No, if you have received notification that your grant application was approved and you were directed to obtain a contractor, you may continue to proceed with your project.

The My Safe Florida Home Program was re-enacted during the most recent Special Session of the Florida Legislature. The program consists of two primary components:

1. Wind Mitigation Home Inspections.  All owners of site-built, single-family, residential homes or townhouses are eligible to make application for a wind mitigation home inspection. This inspection will identify those elements of your home’s construction which could be improved to mitigate your home against future wind damages. All wind mitigation inspections will be provided to eligible homeowners free of charge by the State. Applications are reviewed and approved in the order in which they are received until current funding is exhausted. 
2. Wind Mitigation Grants for home retrofitting construction for improvements identified on the free wind mitigation inspection.
3. All applications are currently closed, funding is exhausted.

The Legislature has authorized DFS to provide a matching grant to eligible homeowners up to $10,000 for the actual cost of qualifying home hurricane mitigation projects. The program will provide $2 in grant funds for every $1 the homeowner provides.  A matching grantee must spend $15,000 to be reimbursed the $10,000. Low-income grants have increased from $5,000 to $10,000. All grant funds are now paid directly to the eligible homeowners after completing the program reimbursement process. Grant funds are not considered taxable income in Florida.

Mitigation upgrades are identified in the wind mitigation inspection report. Only weaknesses identified in that report are eligible for reimbursement using the grant funds.  Those include:

• Roof-to-Deck Attachment: This upgrade involves securing your roof deck through nailing.  This reinforces your roof’s ability to withstand strong winds.
• Roof-to-Wall Attachment: This upgrade strengthens the connection between your roof and walls by adding clips or wraps, providing additional roof stability during a hurricane. 
• Opening Protection: This upgrade ensures your home has impact-resistant windows, doors, garage doors, and skylights to protect against flying debris.
• Secondary Water Resistance: This involves applying a self-adhering underlayment directly to the sheathing, seam tape, or using a foam adhesive barrier to protect the home from water intrusion if the roof covering is unfortunately lost.

No. Once you have applied and been approved for your free wind-mitigation inspection, a licensed inspector, contracted by the program will be assigned to you to complete all inspections of your home.

Your inspection report will address the following wind mitigation issues and upgrades that, if made, can provide a discount on your home insurance premium.

• Roof-to-Deck Attachment: This upgrade involves securing your roof deck. This reinforces your roof’s ability to withstand strong winds.
• Roof-to-Wall Attachment: This upgrade strengthens the connection between your roof and walls by adding clips or wraps, providing additional stability during a hurricane. 
• Opening Protection: This upgrade ensures your home has impact-resistant windows, doors, garage doors, and skylights to protect against flying debris.
• Secondary Water Resistance: This involves applying a self-adhering underlayment directly to the sheathing, seam tape, or using a foam adhesive barrier to protect the home from water intrusion if the roof covering is unfortunately lost.

When you and your contractor agree your project is completed and all contractor local permits are closed, go to your portal account and request your final inspection from the program.  Our inspectors will contact you to confirm a time and date.  They will complete a FINAL INSPECTION REPORT.  Submit this report to your insurance company and request your insurance discount.  This is a required step to complete your reimbursement process.  This step DOES NOT apply to low-income grants. 

All grantees then follow the program reimbursement process. Step by step instructions are contained in our Homeowners Guide online and located here: https://msflh.com/homeowners-guide.  Once your reimbursement application is successfully submitted allow 30-60 days to receive a paper check in the mail from DFS.

Talk to your contractor. Confirm they have had all their permits signed off. Then request your final inspection through your portal account. Follow the required program steps to apply for reimbursement. Please note that the program assumes no responsibility for the performance of the contractor you select and work with. It will now be up to every MSFH Grantee/homeowner to find and manage their own eligible contractor and relationship. The program and FL Dept. of Financial Services is not responsible for or involved in any way with the grantee’s contractor selection and/or the grantee construction and payment process.

• We recommend using a computer with the chrome browser for best performance when accessing the program portal.
• Your initial wind mitigation report identifies the wind mitigation upgrades that are eligible for program reimbursement. You will not be reimbursed for ineligible repairs.  Share your inspection report with your contractor to be sure.
• Make sure to request your final inspection through your portal. Only the homeowner can request this vital step.
• Submit your final inspection report to your insurance carrier and request a discount (not required for low-income grants)
• Load and submit your reimbursement documents at one time.
• Verify your contractor’s state license at MyFloridalicense.com before entering your contractor’s license in your portal and select your program mitigation project.