Aventura, Florida — this is my market

What actually decides a Florida closing

Unpermitted work attaches to the property, not to the person who did it. Open permits, work that was never inspected, a converted garage or an enclosed patio with no paperwork behind it — these surface at the least convenient moment and they can hold up a closing, an insurance quote or a resale years later. The building department will tell you what is on record, it costs nothing to ask, and the answer is worth having while contingencies are still running.

Price these before you commit

• Windstorm and flood are underwritten separately from the main policy across much of Florida. Price them on the specific address before you are under contract, not after.
• For condominium buildings of three storeys or more at the relevant age, Florida requires milestone structural inspections and a structural integrity reserve study. Both change assessments and financeability. Read them before waiving anything.
• The homestead exemption reduces taxable value on a Florida primary residence, and the Save Our Homes cap limits how fast the assessed value rises afterwards. Portability may carry a benefit from a prior Florida homestead. Your county property appraiser is the authority, not your agent.
• Title in Florida is customarily handled through a title company rather than an attorney as a matter of course, which changes who you call when a question arises mid-contract.

Where I actually add something

The useful thing about a transaction in your own market is that the answers arrive faster. I can look at a Aventura property, form a view, and tell you what I actually think rather than relaying someone else's read. That is the difference between this page and the ones on this site written for other states.

Other cities in Florida

• Immokalee
• Lehigh Acres
• North Cape Coral
• Punta Gorda
• Port Charlotte
• Englewood
• Venice
• Osprey
• All of Florida