Notice of Commencement: When Florida Requires One

What it is

A Notice of Commencement is a document recorded in the public records of the county where the property is located, identifying the property, the owner, the contractor, the lender and the surety, and describing the improvement. It exists primarily within Florida's construction lien framework, giving notice to potential lienors and establishing dates that matter for lien rights.

From a permitting standpoint, what matters is more practical: on projects above the statutory threshold, jurisdictions commonly require a recorded and posted NOC before inspections will be performed.

When it is required

Florida law requires a Notice of Commencement for construction projects above a statutory dollar threshold, with certain exceptions. The threshold and the exceptions are set by statute and have been amended over time, so the current figure should be confirmed rather than assumed. Some categories of work — certain repairs and specific improvement types — are treated differently.

Jurisdictions apply this with varying strictness. Hillsborough County, for instance, enforces the requirement visibly, and a missing NOC there will hold inspections on qualifying projects.

How it goes wrong

• Recorded but not posted. Many jurisdictions require a certified copy posted at the job site. Recording alone is not enough.
• Recorded in the wrong county. It goes in the county where the property sits, not where the contractor's office is.
• Expired. An NOC is effective for a defined period unless a different expiration is stated. On long projects it can expire mid-construction, and inspections can be refused until it is addressed.
• Incorrect legal description. A street address is not a legal description. Errors here can affect validity.
• Nobody knew who was supposed to record it. Typically the owner records it, but responsibility is frequently assumed by everyone and discharged by no one.

Practical handling

Decide explicitly, in writing, who records the NOC before the permit is issued. Record it in the correct county, get a certified copy, post it at the site, and put a copy in the permit file. On projects running longer than the effective period, calendar the expiry.

None of this is complicated. It is a checklist item that gets skipped because it sits between the owner, the contractor and the title company, and everyone assumes someone else has it.