My Safe Florida Home: who qualifies and what the grant pays for

How the program works

The program sits within the Florida Department of Financial Services. The law says it does not create an entitlement for property owners, that it is subject to annual legislative appropriations, and that the department accepts applications only up to the amount of available funds.

When we checked the program's website on September 16, 2026, it advertised free wind-mitigation inspections and grants of up to $10,000. Because availability depends on funding, check mysafeflhome.com before you plan a project around a grant.

The free inspection: who qualifies and what you get

To get a hurricane mitigation inspection through the program, the home must be a single-family unit on its own parcel, either detached or attached and no more than three stories; it must be site-built and owner-occupied; and you must have a homestead exemption on it. You can get the inspection without applying for a grant.

The inspection must include a report that summarizes the results and recommends improvements, a range of cost estimates for those improvements, and information about estimated insurance premium discounts. Inspectors must be licensed or certified as a building inspector, a general, building or residential contractor, an engineer, an architect, or a home inspector, must have completed at least 3 hours of approved hurricane mitigation training, and must pass drug testing and a background screening.

You can generally submit one inspection application per home. The law allows another one only in listed situations, such as when the first was denied for errors, or when more than 24 months have passed since your inspection and no grant was paid for it.

Who qualifies for a grant

Under the 2026 law, a grant applicant must be eligible for the inspection and must also meet all of these: the home's insured value is $700,000 or less; the home had its initial inspection through the program within the 24 months before you apply; the home was built before January 1, 2008, as shown on the county property appraiser's website; you agree to a final inspection when the work is done; you agree to share what your insurer tells you about discounts from the improvements; and you are a low-income or moderate-income person as defined in state law.

The department reviews applications in priority order: low-income applicants 60 or older first, then other low-income applicants, then moderate-income applicants 60 or older, then other moderate-income applicants, and then all other inspection applications. When funding starts, those groups can apply in stages 15, 30, 45 and 60 days apart.

What the grant pays for, and how much

When the initial inspection recommends them, grants can pay for opening protection, meaning exterior doors, garage doors, windows and skylights, and for roof improvements: reinforcing roof-to-wall connections, strengthening roof-deck attachment, and installing secondary water resistance and replacing the roof covering. The improvements must be identified by the final inspection to be paid for, and the department may require that all openings be improved as a condition of reimbursement.

Grants are matched $1 from you for every $2 from the state, up to a state contribution of $10,000. For example, on a $15,000 project that would mean $10,000 from the state and $5,000 from you. Low-income applicants can receive up to $10,000 with no match.

The application must name the contractor you intend to use and that contractor's state license number, which the program verifies. All work must have the required local permits and inspections and be done by properly licensed contractors. You must finish the work and request the final inspection within 18 months after approval, or the application is treated as abandoned and the money goes back to the department.

If the department asks you for more information, answer within 60 days. It must notify you at least 5 business days before treating an application as abandoned, and a response within 5 business days showing good cause can keep it alive.

Reading an estimate for grant-funded work

Match the estimate to the inspection report. The work should be the improvements the report recommends, priced so each one can be seen on its own, and it should cover every opening if the department requires that. Check that the contractor's license number on the estimate is the one on your application.

Make sure the permit and inspections are included, the products are named with their ratings and approvals, and the schedule fits inside the 18-month window. Because a grant depends on approval and funding, ask how the contract handles a grant that is not approved, and be careful about paying a deposit before it is.