- February 4, 2026
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While the housing market in Florida ebbs and flows, anyone trying to sell a house right now knows we are in an ebb.
Overall, cities statewide don’t approve new housing at a rate that keeps up with job and population growth in the formation of new households. As you can see at any city commission meeting, the forces of “not in my backyard” remain a potent opposition to adequate housing supply.
Florida faces an ongoing shortage-driven housing crisis. The National Low Income Housing Coalition estimates that:
This gap reflects long-standing land-use restrictions that limit housing construction, especially of small and less-expensive options.
The state Legislature has tried to address this problem in recent years by passing a series of bills to incentivize local governments to permit adequate amounts of housing, notably, a series of Live Local reforms, which have had limited success.
This year the Legislature is trying again, with a pair of bills aimed at strengthening property rights and improving housing affordability by reducing regulatory barriers.
The first is House Bill 1049, which aims to modernize Florida’s permitting framework in a targeted way that lowers costs and delays without compromising safety. New housing projects suffer from regulatory delays, administrative complexity and inconsistent local permitting practices. A recent Mercatus Institute analysis of Florida’s permitting and land use framework shows that the absence of consistent statewide standards has led to fragmented local processes that increase delays, raise soft costs and create uncertainty for homeowners and contractors alike.
HB 1049 streamlines permitting and inspection requirements for low-risk work and residential backup power systems while preserving the Florida Building Code and existing inspection standards. It exempts residential work valued under $7,500 on single-family dwellings from building permit requirements, while preserving permits for electrical, plumbing and structural work regardless of cost. Minor repairs and small improvements are often subject to the same permitting process as complex projects, despite posing minimal safety risk. These requirements raise costs, discourage compliance and delay routine maintenance that helps preserve housing quality.
The bill also tackles permitting delays and inconsistent local requirements for residential backup power systems that kick in when hurricanes or other events cut off the power grid. Making it easier to permit backup power systems means more homes will have them, increasing storm resiliency. HB 1049 sets up a clearer statewide framework that preserves compliance with the Florida Building Code and Florida Fire Prevention Code while improving inspection flexibility. Local agencies keep inspection authority, including virtual inspections, and property owners may use licensed private providers when local capacity is limited.
Finally, HB 1049 limits local technical amendments and approval processes that add what are local and informal permitting requirements layered on top of the statewide code. These redundant local rules increase costs and create unpredictability for homeowners and contractors. Reinforcing uniform statewide standards lowers administrative burdens and improves consistency across jurisdictions, which is especially important in Florida, where construction demand can shift rapidly following storms.
Overall, HB 1049 helps create more predictable, risk-based permitting framework that reduces unnecessary delays, improves regulatory clarity and supports housing resilience while keeping Florida’s core safety standards.
A second bill, Senate Bill 948, reduces minimum lot sizes and parking requirements and creates clear statewide building standards that would lower barriers to building starter homes and expands housing options for low-income buyers across the state.
By reducing minimum lot sizes to 1,200 square feet per home on lots connected to central sewer and water, SB 948 allows an efficient use of available land and makes small starter homes profitable. With this change alone, the American Enterprise Institute estimates Florida could add 51,700 homes annually at below-average prices. Allowing lot splits and standardizing setback requirements are essential complementary reforms that make minimum lot size reductions workable in practice.
SB 948 also reduces parking requirements for smaller homes and housing located near transit, allowing developers to deliver units that better match the needs of residents who rely on public transportation, using less land without wasting space and requiring them to pay for parking they do not need. By expanding flexibility for both developers and residents, Florida’s Legislature can allow housing supply to grow in ways that align with local demand, including development patterns that reflect residents’ transportation preferences.
The bill also tackles some of the local inconsistencies that the National Association of Home Builders estimates adds up to 23.8% of the purchase price of a new single-family home. It prohibits local height caps below three stories, restricts maximum floor area ratio requirements, and allows manufactured homes in single-family areas statewide.
SB 948 does not require anyone to build smaller homes, forgo parking, or develop on the minimum lot size; it simply makes these options legal and available for those who want them.
These two bills are a step in the right direction by the Legislature. They would help ensure Florida can meet the growing housing needs of its residents, including allowing for some new housing to be more affordable, while not taking anything away from anyone.
Adrian Moore lives in Sarasota and is vice president at Reason Foundation, where Christina Mojica and Eliza Terziev are policy analysts.
