Housing Resources & Recovery Support in Florida

The Live Local Act is a comprehensive statewide housing law passed by the Florida Legislature to expand affordable and workforce housing opportunities across the state. It provides significant funding, tax incentives, land-use changes, and streamlined approvals to encourage the development of housing that’s attainable for people who work and live in Florida communities. 

Key goals and features:

• Encourages new multifamily and mixed-use developments by offering incentives and reducing barriers in areas zoned commercial, industrial, or mixed-use.
   
• Requires that qualifying projects include at least 40 % affordable units (to households earning up to 120 % of area median income) that stay affordable for at least 30 years.
   
• Offers tax incentives (including property tax exemptions and potential sales tax refunds on building materials) and other tools to make affordable housing financially feasible.
   
• Requires administrative approval for qualifying developments — meaning once they meet the criteria, local governments must approve them without additional discretionary hearings.
   
• Includes land-use provisions that preempt certain local rules on zoning, density, and building height to help speed housing production.
   

The Live Local Act represents one of Florida’s largest housing investments in history, and is intended to help more Floridians live where they work by making housing development easier and more cost-effective.

 Transform386 is Volusia County’s disaster recovery initiative funded through the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s Community Development Block Grant – Disaster Recovery (CDBG-DR) program. It was created to help Volusia County rebuild, recover, and strengthen communities after major storm events like Hurricane Ian and Hurricane Milton, focusing on long-term housing, infrastructure, and mitigation needs. 

• Homeowner Recovery: The program provides financial assistance for eligible homeowners to repair, rebuild, or replace homes damaged by hurricanes, and offers reimbursement for storm-related repairs already completed.
   
• Affordable & Multi-Family Housing: Gap funding and other support help develop affordable multi-family housing projects in the county.
   
• Infrastructure & Mitigation: Funds support public infrastructure improvements (like stormwater systems and utilities) and resilience projects that reduce future disaster risk.
   
• Income & Eligibility Focus: A large portion of the funds are focused on helping low- to moderate-income residents, and certain income limits and HUD objectives apply to eligibility.

Transform386 helps ensure that recovery goes beyond simple repair — it’s designed to build back stronger, safer, and more resilient housing and communities after disaster impacts. The initiative blends federal support, local planning, and community engagement to address unmet housing needs and enhance long-term resiliency across Volusia County.