Plasterboard panels are cut and cut out. They gradually turn the former floor plan into a room. This wall construction has a lot…
Painting Work in Florida Homes – Color Inside and Out
If you think that professionals paint a whole house in two/three days, then unfortunately this does not apply to our “super painters”. The whole painting process took weeks. Why? Amateurs…
Tiles & Bathrooms – Elegant Surfaces for Florida Homes
The tiling work, like the painting work, seems to drag on indefinitely. Here, too, German diversity comes into play in our construction work, because the American does it best “all…
Kitchen Installation in Florida – When the Builder Becomes the Kitchen Expert
The kitchen is the heart of the home – especially if you like to cook often. The focal point of our dream kitchen is the large kitchen island with induction…
Wallpaper & Interior Colors – Creating Style in Florida Homes
Our grandchildren are probably wondering what wallpaper actually is. We are reviving this wall covering and bringing the beach, the Live Oaks and the vacation feeling into our homes. We…
Carpentry in Florida Homes – Doors, Ceilings & Built-Ins
The Trim/Finish Carpenter takes on the next trade and thus the carpentry work: He sets the frames, installs the interior doors, fits the skirting boards and installs the decorative moldings…
Outdoor facilities & garden design
Building a Seawall in Florida – Protection for Waterfront Homes
Building a seawall in the canals of Cape Coral is a must if you want to build a house on the canal in Florida. The movie shows how the company…
Drilling Wells & Septic Systems – Water Supply for Florida Homes
Our house is being built in the northwest of Cape Coral and there is no city water there yet. So our domestic water supply will be provided by a so-called…
Building an Infinity Edge Pool with Spa – Florida Luxury
Long awaited and finally the time has come: the pool is being built. This is a highlight of the entire new build and requires many trades to work together. Not…
Landscaping & Driveway Design – Florida Homeowners’ Guide
One of the last big jobs on the new build was the garden design. We wanted an outdoor area that would suit the coastal climate, be low-maintenance, heat-resistant and naturally…
Completion with the CO
Sunset by the pool
And the house is finished
Garden by the canal
Our dream kitchen
The master bathroom
The bedroom
A guest room
We have done it! The CO (Certificate of Occupancy) is the official occupancy permit for a building. It confirms that a new building is safe to occupy in accordance with the Florida Building Code, approved plans and local regulations.
In Cape Coral, the Building Division issues the CO after all final inspections have been passed: Building/Construction, Electrical, Plumbing, HVAC (MEP), Roof/Wind Details, Smoke/CO Detectors, Final Survey and Drainage/Slope if applicable, Driveway & Sidewalks, Landscape/Irrigation, Pool/Fence (if applicable), and Proof of Connection (City Water/Sewer or Well/Septic) and, in FEMA zones, an Elevation Certificate.
The CO is only issued when everything in the system is set to “passed” and the documents are available. Significance: Without a CO, moving in/use is not legal, banks generally do not carry out a closing, and utilities/insurers require it as proof of completion.
Now we are looking forward to a life by the water with fantastic sunsets.