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'My Safe Florida Home' sees backlog of registrants
Changes are being considered to the 'My Safe Florida Home' program, as the home insurance program faces a backlog of registrants and is starting to prioritize older homeowners.
TAMPA, Fla. - Florida's legislators are once again poised to approve additional funding for the state’s popular My Safe Florida Home program but with key changes aimed at prioritizing applicants most in need of financial assistance.
HB 1263 would create application windows for homeowners to apply for the program, beginning with those aged 60 and older and those who qualify as low- or moderate-income.
If approved, the program offers to match up to $10,000 of the costs of wind and water mitigation work, including upgrades to roofs, windows, and doors.
"If somebody invests $15,000 in their house following the state's instructions, the state’s going to give them a check back for $10,000," Florida Chief Financial Officer Jimmy Patronis said. "So, you have a brand-new hardened home with $5,000 out of pocket, and that is not including what your insurance company might ultimately refund back to you."
READ: Florida program aims to help ease sting of high property insurance premiums
Eligibility for the program will not change. Homeowners can apply for the grant if they meet the following criteria:
- The home must have been granted a homestead exemption.
- The home must have an insured value of less than $700,000.
- The building permit application for the home’s initial construction must have been made before January 1, 2008.
If the new version of the My Safe Florida Home program is approved, qualifying homeowners could begin to apply on July 1, 2024, in the following order:
- Days 1-15: those who qualify as low-income and are 60 or older
- Days 16-30: any low-income qualifying applicant
- Days 31-45 qualifying moderate-income homeowners aged 60 and up
- Days 46-60 any moderate-income qualifying applicant
After the first 60 days, any qualifying owner, regardless of income level or age, can apply for any remaining funds.
The bill seeks to add $100 million in funding for the program. Should each approved applicant receive the full $10,000, the state would be able to accommodate 10,000 applications for the 2024-25 fiscal year.
According to the bill’s sponsor, Rep. Chip Lamarca, the state has already authorized nearly 21,000 grants since 2023. Nearly 3,000 homeowners have since received reimbursements for improvements, totaling $26M.
LaMarca says the program is steadily working to harden homes and drive down insurance rates.
"Homeowners who have completed the improvements and disclosed their insurance company premium discounts reported an average annual savings of $1,014 after doing the program," LaMarca told fellow house members during a committee meeting last week. "The reality is, if I was an insurance company, I would want to make sure that what I'm insuring is very, very well built, and hard, and resilient too."
Tens of thousands of homeowners have found their applications paused due to the popularity of the program. Lamarca says some 85,000 homes have undergone the required initial inspections, to be considered for the program.
Another 12,000 applicants are still pending inspection. Last summer, the state put a pause on processing new and partial applications after all available grant money, more than $220 million, was assigned.
Other notable changes to the program in 2024 include allowing homeowners to use any licensed contractor to perform approved improvements.