Sawgrass, FL

St. Johns County lets residents burn a recreational campfire or cook fire without a permit, using dry wood so it does not produce excessive smoke. A bonfire requires a permit from the…

Florida designates no regulatory wildfire hazard zones that trigger building mandates, but St. Johns County carries genuine wildfire risk. The Florida Forest Service manages…

Florida sets no statewide defensible-space mandate forcing homeowners to clear brush. In St. Johns County, clearing is driven by wildfire-prone Wildland-Urban Interface conditions and…

Open burning in St. Johns County is state-regulated. Small yard-trash piles of leaves and limbs may be burned, but land-clearing and larger burns require authorization from the Florida…

Florida law lets St. Johns County residents use consumer fireworks on three designated holidays — New Year's Eve, New Year's Day, and the Fourth of July. On every other day only…

St. Johns County requires recreational vehicles, boats, and utility trailers to be parked or stored in a rear or side yard. In the Ponte Vedra Zoning District they cannot be visible at…

St. Johns County limits parking heavy commercial vehicles, trailers, and equipment in residential zones through zoning rules, while Florida's 2024 HOA law protects a resident's right…

EV charging rules in St. Johns County are enabling. A home charger needs only an electrical permit, Florida law protects condo and HOA residents' right to install charging, and public…

Driveway and yard parking in St. Johns County is set by county code. Vehicles must sit on an approved surface rather than bare lawn, unlicensed or inoperable vehicles cannot be stored…

Under Fla. Stat. 705.103, abandoned and derelict vehicles on public or private property can be taken into custody and removed after notice. St. Johns County code separately bars…

St. Johns County has no blanket overnight street-parking ban, but a vehicle cannot obstruct travel lanes or be left long enough to be treated as abandoned. Cities and CDDs like Nocatee…

On-street parking in St. Johns County is governed by county and municipal rules plus Florida traffic law, which bars parking within 15 feet of a fire hydrant and on sidewalks or…

Florida preempts local bans on vacation rentals under Fla. Stat. 509.032(7)(b), so St. Johns County cannot prohibit STRs but requires registration under LDC 2.02.04.B.19, renewed every…

Neither Florida nor St. Johns County requires short-term rental hosts to carry insurance. Coverage is driven by mortgage lenders, HOA or CDD covenants, and booking platforms rather…

Florida levies a 6% transient rental tax under Fla. Stat. 212.03(1)(a), and St. Johns County adds a 5% Tourist Development Tax on stays of six months or less, collected by the county…

St. Johns County LDC 2.02.04.B.19 caps short-term rentals at two transient occupants per sleeping room or common area, with a maximum of ten per rental, excluding children twelve and…

St. Johns County LDC 2.02.04.B.19 requires short-term rentals to provide at least one off-street parking space per three transient occupants, and total vehicles on site cannot exceed…

St. Johns County LDC 2.02.04.B.19 requires every short-term rental to disclose and follow the county Noise Ordinance 2015-19, giving each guest a copy of the ordinance in the lease…

St. Johns County regulates retaining walls through the Florida Building Code. A wall over four feet, measured from the bottom of the footing, or any wall supporting a surcharge, needs…

St. Johns County requires a building permit for most residential fences before work begins. The Building Department reviews the fence against Land Development Code height and setback…

St. Johns County caps residential fences, walls, and hedges at six feet. Within the front twenty-five feet of the property line the limit drops to four feet, and nothing may block the…

Florida has no statute forcing neighbors to split a boundary fence's cost, so cost-sharing in St. Johns County is voluntary. A boundary fence built maliciously with no legitimate…

No Florida statute restricts residential fence materials, so wood, vinyl, aluminum, and chain-link are all allowed in St. Johns County. Limits come from the Land Development Code and…

Every residential pool in St. Johns County must have a barrier at least four feet high with gates that open outward, self-close, and self-latch. Florida's Residential Swimming Pool…

Rainwater harvesting is unrestricted in St. Johns County. Florida sets no limit on collecting rain, and the state and the water management district promote rain barrels and cisterns to…

