Homeowner guides · Mitigation
My Safe Florida Home: Inspections, Grants, and What the 2026 Statute Requires
A sourced explanation of My Safe Florida Home inspections and grants, including eligibility in the 2026 Florida Statutes, the $2-to-$1 match, and why you must confirm current funding at mysafeflhome.com.
Last updated November 10, 2026 (America/New_York). All blog posts. Educational guide, not a bid, a specification, or insurance advice.
Direct answer
My Safe Florida Home is a Department of Financial Services program created in Fla. Stat. § 215.5586. Subject to available funds, it is intended to provide licensed inspectors for hurricane-mitigation inspections of eligible homes and grants to fund mitigation projects on those homes. The statute is explicit that it does not create an entitlement and does not obligate the state to fund inspections or retrofits; implementation depends on annual legislative appropriations. The program website, mysafeflhome.com, is the place to confirm whether inspections and grants are being accepted when you apply.
When a grant is available, the 2026 statute generally matches $1 from the applicant for $2 from the state, up to a maximum state contribution of $10,000 toward the actual cost of the project, except that low-income applicants as defined in § 420.0004(11) who otherwise qualify may receive a grant of up to $10,000 without a match. Roof-related grant items listed in the statute include reinforcing roof-to-wall connections, improving roof-deck attachments, and installing secondary water resistance for the roof and replacing the roof covering. Opening protection (windows, doors, skylights, garage doors) is also listed. Eligibility is narrower than “any Florida homeowner,” and the rules below are a summary of the 2026 statute, not a decision on your application.
Who can get a program inspection
Under § 215.5586(1), an applicant is eligible for a hurricane-mitigation inspection if the home is a single-family unit on an individual parcel that is either a detached residential property or an attached residential property not exceeding three stories; the home is site-built and owner-occupied; and the applicant has a homestead exemption on the home under chapter 196. “Detached” and “attached” are defined in the statute. An applicant who meets the inspection rules may receive an inspection without being eligible for a grant and without applying for one.
The department contracts with wind-certification entities. A program inspection must include, at a minimum, a home inspection and report that summarizes results and recommended improvements, a range of cost estimates for those recommendations, and information on estimated premium discounts correlated to current and recommended features. Inspectors must hold one of the licenses listed in the statute (building inspector, general/building/residential contractor, professional engineer, professional architect, or a home inspector with the required hurricane-mitigation training), and they must meet drug-testing and background-screening rules. The program site describes a free wind-mitigation inspection and a report that can be shared with an insurer; confirm current intake steps on that site, because the process (accounts, questionnaires, inspection groups) is an administrative one and can change.
Who can get a grant — and the income, value, and year-built limits
Grant eligibility in the 2026 statute is tighter than inspection eligibility. The applicant must be eligible for an inspection; the home must be a dwelling with an insured value of $700,000 or less; the home must have had an initial program inspection within the 24 months immediately before the grant application; the home must have been built before January 1, 2008, as reflected on the county property appraiser’s website; the applicant must agree to a final inspection after the work and must agree to provide insurer information about discounts realized from the improvements; and the applicant must be a low-income or moderate-income person as defined in § 420.0004. We do not reprint those income dollar amounts here, because they are defined by a different statute and can be updated; the program will tell you how it verifies income.
Work must be based on required local permits and inspections and must be performed by properly licensed contractors. A grant application must include the name and state license number of the intended contractor, and the program must verify that the license is valid. Improvements have to be identified by the final program inspection to receive grant funds. An applicant who receives a grant must finalize construction and request a final inspection within 18 months after grant-application approval, or the application is deemed abandoned and the money reverts. The department may also require that openings be improved as a condition of reimbursement, and it may set maximum allowances by rule.
