Will fixing the property take care of the lien?

We are a contractor. We fix the property condition; we do not settle liens or negotiate fines. What is owed, and whether any process exists to ask about it once the property complies, is for the board, magistrate or local government named on your order, and legal questions go to a Florida attorney.

A title search on my Tampa sale turned up a lien. Where do I start?

That is a common way these surface. The order identifies the case and the office that issued it, so contact that office about the case itself. We can look at the property and tell you what work the cited condition needs.

Does a daily fine keep running?

While a violation stays open a daily fine can keep running under the terms of the order. The repair is the part you can start on now. The amounts and how they are handled are set by the office named on your order.

The work was done years ago without a permit. Can it still be permitted?

Work already done without a permit generally has to be permitted after the fact, which can involve drawings, inspections and opening up finished surfaces so the work can be inspected. Permits are issued by the city or county building department with jurisdiction over the property.

Are you licensed to work in Tampa?

Yes. We hold a Florida Certified Building Contractor licence, CBC1267336, a state certification valid in every Florida county and verifiable on the Florida DBPR website. Trade work is performed by our Florida-licensed subcontractors in that trade.

What will the work cost?

It depends on the condition cited, the size and age of the structure, whether a permit and inspections are involved, and whether after-the-fact permitting applies. The estimate is free and the price is agreed in writing before work starts.

Code enforcement lien in Tampa, FL

A code enforcement lien means an order was recorded in the public records against the property. Behind that order is a violation — a condition that was cited and was not corrected. Start with the paper. Read the order and any earlier notice all the way through. Write down the case number, the address, the compliance date and any hearing date, and the name of the code office on the document. Questions about what is owed, the status of the case, or any process that exists once the property complies go to that office. Legal questions go to a Florida attorney.

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Call us or send your notice details · free estimate

Close-up of hands holding a folded letter at a kitchen table, the print out of focus, with a set of house keys and a pen beside it and a Florida front yard soft through the window.

Tampa is an incorporated municipality, so code enforcement here is normally run by the municipality itself, though some local governments contract it out — the office named on your order is the one handling your case. Florida code enforcement runs under Chapter 162, Florida Statutes. Cities and counties use either a code enforcement board or a special magistrate. The process generally starts with a notice of violation that gives a reasonable time to correct the problem, then a hearing if it is not corrected, then an order with a compliance date, and a fine may be imposed for each day the violation continues past that date. A certified copy of an order imposing a fine can be recorded, where it becomes a lien on the property. The exact steps, deadlines and amounts are stated on your order and vary by city and county.

While your case is open, don't

Don't let the dates slip by unnoticed. Put the compliance date and any hearing date on a calendar the day you read the order, and contact the code office named on it with questions about your case.
Don't start permit work before the permit is issued. Section 105.1 of the Florida Building Code requires a permit for most construction, alteration and repair work, and work started early can end up being opened back up.
Don't tear out finished surfaces yet. When work already done has to be permitted after the fact, the building department decides what it needs to see, and it is better to hear that before anything is demolished.
Don't assume an old permit closed itself. An open or expired permit stays on the property record until it is properly closed out, so check its status with the building department with jurisdiction over the property.

What we do

We read the order with youWe go through the recorded order and the property record with you and identify the violation behind it, then look at the property to see the condition that was cited.
Scope and price in writingThe estimate is free. We tell you what work the violation needs and agree the price in writing before any work starts.
Permits under our licenceWhere the fix needs a permit we pull it under our Florida Certified Building Contractor licence CBC1267336, including after-the-fact permits. Electrical, plumbing and air-conditioning work is done by our Florida-licensed subcontractors, who pull that trade's permit.
The corrective workWe carry out the repair, clean-up or construction that brings the cited condition into compliance.
Inspections and close-outWe schedule the inspections and work to get the permit closed out.
Paperwork for the code officeYou get the paperwork showing the work was permitted, inspected and completed, to take to the code office named on your order.