St. Johns County treats rank weeds and overgrowth as a public nuisance, and the City of St. Augustine limits weeds to 12 inches. Code enforcement orders the owner to cut after written…

Artificial turf on a St. Johns County home is governed by local zoning and impervious-surface limits, not a state ban. Florida-Friendly protections under Statute 373.185 cover living…

Removing a tree on your St. Johns County home is protected by Florida Statute 163.045: no local government may require a permit, fee, or mitigation to remove a residential tree when an…

No St. Johns County ordinance can force a turf lawn. Florida Statute 373.185 bars any local ordinance or deed restriction from prohibiting Florida-Friendly Landscaping, so residents…

St. Johns County treats overgrown grass and weeds as a nuisance, and the City of St. Augustine caps growth at 12 inches. Florida Statute 373.185 still protects a Florida-Friendly or…

St. Johns County follows the St. Johns River Water Management District year-round watering schedule: homes water two days a week in summer and one in winter, never between 10 a.m. and…

Pruning or trimming a tree on your own St. Johns County home is unregulated. Florida Statute 163.045 goes further, barring any local government from requiring a permit, fee, or…

St. Johns County allows livestock and poultry by right on Open Rural and Agricultural land, including the Hastings farming belt. In residential zones, limited backyard hens are…

St. Johns County requires every dog off its owner's property to be leashed or restrained under direct control. County Ordinance 2017-36 defines direct control as a physical restraint…

Feeding alligators and crocodiles is a crime in Florida. FWC rule 68A-25.001 makes it unlawful to intentionally feed or entice any crocodilian, and penalties escalate under section…

Florida bars keeping captive wildlife without a state permit. Section 379.3762 makes it unlawful to possess any wildlife, native or not, until the owner holds a permit from the Fish…

Beekeeping is lawful throughout St. Johns County, and Florida preempts local bans. Section 586.10 hands the state exclusive authority to regulate and permit managed honeybee colonies…

Breed-specific dog bans are prohibited in Florida. Section 767.14 lets local governments regulate dangerous dogs but bars any rule specific to breed, weight, or size. A 2023 amendment…

St. Johns County cannot zone a home business out of a residential neighborhood. Florida's Home-Based Business Act, Fla. Stat. §559.955, bars the county and cities like St. Augustine…

St. Johns County cannot cap your customers just because you work from home. Florida's Home-Based Business Act, Fla. Stat. §559.955, lets a home business receive clients, but limits…

A home business in St. Johns County shows almost no outward sign of commerce. Florida's Home-Based Business Act, Fla. Stat. §559.955, protects the business but requires that, seen from…

You can bake and sell cottage foods from a St. Johns County kitchen with no permit and no local approval. Fla. Stat. §500.80 preempts cottage food regulation to the state, letting an…

A family day care home in St. Johns County registers annually with the Florida Department of Children and Families. The county has not adopted its own licensing ordinance, so Fla…

Under the Residential Swimming Pool Safety Act, a pool in St. Johns County must carry at least one safety feature: a 4-foot barrier, an approved safety cover, door and window exit…

A hot tub or nonportable spa is a swimming pool under Florida's Pool Safety Act. It complies when fitted with an approved safety pool cover meeting ASTM F1346, or by using a 4-foot…

A residential pool in St. Johns County needs a building permit through the county Building Services Division, and it cannot pass final inspection until it carries at least one safety…

A pool barrier is one way to satisfy Florida's pool safety law, and when used it must stand at least 4 feet high on the outside with no gaps a child can crawl under, squeeze through…

An above-ground pool in St. Johns County falls under the same Pool Safety Act. Its own wall can serve as the required barrier when it is at least 4 feet high and its ladder is…

St. Johns County allows an Accessory Family Unit on a single-family lot. It may not exceed the lesser of 35% of the main home or 2,000 square feet, though it may be at least 800 square…

A one-story storage shed of 120 square feet or less needs no building permit in St. Johns County under Florida Building Code Section 105.2, but it must still meet zoning setbacks and…

Converting a garage into living space in St. Johns County requires a building permit under the Florida Building Code. The new room must meet residential egress, light, ventilation…

