Collier County, FL Property Maintenance: Property Blight (2026)
Key Facts
- Deterioration threshold
- 33% or more of exterior walls
- Time to remedy after notice
- 30 days (15 after CEB ruling)
- Enforcing official
- Housing Official (Code Enforcement Director)
- Unpaid abatement cost
- Becomes a property lien
- Owner appeal window
- 10 working days to County Manager
Summary
A structure the county's Housing Official finds unsafe, unsanitary, or damaged 33 percent or more in its exterior walls falls under Collier's dangerous-buildings process: written notice, 30 days to fix it, and county-ordered repair or demolition billed back to the owner as a property lien if the deadline is missed.
DANGEROUS BUILDINGS AND STRUCTURES — all buildings, dwelling units or structures which are unsafe, unsanitary, unfit for human habitation, or do not provide for adequate egress, or which constitute a fire hazard, or are otherwise dangerous to human life, or which in relation to existing use constitutes a hazard to safety or health by reason of inadequate maintenance, dilapidation, obsolescence, or abandonment. ... If the owner fails to repair the hazardous condition within thirty (30) days of service of the notice that a hazardous condition exists, or within fifteen (15) days of the final determination by the Code Enforcement Board or Special Magistrate that a hazardous condition exists, then the Housing Official shall, in ordering the repair or demolition of dangerous buildings, be guided by the following: ... Whether the non-supporting, enclosing, or outside walls or covering, exclusive of the foundation, evidences 33% or greater damage to or deterioration.
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: Code of Ordinances: Supplement 126 | Land Development Code: Supplement 33).
Full Breakdown
Sec. 22-229(12) of the Property Maintenance Code defines "dangerous buildings and structures" to include any building unsafe, unsanitary, unfit for human habitation, lacking adequate egress, a fire hazard, or dangerous to human life through inadequate maintenance, dilapidation, obsolescence or abandonment, plus any structure a Florida-certified engineer finds below minimum structural standards or with walls out of plumb or evidencing 33% or greater deterioration. Under Sec. 22-235, once a qualified person certifies a hazardous condition, the Housing Official must notify the owner in writing, by personal service, certified mail, or posting at the property and courthouse if the owner cannot be found.
Sec. 22-236 requires the owner to remedy the condition within 30 days of that notice, or 15 days after a Code Enforcement Board or Special Magistrate ruling if the owner contests it; if unresolved, the Housing Official orders repair or demolition guided by the plumb-line and 33%-deterioration tests, and Sec. 22-238 allows the Code Enforcement Board or Special Magistrate to order an occupied building vacated immediately if it poses imminent peril to life or health. If the owner still does not act, Sec. 22-237 lets the county perform the repair or demolition itself and bill the owner; unpaid costs become a lien on the property, enforceable the same way as a tax lien and bearing interest at the legal rate, with the Property Appraiser tracking the lien on future tax statements.
An owner disputing the county's cost has 10 working days to appeal in writing to the County Manager, with the Board of County Commissioners issuing a final decision.
Violations & Fines
Failing or refusing to comply with any Property Maintenance Code provision, including a dangerous-building notice, is a misdemeanor under Sec. 22-247: a fine up to $500, up to 60 days in county jail, or both, with each day of continued noncompliance a separate offense. The county can pursue this criminal penalty alongside civil remedies, including an injunction or a Code Enforcement Board/Special Magistrate lien proceeding under F.S. ch. 162, and remedies are cumulative rather than exclusive.
Frequently Asked Questions
What makes a building "dangerous" under Collier County's code?
How long does an owner get to fix a dangerous building in Collier County?
What if the owner never fixes a hazardous building?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Collier County
Florida rules heatmap·Compare Collier County to another location·View the Florida property maintenance overview
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