Work by 360 Home Improvements, Florida Certified Building Contractor CBC1267336. Electrical, plumbing and AC work goes to our Florida-licensed subcontractors, who pull that trade's permit.

How it works in Tampa

A recorded code enforcement order often comes to light at a sale or a refinance, when the title search finds it — sometimes years after the original notice. By then the condition that was cited may have changed, or weathered further. Tampa's housing stock runs from 1920s bungalows in Hyde Park, Tampa Heights and Seminole Heights to 1950s–1970s block and stucco homes and newer construction in New Tampa and the outer suburbs, so the work behind an old order can be anything from a wood-frame repair to permitting an addition on a newer lot.

Climate plays into it here. Salt air off Tampa Bay and near-constant humidity corrode gate hardware, exterior locks, garage door springs and tracks and dryer vent hoods faster than inland, and the Florida Building Code's wind-load rules mean products have to be approved for the conditions where they are installed — your building department can confirm what it accepts. Hurricane season runs June 1 through November 30, and storm damage left unrepaired is a common source of notices. The long wet growing season lets lots overgrow quickly year round. Whatever the cause, the compliance deadline on the document still applies as written, and the Tampa office named on it is the one to ask.

Questions people ask

Will fixing the property take care of the lien?: We are a contractor. We fix the property condition; we do not settle liens or negotiate fines. What is owed, and whether any process exists to ask about it once the property complies, is for the board, magistrate or local government named on your order, and legal questions go to a Florida attorney.
A title search on my Tampa sale turned up a lien. Where do I start?: That is a common way these surface. The order identifies the case and the office that issued it, so contact that office about the case itself. We can look at the property and tell you what work the cited condition needs.
Does a daily fine keep running?: While a violation stays open a daily fine can keep running under the terms of the order. The repair is the part you can start on now. The amounts and how they are handled are set by the office named on your order.
The work was done years ago without a permit. Can it still be permitted?: Work already done without a permit generally has to be permitted after the fact, which can involve drawings, inspections and opening up finished surfaces so the work can be inspected. Permits are issued by the city or county building department with jurisdiction over the property.
Are you licensed to work in Tampa?: Yes. We hold a Florida Certified Building Contractor licence, CBC1267336, a state certification valid in every Florida county and verifiable on the Florida DBPR website. Trade work is performed by our Florida-licensed subcontractors in that trade.
What will the work cost?: It depends on the condition cited, the size and age of the structure, whether a permit and inspections are involved, and whether after-the-fact permitting applies. The estimate is free and the price is agreed in writing before work starts.

This page is general information about Florida code enforcement, not legal advice. For questions about your own case (deadlines, hearing dates, fines or liens), contact the code enforcement office named on your notice, or a Florida attorney.

Send us the notice

Call (954) 906-7864 or send a request through the form on this website for a free estimate — we read the order with you, look at the property, and agree the price in writing before work starts. Questions about the case itself, the hearing or the lien go to the code office named on your order.

Call now · (954) 906-7864

Request a free estimate

Tell us what the notice says and where the property is. We'll look at what the violation needs and agree the price with you before any work starts.

NamePhoneEmailProperty address (the property on the notice)CityZIP code (Florida)What does the notice say?Compliance date (if the notice gives one)Hearing date (if any)Anything else (optional)I agree that 360 Home Improvements may contact me about this request by phone call, text message and email at the number and email I gave, including with automated technology and an AI assistant. Consent is not a condition of any purchase. Message and data rates may apply; reply STOP to opt out of texts.

We use your details only for this request. Not legal advice; for legal questions about your case, contact the code office named on your notice or a Florida attorney. See the privacy page.

Same violation in nearby cities

A lien was recorded on my property: every Florida city we cover

A different violation?

Code Violation Solver is run by 360 Home Improvements, a licensed Florida contractor. We fix the condition behind the violation; the code office named on your notice decides the case.