A carport is an accessory structure in St. Johns County and needs a building permit. It meets the accessory setbacks — 3 feet from side and rear lines when 10 feet or more from the…

A tiny home on a permanent foundation must meet the full Florida Building Code as a dwelling, and St. Johns County sets no minimum house size beyond code. A tiny home on wheels is a…

St. Johns County Ordinance 2015-19 makes a dog or animal whose noise is plainly audible across the owner's property line for 30 minutes or more, while unprovoked, prima facie evidence…

St. Johns County Ordinance 2015-19 allows leaf blowers, mowers, and domestic power tools during the day but makes their use unlawful between 9:00 p.m. and 7:00 a.m. daily when noise…

St. Johns County Ordinance 2015-19 permits construction and industrial noise only 7:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. Monday through Saturday and 9:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. Sundays and holidays, if not…

St. Johns County Ordinance 2015-19 bars radios, instruments, and sound equipment played to disturb the peace or louder than needed for listeners present, judged plainly audible at 100…

St. Johns County Ordinance 2015-19 sets nighttime quiet hours of 10:00 p.m. to 7:00 a.m. Sunday through Thursday and 11:00 p.m. to 7:00 a.m. Friday and Saturday, judged by a…

St. Johns County requires tree replacement and mitigation for protected trees removed on development and non-residential sites. Florida Statute 163.045 bars the county from making a…

St. Johns County protects specimen and heritage trees through its Land Development Code on development and non-residential sites. On residential property, Florida Statute 163.045…

St. Johns County requires tree-removal permits for protected trees on development and non-residential sites. On residential property, Florida Statute 163.045 preempts them: no permit…

Door-to-door sellers in St. Johns County register before canvassing. The county and cities like St. Augustine require a commercial solicitor or peddler to obtain a permit and pass a…

A no-soliciting sign carries legal weight in St. Johns County. A registered solicitor who ignores a clearly posted no-soliciting notice, or canvasses outside permitted hours, violates…

Growing cannabis at home is a felony in St. Johns County. Florida allows medical marijuana only through state-licensed dispensaries and permits no home grow, even for registered…

St. Johns County decides whether medical marijuana dispensaries open within its borders. Fla. Stat. §381.986 lets a county or city ban dispensing facilities outright, but a local…

St. Johns County treats garage sales as an accessory use in residential districts under its Land Development Code, allowed once per six-month period and no longer than three…

St. Johns County collection carts belong at the curb only on collection day and stored out of view the rest of the week. County code enforcement bars open storage of trash and debris…

St. Johns County enforces property upkeep hard through its code-enforcement program under Fla. Stat. Ch. 162. Open storage of junk, trash, and debris, inoperable vehicles, and…

A vacant lot in St. Johns County is not exempt from upkeep. County code enforcement, under Fla. Stat. Ch. 162, requires owners to keep lots mowed and free of accumulated debris, and…

There is no snow or ice clearing duty in St. Johns County. This is the northeast Florida Atlantic coast, from St. Augustine to Ponte Vedra Beach, where measurable snow effectively…

St. Johns County requires carts at the curb by 6:00 a.m. on your collection day, with garbage, recycling, and yard debris kept separate. Carts go out no earlier than the evening before…

Residential recycling in St. Johns County is offered, not mandatory. Fla. Stat. §403.706 puts the duty on the county to run recycling toward the state's 75 percent goal, and the county…

Bulky junk goes to the curb by arrangement or self-hauled to a St. Johns County transfer station, never dumped. Illegal dumping is prosecuted under Florida's Litter Law, Fla. Stat…

St. Johns County collects garbage, recycling and yard waste weekly at the curb. Look up your day with the Recycle Coach tool at sjcfl.us. When a weekday holiday occurs, collection is…

A St. Johns County garage sale may run no more than three consecutive days under the Land Development Code. Daytime hours are the norm, with the county noise ordinance barring the…

St. Johns County requires no permit for a residential garage sale. The Land Development Code treats it as an accessory use to the home, allowed without a license or fee, as long as you…

St. Johns County caps residential garage sales at one per property during any six-month period under its Land Development Code. That works out to about two a year, and running them…

