Building Permit Delays Found Elsewhere – But Not in Palm Coast and Flagler Co.

Wall Street Journal reports many areas of the country are experiencing excessive building permit delays; as long as six to eight months. This compares to less than two weeks to get a permit locally.

PALM COAST, FL – March 9, 2016 – A March 3, 2016 Wall Street Journal article reported that building permit processing times have almost doubled, especially in booming areas like California and Florida. This according to the American Institute of Architects. The wait can take from six to eight months, up from two to three months.

The report blames the delays on slow re-staffing by local governments after massive layoffs during the Great Recession. The staff shortage is exacerbated by the flood of new permit applications in areas seeing the longest delays.

Palm Coast and Flagler County permitting grew last year over the previous year, but only modestly. This modest growth continues through the first two months of 2016. Modest growth, together with improved procedures at both the city and county, actually reduced local permit processing times. An examination of recent permitting activity shows the time from permit application to permit issue for a single-family home in Palm Coast is between eight and nine days. The county’s process takes nine to ten days. And this timespan includes any back and forth communications between the permitting staff and the builder.

Delays burden builders, adding to the price of new homes. They also postpone the gratification of the new home owner.