"How long will it take?" is usually the second question an investor asks, right after "how much?". The honest answer has two parts: the time before construction, which comes down to plans and permits, and the time of construction itself, which a good team can plan and manage. Here's how both work for a single-story home in Southeast Florida, what the national data says, and what you can do to keep your build on schedule.
The three phases of a Florida build
Every build goes through the same three phases. What matters is knowing who controls the clock in each one:
| Phase | What happens | What sets the time |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Pre-construction and permits | Contract, lot review, sealed plans, budget at real cost, permit application (and HOA approval, if your lot has one) | Your plans path and your city or county |
| 2. Construction | Site work and slab, block walls and roof, exterior and systems, interior and finishes, with inspections between phases | The schedule, the trades and timely funding; target of about 7 months |
| 3. Closing and keys | Final walkthrough, punch list, Certificate of Occupancy and keys | Final inspections and the punch list |
What the national data says
The U.S. Census Bureau's Survey of Construction tracks how long it takes to build new homes. According to the NAHB's analysis of the 2024 data:
- The average single-family home took 9.1 months from authorization to completion: about 1.4 months to start and 7.6 months to build.
- The South Atlantic region, which includes Florida, was the fastest in the country at about 7.8 months.
- Homes built for sale in builder communities were the quickest, at about 7.6 months. Homes on the owner's land took longer: about 12 months with a hired contractor and about 15 months when owners built them themselves.
That last point is important for investors. Building on your own lot gives you control over the design and the price, but without a clear schedule and someone managing all the trades, it tends to take longer. Planning is what closes that gap.
How long permits take in Florida
Permits are the one part of the timeline nobody can promise, and that includes us, because approval is up to the city or county. What Florida law does set is a review deadline. Under Florida Statutes section 553.792, for a single-family home under 7,500 square feet, the local government must approve, approve with conditions or deny a complete and sufficient application within 30 business days, unless the applicant waives that deadline in writing. If the plans reviewer asks for corrections, the applicant usually has 10 business days to respond.
Two things can add time before the clock even starts:
- Plans. Bringing your own plans, adapting an existing design to your lot or designing a new home from scratch each take a different amount of time with your engineer.
- HOA approval. In an HOA community, the HOA has to approve the design as well, and that approval comes before construction. Ask your realtor for the HOA's design guidelines before you buy the lot.
Note: laws change. The deadlines above come from the Florida Statutes as published by the Florida Senate; check the current version and your local building department before you plan around them.
Planning a build? Our free guide, The Formula That Never Fails, shows every decision to make before you break ground, including the written schedule and draw schedule to ask for.
Get the free investor guide →Construction, stage by stage
Once permits are approved, the clock that we control starts. For a single-story concrete block home, construction moves through four stages, and a Certified General Contractor checks the quality of each phase, along with the inspections the city or county requires, before the next one starts:
- Site work and foundation slab. The lot is prepared and the slab is poured.
- Block walls and roof. The walls go up, the trusses go on and the roof is sheathed. The shell is closed.
- Exterior and systems. Stucco, windows and doors, electrical, plumbing, mechanical and insulation.
- Interior and finishes. Drywall, kitchen, bathrooms, flooring and the final details.
Our target for these four stages is about 7 months after permit approval, with buffer built in for weather, hurricane season and material delays. It's a target we plan and manage toward, not a guarantee. See every step of our construction management process.
What causes delays, and what you can control
Some delays are outside anyone's control. Others are decisions. These are the ones we see most often:
- Weather and hurricane season. Atlantic hurricane season runs from June 1 to November 30, and heavy rain can stop work on any given day. That's why the schedule carries a buffer.
- Inspections. Each phase waits for its inspection. Work that's done right the first time doesn't have to wait twice.
- Late decisions and change orders. Once a finish has been approved and ordered, changing it costs you time and money. Decide early, then approve once.
- Late funding. On a build at real cost, each trade is funded before it starts. If the money is late, the next trade can't get the green light.
- Material lead times. Windows, doors and some finishes can take weeks to arrive, so they're ordered ahead of the stage that needs them.
Your part is simple, really: have your capital or loan ready and on time, approve finishes early and keep a 5–10% contingency for the unexpected. Ours is to keep every trade scheduled, funded on time and inspected, so each stage can start as soon as the previous one is approved.
Why a fixed fee helps the schedule
How your build is managed has a direct effect on how long it takes. Our fee is fixed and paid in four milestone payments, from contract to keys, so the way we get paid is tied to the progress of your build, not to how much it costs. And because you follow every stage in your investor portal and on the site cameras, or in person whenever you want, you always know where your build stands. To see how the schedule and the budget fit together, read where the money goes when a builder prices a house.
