Got an overgrown property notice in Hillsborough or Pasco? What to do next.
Find the office that sent it and the deadline, get the work done before that date, and keep dated photos. Only the office that issued the notice can confirm the property complies.
Texting it? Cover anything on the notice you’d rather not share.
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Where the property sits decides the office.
An overgrown property notice comes from the government whose code covers the land. In unincorporated Hillsborough County, that’s Hillsborough County Code Enforcement. Land in unincorporated Pasco County falls to Pasco County Code Compliance.
Inside city limits, the city enforces its own code instead. Hillsborough has three cities and Pasco has five, plus the Town of St. Leo. Each has its own rules.
Don’t go by the mailing address. A Plant City, Dade City or Zephyrhills address can sit outside city limits, and Dover, Thonotosassa and Wesley Chapel aren’t incorporated at all. The office is named on the notice, so start there.
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Cities in Hillsborough County
Tampa, Temple Terrace and Plant City each run their own code enforcement.
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Cities and Towns in Pasco County
Zephyrhills, Dade City, New Port Richey and Port Richey each have a code office. San Antonio and St. Leo have their own codes too.
What the notice should tell you.
Hillsborough’s property maintenance code spells out what a county notice includes. It lists the date the problem was seen, the address, the code section, the fix needed, a reasonable time to make it, and the penalty for missing it. You might get it by hand or by certified mail, or find it posted on the property.
In Pasco, the county posts its demand on the property and serves it on the owner. That demand names the condition, sets a deadline to correct it, says what happens if the deadline’s missed, and explains how to appeal.
Both counties cite the same two kinds of trouble: overgrown grass, weeds or brush, and piled-up trash, debris or yard waste. Their codes name vermin, mosquitoes and fire hazards among the reasons.
If you think a Pasco County notice is wrong, read the appeal part first. Asking for a hearing has its own deadline, and it can be shorter than the one for the work. For any other notice, ask the office that sent it how to contest it.
Three steps, starting the day it arrives.
Most of this comes down to the calendar. The sooner the date’s written down, the more room you’ve got to get the work done.
- Find the deadline and the office
Write the deadline somewhere you’ll see it, and note which office sent the notice. If anything on it is unclear, ask that office directly.
- Get the work done in time
Book the mowing, brush hogging or hauling early, since rain can push a date back. You can price the work in our quote tool and add the deadline there. Take dated photos before and after.
- Let the office confirm it
Only the office that issued the notice can say the property complies. In Hillsborough, you can look up a county case and see its status and inspection dates.
Fixing it late isn’t the same as fixing it on time. Under Hillsborough County’s code, a case that wasn’t corrected by the deadline can still go to a hearing, even when the work’s done before the hearing date.
Ten things to tick off, in order.
Print this page or keep it open on your phone, and work down the list from the day the notice arrives.
- The deadlineWrite down the date on the notice.
- The officeNote which county or city sent it, from the letterhead.
- The officer’s contactSave the name, phone and email printed on it.
- The case numberYou’ll need it to look the case up or ask about it.
- What’s citedOvergrown grass and weeds, piled-up debris, or both.
- Photos beforeTake dated photos of the property as it stands.
- Book the workMowing, brush hogging or hauling, with room left for rain.
- Photos afterKeep dated photos once the work’s done.
- Tell the officeLet the officer know it’s done, and keep a copy of what you send.
- Confirm it’s closedCheck the case online where you can, or ask the office to confirm in writing.
What happens next depends on who sent it.
The two counties and the cities don’t follow one process, so don’t judge one by another.
Unincorporated Hillsborough County
Hillsborough County Code Enforcement lets anyone search a case by case number, address, parcel number or name. The results show its status and its open, close and inspection dates.
An open case can go to a hearing before the Code Enforcement Board or a Special Magistrate. They can order it fixed by a set date and fine the owner for each day it continues past that date. A recorded fine order becomes a lien. Repeat violations can go straight to a hearing.
Before a hearing, county staff can agree a settlement with the owner, though talks don’t put off the hearing unless everyone agrees. When an owner meets a recorded order on time, the Board issues an order acknowledging compliance.
Abandoned property falls under the county’s Property Preservation Program. If a notice to abate isn’t followed, the county can have the work done at the owner’s expense. An unpaid bill becomes a lien.
