Hurricane retrofit
Hurricane retrofit for Florida mobile homes, book before storm season.
Florida hurricane season runs June 1 through November 30. Most mobile home damage in storms comes from anchor failure, not roof or wall failure. We retrofit older homes to current Florida code before storms arrive, and we file the paperwork your insurance company asks for.
When to schedule
We book hurricane retrofit jobs heavily February through May. Once a named storm is in the Gulf, every contractor in Florida is at capacity and prices go up. Plan ahead.
Why this matters: lessons from Florida hurricane history
Destroyed 11,000+ mobile homes in South Florida. Led directly to Florida's stronger anchoring rules for mobile homes.
Hit Punta Gorda Cat 4, ~12,000 mobile homes destroyed. Showed that pre-1994 homes without proper anchoring failed at much lower wind speeds than rated.
Cat 4 statewide impact. ~25% of mobile homes in some Keys areas destroyed. Most failures: anchors pulled out of wet soil that hadn't been pull-tested.
Cat 4 in Lee County. Damaged or destroyed ~13,000 mobile homes. Properly retrofitted homes survived; many older un-retrofitted homes total losses.
What a hurricane retrofit includes
- Site soil class assessment to confirm anchor type
- All ground anchors pull-tested or replaced if rating insufficient for current wind zone
- New frame ties added or replaced to Florida code spacing (max 5 ft 4 in)
- Stabilizer plates installed on every diagonal anchor (required for 14 ft+ wide homes)
- Vertical (over-the-top) ties added for older or higher-risk homes
- Skirting reinforcement and ventilation check
- Tie-down inspection scheduled with county
- Documentation pack: invoice, license proof, insurance proof, inspection certificate, anchor pull-test logs
Available discounts
Insurance and the My Safe Florida Home program
If your home was permitted before current standards, retrofitting may qualify you for an insurance discount. The state My Safe Florida Home program (MSFH) offers grants up to $10,000 for qualifying mitigation work. We provide the contractor documentation MSFH needs. Your insurance carrier may also reduce your wind premium 5 to 35 percent after retrofit, depending on policy.
What affects the price
- Home size: single-wide or double-wide
- How many anchors, frame ties, and straps need work, and how much existing hardware can be reused
- Soil class and access around the home
- Wind zone where the home sits
- Permits and inspection, when the county requires them
We give you a written quote after a quick call or visit, before any work starts.
No surprises
- The price on your written quote is the price.
- If something changes on site, we tell you in writing first. Nothing extra happens without your signature.
- You pay in stages as the work gets done, not everything up front.
- Your lender can work from our written quote.
Selling or buying with a loan?
The lender needs an engineer's foundation certification. We fix what the engineer checks, and our partner engineer certifies the home.
Foundation certification for your lenderCommon questions
- When should I retrofit my mobile home for hurricane season?
- Before the season starts and before your carrier renews. If your home was installed before the current rule, sits in a county upgraded to a higher wind zone, or has visible strap or anchor deterioration, a retrofit may be required.
- Is there a free hurricane retrofit program?
- Florida's Hurricane Loss Mitigation Program funds free tie-down retrofits for qualifying mobile homes built before 1999, administered through Gulf Coast State College. We can check whether your home qualifies.
- What does a hurricane retrofit cover?
- Adding or upgrading anchors and straps to current Florida code for your wind zone, replacing rusted or broken hardware, and documenting it for your insurer.
Schedule your retrofit before the next storm
Tell us your ZIP and home size. We send a quote the same day and get you on the schedule before peak hurricane season fills up.