Pre-sale-certificate-of-use— What We Handle

A Certificate of Use (CU) is a municipal document that certifies a property is being used in compliance with the city's zoning and building codes. In the cities that require it before a sale — including Miami Beach, Miami, Coral Gables, Hialeah, North Miami, North Miami Beach, Miami Shores, Miami Gardens, and El Portal — the certificate must be obtained from the city before ownership can be transferred. The city conducts a property inspection as part of the certificate process, and any open permits, code violations, or non-compliant conditions discovered during that inspection must be resolved before the certificate is issued.

Think of it as the city's way of ensuring that properties are in code compliance before they change hands — so the new owner does not inherit someone else's unresolved building issues. Without the certificate, the closing cannot legally proceed in these cities.

If your property is already in full code compliance with no open permits or violations, the certificate can often be obtained in 2 to 4 weeks from application — the city processes the application, schedules the inspection, and issues the certificate if the inspection passes. The problem is that most properties in these cities have at least one open permit, code violation, or non-compliant condition that surfaces during the inspection — and each issue requires its own resolution process before the certificate can be issued.

When corrections are needed, the timeline extends significantly. After the fact permits for roofing, windows, or structural work typically take 3 to 6 weeks to close after work is completed. In our experience, sellers who discover issues during the pre-sale inspection — rather than resolving them proactively before applying — typically face 4 to 10 week delays before they can close. The solution is to use AGK's free pre-listing assessment to identify and resolve everything before you apply for the certificate.

Yes — in cities that require a Certificate of Use before sale, all open permits must be closed and all code violations must be resolved before the certificate can be issued. There is no partial certificate or conditional approval in most of these cities. Every item flagged by the city inspector must be officially closed out before the certificate is granted and the sale can proceed.

This is why AGK Construction & Roofing recommends proactively assessing and resolving everything before applying for the certificate — rather than going through the inspection first and then scrambling to fix issues under a closing deadline. Our free pre-listing assessment identifies everything the city inspector would flag, so you can resolve it on your own timeline rather than the buyer's.

Yes — and this is one of the most urgent situations AGK handles. When a CU inspection flags issues after a property is already under contract, every day counts. We treat these as emergency cases and move as fast as the building department's inspection schedule allows. We begin the after the fact permit and violation resolution process immediately — the same week you call — and prioritize your case at every stage.

The honest answer is that timeline depends entirely on what was flagged and what corrections are required. Simple open permit closures can sometimes be resolved in 2 to 3 weeks. Cases requiring new after the fact permits for roofing or windows typically take 4 to 6 weeks. If you are under contract with a CU issue, call (954) 807-3455 immediately — the sooner we start, the better your chances of saving your closing date.

As the seller, you are responsible for obtaining the Certificate of Use and resolving all issues flagged during the inspection — including the cost of all permit and correction work. This is because the certificate requirement is a condition of the sale that falls on the seller to satisfy. That said, the cost of corrections is often negotiated into the purchase agreement — sellers may agree to a price reduction or closing credit to cover the buyer's expected costs if corrections are extensive.

The most effective approach for sellers is to resolve everything proactively before listing — before any buyer is involved — so the property is already certified and the sale price reflects a clean, permitted property rather than one with deductions for pending corrections. AGK works with sellers at both stages — pre-listing resolution and post-contract emergency resolution.

Yes — Miami Beach is located entirely within the High Velocity Hurricane Zone (HVHZ), and all windows and exterior doors must meet HVHZ impact-resistant product approval standards. Non-impact windows are a code violation in Miami Beach and will be flagged during the Certificate of Use inspection. The windows must be replaced with HVHZ-approved impact windows before the certificate can be issued.

AGK Construction & Roofing installs only HVHZ-approved impact windows and doors under our active Glass & Glazing license (SCC-131153361). We pull the required permit from the City of Miami Beach Building Department, complete the installation, pass the final inspection, and close the permit — so the window compliance is fully documented and verified before your CU inspection takes place.

Yes. AGK Construction & Roofing holds four active Florida contractor licenses: Roofing (CCC-1335099), General Contractor (CGC-1534839), Plumbing (CFC-1434412), and Glass & Glazing (SCC-131153361). We can legally perform, permit, and pass inspection for every type of correction that surfaces during a pre-sale CU inspection — all under one contract.

For sellers in these nine Miami-Dade cities, this means one contractor assessing the property, obtaining all required after the fact permits, performing all corrections across every trade, passing all inspections, and delivering complete documentation — so your Certificate of Use inspection results in a clean pass. No managing multiple contractors, no coordinating separate permits for each trade, no gaps in the documentation.