Medical office build-out in Fort Lauderdale.

By Chase Farache, Broker Associate, Silver Lining Realty Group. Updated October 2026.

Step 1: confirm the use before you design anything

Start with zoning, not floor plans. The City of Fort Lauderdale's Zoning Division tells applicants to look up a property's zoning district in the City's GIS Property Reporter, then check the Unified Land Development Regulations (ULDR) for that district's permitted and conditional uses. The Zoning Division also issues zoning verification letters.

As of October 1, 2026, the City requires a Certificate of Use (CU). The City describes it as verifying that "a business can operate at a specific location." New businesses must obtain a CU before applying for a Business Tax Receipt. Existing businesses need one if they change ownership, relocate, substantially modify operations, or modify or expand their space. The application goes through LauderBuild and asks for items such as a site plan or survey, floor plans, a letter of intent and owner authorization or a signed lease. The City adds that a change of use from an existing or prior use "triggers additional City applications."

In practice: get the CU question answered during the letter-of-intent stage, and make the lease contingent on it. Our zoning guide for medical and flex uses in Broward goes deeper.

Step 2: know your code classification

Fort Lauderdale enforces the Florida Building Code. The current edition is the 8th Edition (2023), effective December 31, 2023 and based on the 2021 International Building Code. The Florida Building Commission's October 2026 work plan lists the 9th Edition (2026) effective date as December 31, 2026, so a project permitted around the turn of the year should confirm with the architect which edition applies.

Most physician, dental and therapy offices are classified as Business (Group B). The code adds a category inside Group B called an ambulatory care facility: outpatient care where patients are rendered incapable of self-preservation by the services, such as general anesthesia. The ICC's care-facility provisions tie extra requirements to four or more such patients at once, including fire partitions, smoke compartments for larger suites, sprinklers and fire alarm systems. If your practice sedates patients, tell your architect at the first meeting; it can change which suites work.

Step 3: check state health care licensing

Licensing can dictate the floor plan, so check it early:

• Ambulatory surgical centers. Under s. 395.002, F.S., an ASC is a facility whose primary purpose is elective surgical care with admission and discharge within 24 hours, not part of a hospital. Section 395.003 says a license from the Agency for Health Care Administration (AHCA) is required to operate one. An office maintained by a physician for the practice of medicine is not an ASC, but a facility certified or seeking certification as a Medicare ASC must be licensed as one.
• Health care clinics. Section 400.9905, F.S., defines a clinic as an entity that provides health care services and tenders charges for reimbursement, then lists exemptions. One exemption covers practices wholly owned and directly supervised by one or more physicians (owners may also include certain family members). Practices with outside or non-physician ownership should have counsel check whether a clinic license applies.

Step 4: permits, reviews and inspections

Fort Lauderdale's Building Permits FAQ cites Florida Building Code Sec. 105.1: a permit is needed to alter a building or change its occupancy. Owner-builder permits are limited to one- or two-family dwellings, so commercial work goes through a licensed contractor. Key points from the City's Permitting Services pages:

• Applications and plans go through LauderBuild; the City no longer accepts paper applications for new submissions, and the City's pages exclude commercial work needing after-the-fact code review from same-day walk-thru processing.
• Plans are reviewed by structural, electrical, plumbing, flood and mechanical, plus landscaping, zoning and engineering. Fire reviews drawings for all buildings other than one- and two-family dwellings.
• The department states a goal of completing initial permit reviews within 30 days or less.
• Owners may use a registered private provider for building, mechanical, electrical and plumbing reviews and inspections under s. 553.791, F.S., with approval by the Assistant Building Official.
• ADA inspections are a separate inspection and must be passed before a Certificate of Occupancy is issued.

On accessibility, the 2010 ADA Standards require altered areas to be accessible to the maximum extent feasible, and an alteration to a primary function area brings the path of travel, restrooms and drinking fountains serving it into scope, up to a cost of 20% of the alteration (28 CFR 36.403). The ADA Title III manual lists professional offices of health care providers as public accommodations, and it treats landlord and tenant as both fully responsible.

Step 5: liens, the notice of commencement and the lease

Florida's construction lien law affects who signs what:

• Notice of commencement. Under s. 713.13, F.S., the owner records a notice of commencement with the clerk and posts a copy at the job site before work starts. Fort Lauderdale's FAQ says it is required when the contract exceeds $5,000, matching s. 713.135. The notice is void if work does not start within 90 days of recording.
• Landlord protection. Under s. 713.10, F.S., a landlord's interest is not subject to liens for a tenant's improvements if the lease prohibits such liens and the lease, a memorandum of it, or a parcel-wide notice is recorded before the notice of commencement. The tenant must tell its contractor about that clause; knowingly failing to do so makes the contract voidable at the contractor's option.

In the lease itself, negotiate the improvement allowance, who manages construction, when rent starts relative to permit and CO dates, and what you must remove at the end of the term. A hypothetical example: if a lease grants a $100,000 allowance and the low bid is $140,000, the $40,000 difference is yours unless you negotiate a larger allowance, amortize it into rent, or cut scope. Those numbers are illustrative, not market figures.

A realistic sequence and where to start

1. Shortlist suites with existing plumbing near exam rooms, adequate electrical service, and parking that matches your patient volume.
2. Confirm zoning and Certificate of Use requirements before signing.
3. Have your architect test-fit the suite and flag code classification and licensing issues.
4. Sign a lease with contingencies for permits and a rent start tied to completion.
5. Price the work, record the notice of commencement, permit through LauderBuild, build and inspect.

See medical office space in Fort Lauderdale, leasing medical office in Broward and Palm Beach, or buy vs lease. Call or text (561) 715-7222 to start a search.

Not legal or tax advice. Laws, codes and local rules change; confirm current requirements with your attorney, CPA, architect or the permitting office before you act.