How funding, priority, and timing work
Because the program is not an entitlement, a well-qualified house can still wait, or a funding window can close. The 2026 statute directs the department not to let accepted applications exceed available funds, and it sets a priority order for reviewing applications: first, low-income persons who are at least 60; then other low-income persons; then moderate-income persons who are at least 60; then other moderate-income persons; and last, all other inspection applications. It also describes a staggered start when a new appropriation lands. Some of the 2026 implementing language is tied to appropriations bills; that is one more reason to read the current program materials rather than treat this article as a standing offer.
The official site has, at times, noted that the program is popular and that the department may collect contact information while the Legislature considers further opportunities. Treat that as a reminder to check the site, not as a prediction of future funding.
How this relates to insurance credits and to a reroof you pay for yourself
A program inspection is not a guarantee of a premium cut, but the statute tells inspectors to discuss estimated discounts, and the program site encourages you to share the report with your carrier. A uniform mitigation form under § 627.711 is a separate document insurers must accept from authorized inspectors; see our wind-mitigation guide. Completing grant-funded roof work — deck attachment, roof-to-wall connectors, secondary water resistance and a new covering — may change what a later mitigation form can document, if the work is done and verifiable.
If you are not eligible, or if grants are not funded when you need the work, you can still reroof through a licensed contractor and a local permit. Use roof replacement for quotes and how to hire a roofer for license and scope checks. Roofing Port St. Lucie does not administer My Safe Florida Home and cannot get you a grant.
What this program is not
It is not a statewide right to a free roof, and it is not a City of Port St. Lucie permit program. It is not a substitute for a homeowners policy, and a grant does not automatically settle a storm claim. It is not the same as the uniform mitigation form your insurer must accept under § 627.711, even if both conversations mention roof-to-wall connectors and secondary water resistance. It also does not replace the need to hire a licensed contractor and to pull a local permit for the work the grant might help fund.
If you apply, use the official site and the official portal. Be cautious of anyone who offers to “get you the grant” for an up-front fee, or who wants you to sign a roof contract before you know whether you are eligible. The statute requires the program to verify the contractor’s license number on a grant application. You should verify it too, at myfloridalicense.com, and compare more than one bid, which is also what the program site recommends.
Matching service pages
This article is educational. For quotes, use the service pages, which are the commercial pages for this site:
Related roof types
Related guides
- Florida Wind-Mitigation Inspections: The Uniform Form, Credits, and Limits
- Florida’s Roof-Age Insurance Rule: What Fla. Stat. § 627.7011 Actually Says
- Port St. Lucie Roof Permits: Applications, Checklists, and Who Pulls Them
Questions
01.Is every Florida homeowner eligible for a $10,000 grant?+–
No. The 2026 statute limits grants to applicants who meet inspection rules plus insured-value, year-built, income, and other criteria, and only when funds are appropriated. Low-income applicants who qualify may receive up to $10,000 without a match; others generally match $1 for $2 up to a $10,000 state share.
02.Does a program inspection guarantee a grant?+–
No. You can be eligible for an inspection without being eligible for a grant. Grant rules are stricter, and funding is limited.
03.Can the grant pay for a new roof covering?+–
The statute lists, among roof improvements, installing secondary water resistance for the roof and replacing the roof covering, when recommended by the initial inspection and identified by the final inspection. Confirm current program allowances when you apply.
04.Where do I start?+–
At [mysafeflhome.com](https://mysafeflhome.com/), which is run for the Department of Financial Services. This website cannot submit an application for you.
Sources
- Fla. Stat. § 215.5586, My Safe Florida Home Program
- My Safe Florida Home program, Florida Department of Financial Services
- Fla. Stat. § 627.711 (2025), Notice of premium discounts for hurricane loss mitigation; uniform mitigation verification inspection form
- Florida Department of Financial Services, Mitigation Notices, Inspections and Forms
- Florida Department of Business and Professional Regulation, license search
- City of Port St. Lucie Building Department, Building Permits: Applications, Fees and Checklists
Back to the blog. Also see how to hire a roofer and the Florida roof types hub.