Florida's juvenile curfew statute, Fla. Stat. 877.22, bars minors from public places between 11 p.m. and 5 a.m. Sunday through Thursday and between midnight and 6 a.m. on weekends and…

Beaches and parks across St. Johns County close overnight. During sea-turtle nesting season, May 1 through October 31, the county beach driving gates close at 7:30 p.m. and reopen at 8…

Florida has no statute limiting light spilling onto a neighbor's yard, and away from the turtle-lighting coast St. Johns County addresses glare only through its Land Development Code…

St. Johns County's Atlantic coast requires sea-turtle-friendly lighting. Under Fla. Stat. 161.163 the state sets beachfront lighting guidelines, and the county's Land Development Code…

Grading and drainage in St. Johns County are governed by the Environmental Resource Permit and the county land development code. Under Fla. Stat. 373.413, altering land drainage…

Much of coastal St. Johns County lies in FEMA flood zones with hurricane storm-surge exposure. The county's floodplain management ordinance enforces National Flood Insurance Program…

Erosion and sediment control in St. Johns County runs through the Environmental Resource Permit. Under Fla. Stat. 373.413, land clearing and construction that alters a stormwater…

Land disturbance and new stormwater systems in St. Johns County require an Environmental Resource Permit. Under Fla. Stat. 373.413, the St. Johns River Water Management District…

St. Augustine Beach, Ponte Vedra Beach, and Vilano Beach front the Atlantic Ocean. Under Fla. Stat. 161.053, an FDEP permit is required to build, excavate, or alter ground seaward of…

St. Johns County has no just-cause eviction rule. Under Florida Statute §83.56(3), a landlord may end a tenancy for nonpayment with a 3-day written notice, excluding weekends and…

Rent control does not exist in St. Johns County. Florida Statute §125.0103(2) flatly bars any county or municipality from imposing controls on rents. St. Augustine, Ponte Vedra Beach…

St. Johns County requires no rental registration or landlord license for a long-term residential rental. Florida has no statewide registry, and the 2023 preemption in Fla. Stat…

Rooftop solar is protected across St. Johns County. Under Fla. Stat. 163.04, no local ordinance may prohibit installing solar collectors. A homeowner needs a building and electrical…

Florida law overrides HOA solar bans in St. Johns County. Under Fla. Stat. 163.04, a deed restriction or covenant may not prohibit solar collectors, and an association may only set a…

St. Johns County does not regulate holiday lights, inflatables, or yard displays on residential property. No county ordinance limits seasonal decorations; HOA and CDD covenants in…

Garage-sale signs are temporary signs in St. Johns County — up to two per residential parcel, 6 square feet each, no permit. Florida Statute §337.407(1) makes it illegal to plant one…

St. Johns County allows political signs on residential property as temporary signs. Land Development Code §7.02.02 permits up to two temporary signs per parcel, 6 square feet each…

A food truck in St. Johns County is licensed by the state, not the county. Fla. Stat. §509.102 preempts licensing of mobile food dispensing vehicles to the Florida DBPR, so one state…

St. Johns County cannot shut food trucks out of town. Fla. Stat. §509.102 preempts food-truck operation to the state and forbids a local government from prohibiting mobile food…

St. Johns County limits lot coverage by district under Fla. Stat. 125.01(1)(h): RS-1 caps building coverage at 25 percent, RS-2 at 30 percent, and RS-3 at 35 percent, with a 70 percent…

St. Johns County caps residential building height at 35 feet across its RS-1, RS-2, RS-3, and Open Rural single-family districts through the Land Development Code, adopted under its…

St. Johns County genuinely zones. Its Land Development Code fixes yards by district under Fla. Stat. 125.01(1)(h): RS-1 lots need a 30-foot front, 10-foot sides, and a 15-foot rear…

Commercial drone operators across St. Johns County follow FAA 14 CFR Part 107: hold a Remote Pilot Certificate, register the aircraft, fly below 400 feet, keep line of sight. Florida's…

Recreational drone flights over St. Johns County follow federal FAA rules under 49 U.S.C. 44809: register drones over 250 grams, pass the TRUST test, fly below 400 feet, keep line of…