Notice of Commencement: required at your contract value?
Florida's lien law puts the Notice of Commencement in three sections with three dollar figures. Enter the direct contract price; the answer quotes the clause it rests on.
What the notice must contain
From s. 713.13(1)(a) (flsenate.gov), numbered as the statute numbers them. The section also prints the form a notice must substantially follow, including the warning to the owner that must appear on it.
- 1.A description sufficient for identification of the real property to be improved. The description must include the legal description of the property and the street address and tax folio number of the property if available or, if the street address is not available, such additional information as will describe the physical location of the real property to be improved.
- 2.A general description of the improvement.
- 3.The name and address of the owner, the owner’s interest in the site of the improvement, and the name and address of the fee simple titleholder, if other than such owner. A lessee who contracts for the improvements is an owner as defined in s. 713.01 and must be listed as the owner together with a statement that the ownership interest is a leasehold interest.
- 4.The name and address of the contractor.
- 5.The name and address of the surety on the payment bond under s. 713.23, if any, and the amount of such bond.
- 6.The name and address of any person making a loan for the construction of the improvements.
- 7.The name and address within the state of a person other than himself or herself who may be designated by the owner as the person upon whom notices or other documents may be served under this part; and service upon the person so designated constitutes service upon the owner.
Other rules in the section
Only the owner signs
“The owner must sign the notice of commencement and no one else may be permitted to sign in his or her stead.”
Void if work does not start within 90 days
“If the improvement described in the notice of commencement is not actually commenced within 90 days after the recording thereof, such notice is void and of no further effect.”
Expires after one year unless it says otherwise
“Unless otherwise provided in the notice of commencement or a new or amended notice of commencement, a notice of commencement is not effectual in law or equity against a conveyance, transfer, or mortgage of or lien on the real property described in the notice, or against creditors or subsequent purchasers for a valuable consideration, after 1 year after the date of recording the notice of commencement.”
A lender records it before disbursing
“A lender must, prior to the disbursement of any construction funds to the contractor, record the notice of commencement in the clerk’s office as required by this section; however, the lender is not required to post a certified copy of the notice at the construction site. The posting of the notice at the construction site remains the owner’s obligation.”
Changing contractors needs a new notice
“A notice of commencement that is recorded within the effective period may be amended to extend the effective period, change erroneous information in the original notice, or add information that was omitted from the original notice. However, in order to change contractors, a new notice of commencement or notice of recommencement must be executed and recorded.”
What the permit office accepts as the copy
“For purposes of this paragraph, the term “copy of the notice of commencement” means a certified copy of the recorded notice of commencement, a notarized statement that the notice of commencement has been filed for recording along with a copy thereof, or the clerk’s office’s official records identifying information that includes the instrument number for the notice of commencement or the number and page of book where the notice of commencement is recorded, as identified by the clerk.”
Questions
- At what contract value does Florida require a Notice of Commencement?
- Three numbers apply. Under F.S. 713.02(5), an improvement with a direct contract price of $2,500 or less is exempt from Part I of the lien law, so s. 713.13 does not reach it. Above that, s. 713.13(1)(a) says the owner shall record a notice before commencing. Under s. 713.135(1)(e) the building department must have a copy of the recorded notice before the first inspection when the direct contract is greater than $5,000, and may not perform or approve later inspections until it does.
- Is HVAC repair or replacement different?
- Yes. The last sentence of s. 713.135(1) says the subsection does not apply to a direct contract to repair or replace an existing heating or air-conditioning system in an amount less than $15,000, so the building department does not hold inspections for a notice on those jobs. The carve-out is to the permit office's duties, not to s. 713.13 itself.
- Does the Notice of Commencement have to be recorded before the permit is issued?
- No. Section 713.135(1)(e)4 says the paragraph does not require recording before issuance of a building permit, and (1)(f) says an issuing authority may not require it as a condition of the application or the permit. The hold is on inspections, not on the permit.
- Who signs it, and how long does it last?
- Only the owner signs (s. 713.13(1)(g)). It is void if the improvement is not actually commenced within 90 days of recording (s. 713.13(2)), and unless the notice states a different period it is not effective against later conveyances, mortgages or liens after one year from recording (s. 713.13(6)).
- What must a Florida Notice of Commencement contain?
- Section 713.13(1)(a) lists seven items: a description of the property including legal description, street address and tax folio number; a general description of the improvement; the owner's name, address and interest, and the fee simple titleholder if different; the contractor's name and address; the surety and bond amount if any; the lender if any; and a person within Florida designated to receive notices. The statute also prints the form the notice must substantially follow.
- Why does a permit-alert service have this page?
- Because in Florida the recorded Notice of Commencement is an earlier public signal than the permit's first inspection, and it names the owner, the contractor, the lender and the surety. This site tags building permits for the trades that come next; notices are a planned layer, not yet shipped.
Permits where this applies
- Building permits in Miami-Dade County, last 14 days
- Building permits in City of Miami, last 14 days
- Building permits in Cape Coral, last 14 days
- Building permits in Port St. Lucie, last 14 days
- Building permits in Manatee County, last 14 days
- Building permits in Orlando, last 14 days
- Get permits by email, one territory at a time
This is not legal advice; your local building department decides. The quotes are the 2025 Florida Statutes as published by the Florida Senate, fetched 2026-10-26; follow the section links for the current text and read the whole section before relying on it.