Time-sensitive
Clearing a daily code violation fines case in St. Petersburg, FL
St. Petersburg sits on a peninsula between Tampa Bay and the Gulf, and salt air, humidity and storm damage reach nearly every property here. If you have a notice or an order saying fines keep adding up, the job usually means fixing the cited condition and getting any needed permit closed out. Start by reading the notice. Note the compliance date and any hearing date. Then contact the code office named on it, and tell them if work is under way. Plan around the permit, the inspections and the compliance date printed on your paperwork.
Call us or send your notice details · free estimate
St. Petersburg is an incorporated municipality. Code enforcement is normally run by the city itself, though some cities contract it out, and your notice names the office. In Florida, code enforcement falls under Chapter 162, Florida Statutes. A cited owner is generally given reasonable time to correct the problem. If it is not corrected, the case can be set for a hearing, where a board or special magistrate issues an order with a compliance date. A fine may then be set for each day the violation continues past that date. The exact steps and amounts are on your notice and vary by city, so confirm them with the code office.
While your case is open, don't
- Don't start work before the permit. Most repair and construction work needs a permit from the building department, and work done without one may have to be permitted after the fact.
- Don't lose track of your dates. The compliance date and any hearing date are printed on the notice or order, so keep them in front of you and ask the code office if anything is unclear.
- Don't tear out work first. Ask the building department what it needs to see before you open walls or take out finished work, since inspections may depend on it.
- Don't assume the fines have stopped. Fines are decided by the board or magistrate, so only the code office can confirm that the property now complies.
- Don't do structural or roof repairs yourself. If the cited condition is a hazard, keep people, children above all, away from it and leave structural and roof work to a licensed contractor.
What we do
- We read the notice with youWe go through the notice or order and identify exactly what is cited. The compliance date and any hearing date stay your focus.
- We look at the propertyWe see the cited condition in person and tell you what work it needs. The estimate is free.
- We agree the price in writingYou get the scope and the price in writing before any work starts.
- We pull the permitWhen the work needs a permit, we pull it under our Florida Certified Building Contractor licence, CBC1267336. That includes after-the-fact permits. Electrical, plumbing and air-conditioning work is done by our Florida-licensed subcontractors, who pull that trade's permit.
- We do the work and schedule inspectionsWe repair, clear, haul away or replace what the notice cites. Then we schedule the inspections and work to get the permit closed out.
- You get the paperworkWe give you the paperwork to show the code office named on your notice, so that office can confirm the property complies.
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 St. Petersburg
St. Petersburg homes range from 1920s bungalows in areas like Historic Old Northeast and Old Southeast to a very large share of 1950s to 1970s concrete block and stucco ranch homes. Condo towers and newer infill sit among them. Older homes can mean older garage doors, fences, electrical and roofing, and any of these can end up cited. If you live in a condo building, ask your association and the building department how any required repairs are permitted.
Salt air corrodes metal hardware faster here than inland. Hurricane season, June through November, can leave behind roofs under tarps, downed fences and scattered debris, and storm damage left unrepaired is a common source of notices afterward. Low-lying areas like Shore Acres see repeated flooding too. Replacement products must meet Florida Building Code wind requirements, which can affect the scope and the permit. Your building department can confirm what it accepts.
Questions people ask
- Who handles my code case in St. Petersburg?
- Code enforcement here is normally run by the municipality, though some contract it out. The notice names the office, and that office answers questions about your deadlines, hearing and fines.
- Do you go to the hearing or negotiate the fine?
- No. We are a contractor, not a law firm, so we do not represent owners at hearings or negotiate fines or liens. Legal questions go to a Florida attorney.
- Will finishing the work stop the fines?
- We can't say. The board, magistrate or local government named on your notice decides that. We give you the paperwork to show the code office, and that office confirms compliance.
- Does storm damage count in St. Petersburg?
- Hurricane season can leave tarped roofs, downed fences and debris, and unrepaired storm damage is a common source of notices. If your notice cites storm damage, we can scope the repair in a free estimate.
- What decides the cost?
- The cited work, the materials, whether a permit or after-the-fact permit is needed, and any inspections or drawings. We scope it in a free estimate and agree the price 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
The estimate is free, and we agree the price in writing before work starts. Call (954) 906-7864 or send a request through the form on the website, and take questions about the case itself to the code office named on your notice.
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.
Same violation in nearby cities
Other violations in St. Petersburg
- A lien was recorded on my property
- Work done without a permit
- Open or expired permits
- Overgrown lot, yard or debris
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.