What "cleared" usually means
Ask three people what a cleared lot is and you get three answers. For a builder it usually means the house footprint, driveway and work area are free of trees, stumps and roots, with the cut material either hauled off or ground into mulch. Trees outside that area may need to stay, and on many lots the city expects some to.
Agree on the finished condition before anyone starts. Put it in the written price.
- Which trees come out and which stay, marked on site
- Stumps ground, or pulled with the roots
- Material hauled away or mulched in place
- Whether rough grading or fill is part of the job
- Silt fence or other erosion control, if the permit calls for it
Get these together before anyone quotes it
A crew can price a lot from a parcel ID and a few photos, but the number holds up better when the paperwork is on the table first. Gather what you have and send it with your request.
- The parcel ID or address, plus the boundary survey if you have one
- Your builder's site plan, or at least where the house, driveway and septic will sit
- Photos from the road and from a back corner of the lot
- Any burrows you've spotted in open sand
- Trees you want to keep, tied with ribbon
Palm Bay's permit, in short
On a Palm Bay residential lot below 1 acre, all land clearing needs a permit, and so does taking out a tree once its diameter at breast height reaches 6 inches (Palm Bay Code s. 175.014). Expect to hand in a site sketch with every tree's size and species and which ones stay, the recorded deed, a signed hold-harmless agreement, and an authorization letter if you aren't the owner. Review takes 7 days.
One detail catches lot owners: when a single- or two-family lot under 1 acre is being cleared for development, Palm Bay wants a building permit already under review and its application number on the clearing application. Clearing a lot years ahead of building plans is a different conversation with the city.
In unincorporated Brevard
Outside city limits the county's rules apply, and Merritt Island counts as unincorporated (Brevard County Code s. 62-4333). Unless a property is exempt, the county requires a permit before any land clearing (s. 62-4337), and it defines land clearing as removing or cutting down vegetation, trees included, plus root-raking (s. 62-4332).
The county protects trees by size. On the mainland and Merritt Island, a hardwood 10 inches or more in diameter at breast height is protected, and so is a pine or other softwood at 14 inches. On the barrier island both thresholds drop to 1.5 inches. Diameter is measured 4.5 feet above grade, and invasive species don't count (s. 62-4332).
A county land clearing permit for a single-family lot expires 90 days after it is issued and has to be posted where it can be seen from the road (Brevard County Code s. 62-4338). Line up the crew before the clock starts.
Check for gopher tortoises first
Gopher tortoises dig in dry, sandy ground, and plenty of Brevard lots fit that description. FWC requires a relocation permit before clearing, grading or digging within 25 feet of a potentially occupied burrow, and no permit is needed if all work stays at least 25 feet away (FWC gopher tortoise permits). Moving tortoises off a site takes an FWC Authorized Gopher Tortoise Agent, so build that time into the schedule if the lot has burrows.
More on this in the gopher tortoise guide.
Stumps and buried lines
Pulling or grinding stumps means digging. Under Florida law, Sunshine 811 has to hear about any digging at least two full business days ahead, and grading or moving earth counts as digging (Sunshine 811). Ask the crew who is making the request and when. The stump grinding page covers grinding versus pulling.
Questions for the crew
Get the answers in writing. A price that says "clear lot" and nothing else is how people end up paying twice.
- Does the price include stumps, and are they ground or pulled?
- Is the material hauled off, mulched on the lot, or a mix?
- Who places the Sunshine 811 request, and when?
- What happens if a tortoise burrow turns up partway through?
- Will the pad area be left clean for the fill and grading, or is grading part of this job?
Questions people ask
Can I burn what gets cleared?
Every land clearing pile burn in Florida needs Florida Forest Service authorization, and residential piles must sit 300 feet from neighbors' occupied buildings (FFS, Know the Law). Most quarter-acre lots can't meet that, which is why mulching or hauling is the usual choice.
Do I have to remove every tree?
Usually not, and in Palm Bay the permit application asks which trees will be kept. See selective clearing for keeping the good ones.
How long does it take?
The clearing itself is often the short part. Permit review, a tortoise survey if there are burrows, and the 811 notice set the real timeline, so ask the crew for dates once those are known.
Should clearing wait until the house plans are done?
In Palm Bay that's hard to do. When a single- or two-family lot under 1 acre is being cleared for development, the city wants a building permit already under review and its number on the clearing application (Palm Bay Code s. 175.014). Other parts of the county write their own rules; the permit guide goes area by area.
Is the debris hauled away or mulched on site?
Either, and it's your call. Mulching in place keeps trucks off the lot and leaves a layer of chips. Hauling leaves bare sand, which some builders prefer for the pad. Say which you want and the crew prices that. See forestry mulching.
Last reviewed October 7, 2026. General information, not legal or professional advice. Check the linked sources for the current rules.
Sources
- Palm Bay Code of Ordinances, Chapter 175 (tree protection and land clearing)
- Brevard County Code s. 62-4337, permit required
- Brevard County Code s. 62-4332, definitions
- Brevard County Code s. 62-4338, land clearing permit standards
- FWC, Gopher tortoise permits
- Sunshine 811, frequently asked questions
- Florida Forest Service, Know the Law (land clearing burns)