Who issues the permit
The permit comes from the building department of the city where the property sits. When the lot is in unincorporated Miami-Dade, as most of Kendall is, the county's RER handles it instead. Our service areas table shows who issues the permit in each city we cover.
On a county permit, a full or detached teardown goes on a category 15 application with the square footage. A demolition attached to a house that stays goes on category 02, with detail drawings of the electrical and plumbing connections that come out. In Broward, each city runs its own building department and the county adds its asbestos paperwork before the city will accept the file.
What the city usually asks for
Most of the paper has to be ready before the city looks at anything. This is what shows up on the checklists we have confirmed:
| Paper | Who asks for it | What it covers |
|---|---|---|
| Signed and sealed property survey | City of Miami (no older than 6 months), Fort Lauderdale, North Bay Village | The house, the lot lines and what comes down |
| Tree survey and tree protection detail | City of Miami, Fort Lauderdale | Trees that stay and how they are fenced off; removing a tree is its own permit |
| Asbestos survey and notice | Miami-Dade DERM, Broward County (SRRA) | Covered in our asbestos survey guide |
| Utility letters and sewer cap | Fort Lauderdale, North Bay Village and others | Covered in our guide to shutting off FPL, gas and water |
| Rodent control report | Fort Lauderdale; Miami Shores asks for a pest control letter | Proof the property is free of rodents |
| Notice of Commencement | Fort Lauderdale on jobs over $5,000; Homestead asks for one too | Recorded notice that work is starting |
| Demolition notification | Miami-Dade RER | $225 for buildings up to 5,000 sq ft |
In the City of Miami the application is filed in iBuild and has to be signed and notarized. It goes in through ePlan with DERM approval. How long each review takes is in our demolition timeline guide.
Fort Lauderdale: a full checklist, item by item
Fort Lauderdale publishes the most complete demolition checklist in the area, revision 16 from July 2026 (our Fort Lauderdale teardown page shows it on canal lots):
- The certificate from Broward's asbestos statement (SRRA), first on the list.
- Signed and sealed surveys. For a partial demolition, one before and one after.
- A pest control inspection report saying the property is free of rodents.
- The FPL disconnect letter, a TECO Gas letter, the water meter removal letter and the sewer cap or septic abandonment with a passed inspection.
- Refrigerant recovery from the A/C equipment, with the technician's EPA license or a recovery letter.
- A daily schedule and equipment list on buildings over one story.
- A notarized letter about the water used to keep dust down.
- A debris mitigation form signed by the owner.
- A Notice of Commencement when the job is over $5,000.
- An owner's letter that no soil will be left exposed. The lot ends up in sod or another cover.
- A maintenance of traffic plan if trucks stage in the right-of-way. A closure longer than 72 hours needs a revocable license from the City Commission.
- A hold harmless agreement, a dewatering affidavit and the tree protection detail.
The city's demolition permit does not cover land clearing or tree removal, which go on separate permits. Houses in a historic district also need a certificate of appropriateness from the Historic Preservation Board first.
Who can pull the permit
A licensed contractor pulls most demolition permits in South Florida. In the City of Miami, only a qualified licensed contractor may apply.
Florida Statute 489.103(7) lets owners act as their own contractor on a one or two family home they use themselves. Selling or renting it within a year is presumed to break that exemption. The owner has to supervise in person, show up at the counter and sign a disclosure statement. The statute never names demolition, so cities apply it their own way. Miami says no. Hialeah allows it when the owner lives in the house and may ask for the deed and homestead. Miramar and the other cities set their own conditions. Miami-Dade asks for an extra form on any owner-builder permit.
HOA approval and historic review are separate
Your HOA and the city sign off separately.
Historic review can come first in two of the cities we cover. Coral Gables needs a letter from its Historic Preservation Officer (our Coral Gables demolition page has the details). Miami Beach sends some houses to its Historic Preservation Board or Design Review Board, covered on the Miami Beach page.
What we do with the file
We put the papers together, schedule the survey work and pull the permit once the utility letters are in. The city's permit fee varies by city and sits outside our price per sq ft; our price list shows what is included. The full sequence is in our step-by-step demolition process. To start, send us photos for a free estimate.
Frequently asked questions
Do I need a permit to demolish a house in Miami-Dade?
Yes. The Florida Building Code requires a permit to demolish a structure, and that applies in every city of Miami-Dade and Broward. Pools and interior work are set city by city, and we check what yours asks for.
Can I pull my own demolition permit in Florida?
Sometimes. The owner-builder exemption can apply to a home you live in, but the City of Miami only accepts a licensed contractor. Hialeah asks that you live in the property, and other cities set their own conditions, which we check before filing.
Does a demolition need a Notice of Commencement?
Often, yes. Fort Lauderdale asks for one on any job over $5,000, and Homestead also puts it on its list. Other cities set their own rule, and we check yours before the file goes in.
Is HOA approval enough once the city signs off?
No. The association and the building department approve separately. We need both in hand before the excavator comes off the trailer.
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