Hillsborough County NoticesUnincorporated Pasco County
Pasco County Code Compliance posts its demand on the property and serves the owner. There’s no public case search like Hillsborough’s. The Code Compliance page has an Open Violation Search link, but it opens a request form.
If the deadline passes, the county, or a contractor it hires, can correct the condition itself. The cost, plus a penalty, fees and interest, is then charged against the land as a lien. A citation is also possible.
Pasco County NoticesInside City Limits
Each city follows its own code. Zephyrhills and Dade City both say the city can have an overgrown lot cleaned up and put a lien on it for the cost. Plant City’s code allows the same.
Tampa lets owners search enforcement cases online. Port Richey’s advice works anywhere: fix it by the deadline, or contact staff before then for guidance.
Notices Inside City LimitsFour things owners often miss.
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Your mailing address on file
Florida law lets an office mail a notice to the address the tax collector or property appraiser has for you. If nobody signs for it, the notice can be posted instead, and it counts whether or not you saw it. Keep that address current.
Owning From Out of Town -
Fines and bills can become liens
A recorded fine order, or an unpaid bill for work the government had done, can become a lien on the land. In Hillsborough, the property has to comply before a code lien can be settled or released.
Code Liens -
An HOA letter isn’t a code notice
An HOA enforces its own rules, and a county or city enforces its code. They can overlap, though. In unincorporated Pasco, an HOA officer can file an overgrowth complaint once the association has asked for a cleanup in writing.
HOA Letter or Code Notice? -
The first cut costs the most
Grass that’s got away takes longer to cut than a lawn that’s kept up, so the first visit is priced higher. Regular visits after that go back to the normal price.
Lawn Mowing Cost
If money or health is why it got away.
For a county case in unincorporated Hillsborough, the Code Enforcement Community Outreach team helps homeowners in exactly this spot. When an officer finds that a violation comes from a hardship, such as a medical or financial setback, the case can be passed to that team.
Outreach works with community partners, businesses and volunteers to supply the materials and labor. Hardship cases involving veterans go to the county’s Operation Code Vet program. The Community Outreach page has the details.
If that sounds like you, tell the county officer handling your case. It’s the officer who decides whether it qualifies for Outreach.
The City of New Port Richey’s code enforcement page describes a NICE grant for eligible homeowners in the city. It helps bring a property with code violations into compliance, and the application form is linked there.
About code notices.
Will mowing the lot close my code case?
No. Only the office that issued the notice can confirm the property complies. The mowing, brush hogging or hauling fixes what was cited, and dated photos give you a record of when it was done.
Can I ask for more time?
Ask the office named on the notice, and ask before the deadline rather than after it. Put it in writing if you can, and keep a copy. Whether you get more time is that office’s call.
I fixed it after the deadline. Is the case over?
Not always. Florida’s code enforcement law lets a case go to a hearing even when the problem’s fixed before the hearing date, if it wasn’t fixed by the deadline. Ask the office where your case stands.
Is Pinewood connected to the county or city?
No. Pinewood is a private property service company, not affiliated with any county or city office. We can’t deal with an office for you or close a case. Our part is the mowing, brush hogging and hauling.
How do I tell if the notice is from the county or a city?
Go by the office named on the notice, not the mailing address. A Plant City, Dade City or Zephyrhills address can sit outside city limits. Our guide to notices inside city limits has the detail for each city.
How soon can you get to it?
You’ll hear back within one business day, and we’ll agree a date with you. We can’t promise a date before we’ve seen the property, so send the notice as early as you can.
Send us the address and the deadline.
Pinewood mows overgrown lawns and lots, brush hogs land gone to tall grass and brush, and hauls off exterior debris. Tick the code-notice box in the quote tool and add the deadline, and we’ll agree on a price and a date with you.
Nothing’s booked until the date is agreed, so send the notice as early as you can. Starting prices: overgrown lawns from $75 for the first cut, and tall grass and weeds on acreage from $100 an acre, with a $300 job minimum. Vacant and managed homes are priced as commercial mowing, as the Pricing page shows. A vacant lot with no house on it is priced by the acre, so even a small one costs at least the job minimum.
When the work’s done, we send before-and-after photos with the date. Pinewood isn’t connected to any county or city office, so closing the case stays with whoever sent the notice.
Got a notice? Start with the address.
Send the deadline with it, and a photo if you have one. You’ll hear back within one business day, and the price is confirmed once we’ve seen the property, in person or from your photos.
More answers on mowing, brush hogging and overgrown lots are in our other guides.
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